As marathon runners made their way through winding forest pathways and residential roads on Newfoundland’s east coast on Sunday, they were joined by a four-legged competitor who has since become a sensation, says one mayor.
The Town of Conception Bay South hosted its first T’Railway Trek Half Marathon on Sunday. When its 250 runners passed a local business called Taylor’s Pumpkin Patch, Mayor Darrin Bent said a new contestant spontaneously joined the race.
“They have a resident goat, Mr. Joshua. And when the runners went past the pumpkin patch, the goat decided, ‘Well, I’m not staying here, I’m joining them!'” Bent told CBC News.
Joshua ran alongside the runners for approximately four kilometres before his owners caught up with him, said Bent. His owners walked the last half-kilometre with him to get him over the finish line.
“We very quickly put a medal around his neck and he became quite the star. Most people who actually ran the half marathon wanted their picture with Joshua at the finish line,” said Bent.
He recalled he was waiting at the finish line at Topsail Beach when news spread that a goat was running alongside participants.
“We didn’t know what quite to make of it. We had just heard that a goat was running along the trail,” he said.
Joshua’s owner, Jeremy Taylor, told CBC News he learned of his goat’s aspiration for long-distance running through social media.
“He decided to break his collar, which he had on for years, and join the runners.… He was after going about two kilometres and he was stopped around the water station,” Taylor said.
“He’s used to large groups of people and he really gets involved and when he seen the crowd running, he decided to join in not knowing this is one of the longest runs he’s ever had.”
Joshua quickly became a highlight of the race, with his photos being shared hundreds of times on social media. Taylor said he heard from runners who decided to keep pace with Joshua, speeding up and slowing down as the goat tired and found another gear.
“Everybody is talking about it…. It’s putting a smile on a lot of faces,” said Bent.
The half marathon itself was more than a year in the making, and Conception Bay South’s mayor says Joshua added something special to it.
“To have Joshua join in and become a kind of a mascot-star of the event is something we didn’t expect and we’re just delighted that the G.O.A.T.” — an acronym that stands for Greatest of All Time — “of the race is really a goat.”
Bent said he hopes Joshua will join in next year’s marathon — not as a runner, but to hang out at the finish line.
And Joshua’s celebrity tour isn’t over just yet. He’ll be dropping the puck at a C.B.S. Renegades hockey game next week.
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