September 27-29, 2024
The 2024 edition of “The Jake” will take place on the weekend of September 27-29, 2024 and will be open to anyone wishing to participate. The organizing committee of The 2024 Jake has requested applications from PEI charities to become the beneficiary of this year’s event funds. Applications will close on April 30th and we will announce the beneficiary by May 15!
The Jake is an annual Run-Bike-Walk event in memory of Jacob Simmons of Belfast, PEI – an avid athlete who was killed at the age of 27 by an impaired driver while cycling on June 12, 2020.
Participants can choose to do their activity – walking, running, or cycling – on any segment of the Confederation Trail, or on any of the Island Nature Trails, or on any segment of The Island Walk that they wish. Participants are free to choose the duration for their activity, however, we suggest the following:
- cyclists can cycle between 20-40 kilometres
- runners can run between 5-10 kilometres
- walkers can walk between 4-6 kilometres
The start time can be determined by the individual participants, or groups of participants. Feel free to choose a time that works for you on that weekend.
https://www.traditionrolex.com/4Participants in this year’s event are asked to donate a minimum of $20 towards the PEI Chapter of MADD. $20 is the default option for a donation, however, there is a box below where you can enter more if you, or someone you know, so chooses.
Respectfully submitted,
“The Jake” Organizing Committee: Norman Beck, Seana Evans-Renaud, Heidi Morgan, Pat Ryan, and Windsor Wight
History of The Jake
In August, 2020, a group of 22 current and retired administrators participated in a biking event on selected portions of the Confederation Trail, and in the process raised $850 towards the School Food Program. The participants very much enjoyed the camaraderie, the opportunity to connect with current and former colleagues, the exercise in the outdoors, the fact that they were making a contribution to the education system as well, and decided that it was an event worth trying again.
The Jake was officially held for the first time in September, 2021, and in the process, $2,800 was raised for the Jacob Simmons Sports Scholarship Fund that is hosted at the Community Foundation of PEI. It was awarded for the first time to a graduating student from an Island high school who embodies the many qualities that Jacob possessed.
The 2022 edition of The Jake was slated to be held on the same weekend as Hurricane Fiona. The hurricane did not dampen the spirits of participants, however, as they all found time to do the event at an alternate date and time. The PEI chapter of MADD Charlottetown and Eastern PE Chapter was the beneficiary of the 2022 event, and the participants raised $2,169 to support the work of the local Chapter. The 2023 edition of The Jake also supported MADD Charlottetown and Eastern PEI with a donation of $2,087.
Background
We wish to provide you with some background on Jacob, which will help to explain why having this event named in his honour is appropriate.
Jacob was not unlike many young people we come across in our daily lives. Raised on a farm in Mount Buchanan/Point Prim, he learned early on in life the value of working hard. He was a great kid growing up and well liked by his peers. He lost his way a bit in high school but overcame those challenges and turned things around as a young adult. Those who knew Jacob were most impressed with the quality person that he had become.
Terry Fox was a big inspiration in Jacob’s life, and he regularly donated to his foundation – even though he didn’t have a lot of money to give. He also participated in the “Charity Miles” program whereby he generated donations for every mile he ran or cycled – which started to add up. Again, he didn’t have a lot to give, but did so with a giving heart to help others.
Jacob loved the outdoors, and all of the adventure it had to offer. He could be regularly found running and biking on the Confederation Trail and other Island trails, and he had a personal goal to run every nature trail on PEI in 2020, as well as to cycle Tip to Tip across the Island. Gairloch Trail, near his family home in Belfast, was his personal favourite.
This Instagram post comes from Colin O’Brady, one of his “running community” friends – a fellow avid outdoor adventurer and professional tri-athlete – who posted it after he learned that Jacob had died. There is an accompanying video that shows Jacob participating in the “Calendar Club” – a running challenge in which participants run a mile for each day of the month – Day 1 = 1 mile and Day 30 = 30 miles. The video is about 2 minutes long, but it gives you a good visual of Jacob and provides some insight into the type of person he was, and the impact that he had on others.