Marathon might run on the Strip

Thursday, March 31, 2005 | 10:12 a.m.

The Las Vegas International Marathon may end up taking its act to the Strip.

For years the marathon has been run on a course starting in Jean, the tiny desert community of a prison and a few casinos near the California state line, to Sunset Park, Clark County's recreational center at Eastern Avenue and Sunset Road.

The marathon may now move to the tonier, neon-lit canyon of Las Vegas Boulevard on the Strip, satisfying a frequently stated desire of runners in previous years.

The Clark County Commission on Tuesday is scheduled to consider a resolution endorsing the move. The proposed resolution says the 26.2-mile course will begin at Mandalay Bay resort, run up the boulevard to downtown's Fremont Street, then back to the Mandalay Bay Events Center.

County Manager Thom Reilly, himself a distance runner in triathalons, said moving the race helps elevate the 39-year-old Las Vegas race to the big leagues.

"New York, Boston, L.A. (Los Angeles), all of them have their races close in the city," Reilly said.

Devine Racing, a Chicago-based company that manages marathons in several cities and took over management of the Las Vegas International Marathon last year, plans to hold this year's event Dec. 4 and incorporate the boulevard for its Sunday run, according to county officials.

The last race, in January, attracted more than 10,000 runners.

Reilly said the race probably would run along one side of the boulevard early on the Sunday morning of Dec. 4, keeping interference with automobile traffic to what would probably be "a minor inconvenience."

He said one reason why county officials believe the marathon can be accommodated on the busy Strip is because of Lance Armstrong's successful "Tour of Hope" visit last October. Armstrong, six-time winner of the Tour de France, joined 20 other cyclists on the ride of the boulevard as part of an effort to raise money and awareness to combat cancer.

"That was a breakthrough," Reilly said, showing the ability to bring together large events on the Strip with the continuing needs of commerce.

Devine Racing's Scott Kerr, executive race director, declined to comment in detail on the company plans. The company's Web site for the Las Vegas marathon says a "groundbreaking course" is "to be announced soon." The site is accepting registration for an "all new Las Vegas marathon."

"We don't have much to unveil until we have the formal approval process," Kerr said from his company's offices in Salt Lake City. The company also runs marathons in Salt Lake City, Los Angeles, and Chicago.

A local spokeswoman for the company said Devine Racing has big plans for Las Vegas.

"This is a great thing for Las Vegas," said Rachel Wilkie, a spokeswoman with Rogich Communications, a Las Vegas public relations company. "It has the ability to do what the Boston, L.A., Chicago and New York marathons have done for those respective cities."

The company received criticism from runners after January's run from Jean. Comments posted on-line scold the organizers for its location and an associated failure to bring supporters, food and water, and supplies to the race itself.

Wilkie said the race in December would be the first to be fully organized by Devine Racing, and the goal of the company is to avoid those issues.

The company will work to "alleviate some of those logistical issues" in the coming event, and moving the venue is just part of that effort, she said.

"Their intention is to create an entertaining, international event," Wilkie said.

George Neil, a Williamsburg, Va., physicist who ran in January's race, said not all of the problems he saw in the earlier event would be solved by moving the venue to the Strip -- but it would certainly make a repeat of his own involvement more likely.

"I think it will have a very positive effect, especially for people who don't run marathons competitively, who don't do it to win," Neil said. Those runners race marathons "for the experience," and want crowds and scenery "to keep their spirits up."

In the January race, "there was almost no support out there from crowds or anything else," he said. "Basically, you're just slogging it out on this road that goes straight into the city.

"The Strip is interesting. There is a lot to look at. There is a lot going on. ... Every time you turn a corner, there is something new to look at. All of that will be very positive."

Neil said a city marathon would also help curb one of the problems with the last race, in which runners faced 20-mph headwinds through most of the course.

"If you're in the city, the buildings could also help block the winds to some extent," he said. "That will help a lot."

Neil and other runners had other complaints about the January race that won't be as easily solved as moving the venue. Neil noted that for other races, including the Boston Marathon, the world's oldest annual marathon, a carb-heavy pasta dinner and post-race party were included in the registration price.

The Las Vegas' $80 registration did not include those perks, he said.

"Compared to New York or Chicago, it seemed a little expensive for what you got," he said. "In Las Vegas, you had to pay for those things."

Still, Neil said he would consider coming back, if only for the crowds on the Strip that might come to help cheer him on. He envisioned a scenario where people would leave all-night blackjack games to find runners crowding the boulevard.

"They'd stumble out looking for their pancake breakfast and help cheer you on," he said. "I think changing the venue like that will be very positive."