Saskatoon runner and community builder Tarrant Cross Child makes friends wherever he goes. So it’s no surprise that when he was invited to speak at a Winnipeg running store in 2023 he connected with a local race organizer.
During that visit, Cross Child shared his story of how running helped him overcome addiction and spoke about his work with Prairie Run Crew, which promotes healthy living through run clinics, events and community building. Manitoba ultrarunner and race organizer Albert Martens was so moved by Cross Child’s message that he invited him to speak — and run — at his annual Polar Bear Marathon in Churchill last month.
Cross Child has lined up at numerous races over the years, but none quite like the Polar Bear Marathon, which is run along the shores of Hudson Bay on the last weekend of November. The race is limited to 20 participants and each is followed by an escort vehicle to ensure everyone is safe from the elements and wildlife – including polar bears.
This week, Cross Child shares what it was like to take part in the one-of-a-kind event, and how volunteering to help set up the course led to an unforgettable encounter with a polar bear.
What makes the Polar Bear Marathon unique?
It is one of those races where the logistics of getting there is so difficult. You can’t just drive to Churchill like you can just drive to Edmonton or Regina and run a marathon. You’ve got to go to Winnipeg and then from Winnipeg you can fly to Churchill or you have to catch a train, which takes a couple days. I was lucky to be invited by the race director as the guest speaker so he took care of the logistics to get me there — we took a plane from Winnipeg to Chuchill — and he took really good care of me.
Churchill, Manitoba is the Polar Bear Capital of the World. And the race is small; they cap the race because of the logistics of needing a vehicle assigned to each participant.
It’s super cold and it’s really windy – you’re running right along the shore of the bay. My face is still healing from taking on that wind. My lips are still chapped from it too.
It’s for people who are wanting something extreme, something different, something out of the ordinary. You’re not going up there to bang out a PB.
You shared a cool video on social media of a polar bear carrying away the 10-kilometre marker on the race course. Tell me about that moment.
I arrived in Churchill on the Friday afternoon and I knew the two course marshals were going to be out on the course staking it out. And that’s what I do with Prairie Run Crew so I asked: Can I come with you guys? They said yes and so we went out.
We spray painted the ground and put up flags for the start, then drove five kilometres and spray painted the ground, then got back in the van and drove another five kilometres. My job was to put the stakes in. I was pounding in the 10k sign and then I looked up and, about 200 yards away, I see this white cuddly polar bear. All three of us just stood there and watched it because it was amazing.
It walked towards us along the shoulder of the road so we got into the van. We didn’t want to move or anything because we didn’t want to spook it. So I thought: I’m going to take a video.
The bear just came over and sniffed the sign and then walked away with it and played with it in the field. It was quite amazing. Then we kept marking the course and, when we came back, we were able to retrieve the sign and it has a corner that was bitten off.
It was quite something — they’ve never seen anything like that before and this is their 14th year. They say I was good luck.
How did the race go?
The race was good. People came from all over the place and you got to meet them at the pre-race briefing.
On race day my plan was just to go out and have fun and save some energy because I had to go speak at the banquet that evening after the race. So I ran it and had fun. My goal was to run it in under four hours and I did. I forgot to stop my watch, but I did it in just under three hours and 40 minutes.
I didn’t see any bears during the race. There’s a conservation officer that goes out in front of the lead runners and blasts bear bangers to chase away the bears.
It would have been about -22 or -24 with the windchill. And the wind was nasty, it was blowing pretty good. I had wanted to train here in Saskatoon in the cold, but we just didn’t get cold until after the race.
The reception at the finish line from the town — the town just takes this all in. It was pretty amazing.
What else do you want people to know about the race?
Try new things. You don’t always have to go for a PB. Venture out. Don’t wait – just go do it.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
