Registration for Niagara-on-the-Lake’s 2021 Step Challenge has begun. Residents can sign up as individuals or in teams of up to four people.

The program is being run by the town to get residents exercising as COVID keeps people house-bound. The challenge starts on June 1.

“These past 15 months have been challenging for us all,” chief administrative officer Marnie Cluckie said in a news release.

“Fresh air, physical activity and a little bit of friendly competition is a spectacular combination to help get us through these tough times and come out stronger.”

The town is challenging residents to reach 20 million collective steps and beat the 2019 record of 14 million.

Safety concerns regarding the pandemic will be kept at the forefront of the challenge by asking that team names to be COVID-19 themed.

“Let’s remember to wave and say hello from a distance and keep ourselves and each other safe,” Lord Mayor Betty Disero said.

There will be prizes awarded to teams who perform the best in weekly challenges, such as which team or individual has the highest average daily steps, who has the most improved step count, and several others over the duration of the challenge.

The challenge is co-sponsored by Harvest Barn, NOTL Public Library and The Lake Report.

More information and details on how to register can be found at https://notl.com/stepchallenge.