RUNNERS GET READY TO MAKE THEIR MARK IN LB AGAIN

 

by: Josh Marks

 

 

Long Beach will truly live up to its slogan as an international city on October 12.  On that date athletes from all over the world will run, skate and bike a 26.2 mile course as participants in the Long Beach International City Bank Marathon.

 

The marathon has grown into a major event with thousands of spectators and participants spending their money in Long Beach.

 

“We believe (the marathon) will have a great economic impact on the city,” said John Goldman, chief operating officer and race director.

 

Goldman estimates there will be around 25,000 people attending the two-day pre-race expo at the Long Beach Convention Center.  The race day projections are for around 12,000 participants and an additional 12,000 people at the finish line.  These numbers don’t include the thousands of people that will be lining the course.

 

The growth of the Long Beach marathon is part of a larger growth in the marathon industry.  California started with two marathons in 1980 and today has over a dozen marathons in the state.  According to Goldman this means dollars for the host city.  “An independent study was done by the UCSD business department, they assessed that the (Suzuki Rock n’ Roll Marathon) had an 83 million dollar economic impact on the city of San Diego," said Goldman.

 

According to the official marathon website, the first scheduled event is the Bike Tour at 6:30 in the morning, followed by the Inline Skating marathon at 7:15 a.m. and the 5K race at 7:45.  The Half Marathon and Marathon begin at 8:15 a.m.  Participants of all the races receive a t-shirt and goodie bag.  Finishers in the Marathon, Half Marathon and Bike Tour receive a medal.

 

On the website marathonguide.com a runner from Carlsbad had this to say about the marathon, “Long Beach really deserves recognition for a fine, quality event that showcases the city very nicely.”

 

To register online, download a registration form to mail or find out general information on the event log on to the Long Beach International City Bank Marathon website at www.runlongbeach.com.