Completing a 100-mile race is an accomplishment for any runner, but Ronnie Bondy stood out from the other athletes at the First Annual weULTRA Run (FAwR) in southwestern Ontario’s Essex County last weekend—Ronnie, from Belle River, Ont., is only 15. The Grade 9 student ran with his father, Brian Bondy (an accomplished ultra-distance athlete himself, who competed on the Canadian Backyard Ultra team in 2022) for 27 hours and 24 minutes, to finish fifth overall.
FAwR is a self-supported race, but runners can accept aid dropped off along the course by “road angels,” and can access gas stations along the course. Ronnie had a large support system that included his mother, grandparents, and friends and family, who ran and biked with him for sections of the course. He fit in only one 20-minute power nap at mile 72, before continuing through the night in heavy rain.
Wet, cold conditions
While the conditions for FAwR were not ideal and Ronnie faced some physical challenges, he says he knew he wouldn’t quit. He says a low point arose just before nightfall: “The sky was a very dark blue. I was scared, because I realized I had to run through the whole night to make it through 100 miles,” he said. Ronnie dealt with wet feet and low temperatures on the flooded trails at night: “All I could see was my dad’s headlight ahead of me. I just kept following the light. It was one of the scariest parts, because I was freezing cold.”
Ronnie persevered, and says he feels like a better athlete having completed such an immense distance. “I am more mentally strong after doing this run,” he says. “I think it is the biggest goal I’ve ever had, but I will do even bigger stuff in the future. I wanted to finish the FAwR because I’ve been running this race since 2021, but over multiple chunks and over multiple days. I always wanted to do it in one chunk.”
An early start
“Ronnie started running before he learned to walk,” Brian says. “He ran his first 5K, the Super Santa Run, dressed as Santa Claus, at age six, and started adding distance every year afterward.” Ronnie ran his first half marathon (the Nutrience Oakville Half) at age nine, and followed that with his first marathon, the 2020 virtual Detroit Free Press Marathon, at age 11. Ronnie increased his distance, tackling a 50K in the 2021 edition of FAwR—his longest distance at the time. In 2022, Ronnie ran 65K at the Bridge 2 Bridge 2 Bridge event, and in April of this year he ran 100K at a local backyard ultra, a distance PB at the time.
Long races, big goals
Ronnie says his love of running is fuelled by a desire to push past limits and reach new goals—he makes a new running goal for himself each year. He hopes to one day be on the Canadian Backyard Ultra team, like his father was in 2022. When asked if he would run another 100-miler, Ronnie enthusiastically said yes—and he will next be toeing the line at Persistence Backyard Ultra in London, Ont., in August. He hopes one day to follow in his father’s footsteps and run the Cocodona 250.
