Collaroy’s weekend of beachside fun returns with the Cliff Side Fun Run and Sporting Festival kicking on for second year March 17-18.
More than 2,000 fun runners turned out for the inaugural year of the event, and organiser are expecting over double that number to attend this year. The ambassadors for the festival include Surf Livesaving champion Katie Williams, rugby league royalty and former Sea Eagle Steve Menzies and cricket announcer and radio personality Gus Worland. New to the ambassador ranks this year is Olympian and Ironman Ky Hurst. All of the ambassadors will take part in the run itself, hoping to encourage others to join the fun.
The activities begin on Saturday with an outdoor screening of Aussie classic Paper Planes, with screenwriter Steve Worland serving as host for the evening. The folks from Deus Ex Machina will also be present, handing out some surfboard related wisdom and running some board shaping demonstrations. Kids can enter the paper plane competition while parents sit back and enjoy the gourmet food vans and live music on offer.
Sunday will see the runners take their marks to compete in either the three, five or 10km run, with the course taking the participants along the scenic Long Reef Headland. The start and finish area will also serve as the location for the Sporting Festival with everyone getting the change to sample different sports in one of the more than 30 stalls open on the day.
Chinwag with professionals of the exercise industry, try on some of the latest sportswear or relax in the massage tent. There’ll also be plenty of food and coffee vendors on site to service weary runners and spectators alike.
All that running is for a good cause with money going to men’s mental health charity Gotcha4Life, the National Breast Cancer Foundation, Surf Lifesaving Clubs in the area and local schools. If your school enters a team then 30 per cent of your registration fees will be returned to the school.