Runners gear up for Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon

By Case Keefer (contact)

Friday, Dec. 4, 2009 | 2 a.m.

Ask Brent Ashton if he ever thought he’d be preparing to run in a half-marathon six months ago and he’ll laugh.

“Never,” Ashton said. “I never thought I would even do a marathon. I’ve never run a marathon in my life and this is my first one.”

Ashton, a Henderson native, weighed 310 pounds less than a year ago. But he’s lost 60 pounds since and is now preparing to participate in the inaugural Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon Sunday.

Ashton will be one of more than 27,000 people who show up at the starting line near Mandalay Bay at 6:00 Sunday morning for the event. When he crosses the finish line 13.1 miles later, Ashton’s goal will be complete.

“Vegas was always the target,” Ashton said. “I always wanted to run the Vegas marathon. I always saw it on TV and in the papers and it looked like so much fun. No one was ever frowning.”

The Competitor Group, which takes over the marathon for the first time this year, is doing all it can to make sure it’s all smiles again this year. The course will be anything but boring.

There will either be a band performing or cheerleaders at every mile of the course. The Marathon will also feature caged white tigers, Elvis skydivers, a run-thru wedding chapel and numerous impersonators.

“This event is going to reflect the glitz and glamour of Las Vegas,” said Dan Cruz, marathon spokesman. “The excitement when those runners line up is going to be unlike any other experience in a marathon.”

Cruz said the response for the marathon has already exceeded expectations. When the Competitor Group took over the race after last year, it expected about 20,000 entrants.

Instead, it’s nearly at its capacity with 27,000. Approximately 500 spots remain and they will be sold at Friday’s kickoff event, which will be held at 11 in the morning at the Mandalay Bay Events Center.

Cruz said the response has been overwhelming.

“It shows how popular Las Vegas is as a destination,” Cruz said. “People want to run here.”

Specifically, people want to run down Las Vegas Boulevard. It’s no coincidence that this will be the first year both northbound and southbound traffic on the Strip are closed for the marathon.

The opportunity to run down the Strip was too much to pass up for many runners. Eighty-five percent of the participants are traveling from outside of Las Vegas to run.

That includes representatives from each of the 50 states and 39 different countries.

“For us to secure several miles both ways on Las Vegas Boulevard is really unprecedented,” Cruz said. “People want to run on the most famous street and that’s the Las Vegas Strip.”

The entire half-marathon will be run on the Strip and most of the marathon. Even locals like Ashton realize it’s a unique situation.

“I’m really excited,” Ashton said. “It’s going to be crazy.”