Running on Executive Power: SaskEnergy Executives Compete in Queen City Marathon

What started as a one-time challenge is on its way to becoming a SaskEnergy tradition. For the second year in a row, members of SaskEnergy’s Executive team laced up their runners and hit the pavement as “Naturally Gassed” in the Queen City Marathon (QCM) Team Relay on Sunday, September 7.

“Overall, it went great. Each of us shaved a few minutes off our time from last year and we were very happy with that result,” says Sheldon Smith, SaskEnergy’s Executive Vice President and Chief Information Officer.

The team started through an email challenge sent out by Sheldon to his fellow executives and he was surprised when he received four quick replies saying yes.

“It really speaks to the culture we have here at SaskEnergy where all staff are willing to put themselves out there, have fun and step outside their comfort zone to challenge themselves,” says Sheldon.

Made is up of Sheldon, Kevin Adair, Cory Frei, Derrick Mann, and Charlene Greve — who even came out of retirement to run this year. They finished 35th out of 55 teams. That’s six spots lower than last year, but they ran the race eight minutes faster, which they were proud of given their modest training goals.

The QCM Team Relay is a 42.2-kilometre race split into five parts. Each runner takes one part of the course. Because they had run the race before, the team knew what to expect.

“We kept to the same order and transition locations, which made the race easier from that standpoint,” says Derrick Mann, SaskEnergy’s Executive Vice President of Infrastructure Delivery and Reliability.

While the logistics for the race were easier this time around, the training was mixed for the team members.

“I don’t think any of us trained a lot to be honest. I probably did the most – I’ve been on a bit of a health realignment since I turned 50 a couple years ago, so I’ve been going to the gym almost every day and running three times a week,” says Sheldon.

Derrick credited a colleague with helping him stay focused on training.

“I would categorize my training for this year a very light, but despite my numerous excuses, I was pushed to continue lunchtime runs throughout the summer,” he says. “This is what got me through my leg of the relay, and the pure will power not to let the team down!”

The weather also helped. Last year, runners had to deal with temperatures in the mid-30s, but this year, it was cooler at around the mid-20s. It was only four degrees when the race started, and Cory had to run the first leg.

“It wasn’t too bad,” said Cory Frei, SaskEnergy’s Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.

“I was happily injury free this year, but unfortunately I put in fewer training runs and certainly noted I felt more tired post-race this year because of it.”

Now with two QCM relays under their belt, the Naturally Gassed team doesn’t plan on slowing down either, as there’s already talk of lacing up the running shoes again next year.

“It gives us something to connect on outside of our work and is fodder for some good-natured joking around within the team, so it provides a good morale boost,” Cory says.