Making moves at Mohawk Miles

The 40th annual Mohawk Miles was a hit in the community last Friday, with hundreds of community members coming out to take part in the competitive nighttime event hosted by the Kahnawake Youth Center (KYC).

“It’s been going since before I was born,” said Cheyenne McComber, community and family events coordinator at KYC. “It’s a community event that is strong, because people look forward to it and they ask for it every year. They’re coming for health reasons, they’re coming for positive outcomes, and sharing it with their community.”

Fellow community and family events coordinator Karlijn Kronenberg said the team at KYC has been particularly happy to see a renewed enthusiasm for the event, especially after putting additional effort into promotion and community engagement.

“We’ve been trying to really get this out there,” Kronenberg said. “We got 190 people at least who started the race today and we had even more people who signed up, so overall as of now it’s a really successful event and I’m super excited about it.”

A new addition to this year’s event was the “Wiggle and Stride” section for participants aged zero to five, a 180-metre race that saw Kahnawake’s cutest little ones engage with getting active.

“We’re getting kids into running from a really young age, and hopefully they’ll go on and continue to win our master’s 55-plus,” McComber said.

This year’s winners included 14-year-old Carter Paul who took home first place in the 1.6KM run with a time of six minutes and 36 seconds, twelve-year-old Nathan Scarlett-Cross who won the 3KM run with a time of 12 minutes and seven seconds, and 28-year-old Kanerahtens Bush, who won the 5KM race with a time of 20 minutes and 46 seconds.

Also taking home a medal was Tehorakwaneken Goodleaf, 28, who completed the 10 KM run in 43 minutes and 28 seconds, the longest race category of the competition.

For those who weren’t interested in the competitive part of the night, participation medals were handed out to all participants - including for the youngest runners, who were there to get their feet wet in the world of exercise.

“I just liked it when I got in third place, and there was cheering over there,” said Lennox, one of the youngest racers on the night.

Also in attendance was community member Abigail Deer, who said she showed up to race to support KYC’s mission in the community.

“I think it’s going pretty good, there’s lots of people here,” she said. “I feel like it helps the Youth Center, and it helps the kids a lot.”

The race alternates between daytime and nighttime events each year, so next year’s Mohawk Miles will be a daytime affair.

“If you didn’t make it this year, join us next year, we always have the door open at the Youth Center,” said McComber.

With files from William Parenteau

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