The 46th installment of the Lilydale Lope will have some 250 reasons for runners to get in and break the course's record on May 28.
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Course creator Brian Baxter has put forward $250 for the men's and women's records to be broken in the 16.6km race, with the money to compound each year if unbroken until it reaches $1000.
The 74-year-old is hoping to raise the profile of the race with the financial incentive.
"The fact that it has lasted so long, it's a tribute to the club that they wanted to keep it going," he said.
"I'm not a proud person, but it's just nice to see something continue on.
"I ran in it, my children ran in it, none of them were really good runners but they went in it because dad did.
"It's interesting in the fact that it's one of the hardest runs around so it becomes a challenge for people.
"People who don't normally run that sort of distance will say 'yes, we'll run the Lope' because it's a real thing to finish."
The idea for the Lope came about after Baxter and fellow organiser Frank Nott visited New Zealand for the Commonwealth Games in 1972.
The town they stayed in, Lincoln, had a running event called the Lincoln Loop, which Baxter took part in and got the inspiration for his Lilydale Lope.
Two years later and the first Lope was run, with the course remaining unchanged since the maiden race.
When asked what made the race so tough, Baxter instantly replied "the hills".
"You either like hills or you hate them and I loved them," he said.
"I was a stronger runner rather than a fast one, so I could beat the faster runners on the hills and they would get away on the flat."
There's three tough climbs throughout the race as it goes through Lalla, Karoola, Second River and back towards Lilydale, with Baxter saying the last one "really knocks them about".
The race has always been run by the North Launceston Athletic Club and is now in conjunction with the Launceston Running Club, who deal with the logistics of the event being on the road.
With close to 1500 athletes taking part in the Lilydale Lope over the 45 years, the course records are held by Dave Thomas' 52 minute, 29 second effort in 2015 and Kate Pedley's 61.06 run in 2013.
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