Police officer to embark on ultramarathon 'adventure' for mental health

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A Bathurst Police Force officer plans to run an 80-kilometre ultra-marathon this summer in hopes of raising awareness and money for community mental health.

Const. François DeGrâce is asking the community to sponsor his run in the Quebec Mega Trail 80 kilometre ultra-trail running race July 6. The funds raised will be donated to Mind at Peace, a local wellness clinic, to pay for mental health services for those who can’t afford it.

“I thought I might as well not just do this for myself, but do it for my community,” he said, adding it was important to him the money support people in the community.

As a patrol officer, DeGrâce said it isn’t uncommon to see at least one mental health call per shift, so the cause is one that’s important to the community, and to him.

He also hopes the run will raise awareness for the importance of mental health for front-line workers like police officers, firefighters, dispatchers and nurses.

“We all walk around and suffer in silence, I find,” DeGrâce said. “It’s gotten a lot better than when I started in 2015 but it’s something that’s dear to my heart. I find that putting some awareness out there is just showing it’s OK to seek help and get the help they need.”

Working in policing for more than nine years, the 30-year-old said running is a tool he uses to keep himself healthy.

“I do a hard job and I need to decompress and this is a way I find I’m able to keep the stress away and be healthy physically and mentally.”

An athlete throughout his life, with an interest in more extreme sports, DeGrâce started running shorter distances during the COVID-19 pandemic as a way to supplement his home workouts.

“I found running was something that drained my energy best to remain sane,” he said.

He continued running as part of his training to become an emergency response member at the police force, and eventually ran his first official races in 2023. After successfully running a number of half marathons and a 25-kilometre trail race, DeGrâce set his sights on a bigger goal – the ultramarathon.

“The 80-kilometres scares me. I’m going to have to work hard for this,” he said. “The main thing was to challenge myself through something very hard, and see if I’m able to push myself through.”

The 80-kilometre course totals 3,290 metres in elevation with a 3,110-metre elevation loss, and a 19-hour cutoff time to finish.

“An ultramarathon is more of an adventure,” DeGrâce said, comparing it to road racing.

To prepare, DeGrâce hired a running coach to help with training and nutrition planning for the race. He’s running five to six days a week, from 45 minutes to three hours, to prepare.

With the help of a Bathurst Police Force social media post, DeGrâce has raised more than $1,100 and hopes for more support from the community and sponsorship from local businesses before race day.

“It means everything,” he said of the community support so far. “Mental health is something that everyone is touched by.”

His campaign can be found on the Go Fund Me site.