13TH ANNUAL LITTLE ROCK MARATHON

A longer, winding road

New course gives runners a little extra Little Rock

Runners will have a new course to navigate this year during the Little Rock Marathon. Participants will not have to cross the Broadway Bridge because of construction related to the eventual demolition of the bridge, which required the course to be rerouted to include 4 additional miles in downtown Little Rock.
Runners will have a new course to navigate this year during the Little Rock Marathon. Participants will not have to cross the Broadway Bridge because of construction related to the eventual demolition of the bridge, which required the course to be rerouted to include 4 additional miles in downtown Little Rock.

The 13th Little Rock Marathon will be run Sunday, and for the first time it is truly Little Rock's marathon.

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Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Brent Barrett (left) and Jake Goldsborough (right) work on hardware at the starting point for Sunday’s Little Rock Marathon. This year’s race will begin at the corner of East Capitol and Scott Street.

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Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Mark Chepses (above) of Des Moines, Iowa, winner of the past four Little Rock Marathons, will not defend his title in Sunday’s race. Leah Thorvilson, last year’s winner in the women’s division, also will not be running.

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Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Runners leave the starting line in the River Market during last year’s Little Rock Marathon. This year’s race starts at the intersection of Capitol and Scott and heads west before winding through the downtown area.

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A map showing the 2015 Little Rock Marathon route.

There will be no foray across the Broadway Bridge, eliminating North Little Rock from the course, requiring more ground to be covered in downtown Little Rock by the almost 10,000 runners for the marathon, half-marathon and 10K.

At a glance

WHEN 8 a.m. Sunday (6 a.m. for those needing more than six hours)

WHERE Start line at East Capitol and Scott Street. Finish line at President Clinton Avenue and Sherman Street

By the numbers

4• Consecutive victories by Kenyan Mark Chepses, who is not participating this year

5• Victories in the women’s division by Little Rock’s Leah Thorvilson, who is not participating this year

6•a.m.• Starting time for marathoners expected to finish between 6 and 8 hours

7:55•a.m.• Starting time for wheelchair, hand cycle and physically challenged athletes

8• Hours allowed for marathoners to reach finish

8•a.m.• Starting time for marathon, half-marathon and 10K

12• Previous runnings of the Little Rock Marathon

20• Aide stations along the race’s course

240• Elevation, in feet, at the finish of the race

246• Elevation at start of the race

381• The highest point of the race

2:19.45• Fastest overall winning time (Chepses, 2013)

2:36.53• Slowest overall winning time (Anatolie Vartosu, 2003)

2:37.36• Fastest female winning time (Thorvilson, 2012)

It is the third major change since the race's 2003 inception, and it is one that ensures runners won't be the only people on the course with prerace jitters.

Race executive directors Geneva Lamm and Gina Pharis said they are always a bit more nervous before races run on new courses.

"We just want to make sure that people are in place, and that everyone gets turned the right direction," Lamm said.

"There are a few places that will be hot spots for us, but we have people who will manage that for us, and we'll see how that works," Pharis said.

Lamm and Pharis founded the race with the Little Rock Department of Parks and Recreation and have overseen its development, including the route changes.

The latest modification was made out of necessity.

The Broadway Bridge is unavailable because of construction and its imminent demolition, requiring a rerouting to include nearly 4 more miles in downtown Little Rock than in previous runnings.

"We wanted to keep it downtown as much as possible, and I think it's kind of neat," Lamm said. "It is neat. It reminds me of the Chicago Marathon, where there are spectators everywhere, and they can just go over a block and see the runners again. It's neat for spectators, and also for the participants because it gives more chances to see their families."

Lamm said several people contributed to the design of the new route, including Pharis and longtime Little Rock runner and race volunteer Joyce Taylor.

The course was first reworked in 2005, when construction of the Big Dam Bridge prevented entrants from reaching the original turnaround near the I-430 bridge that spans the Arkansas River. The next major change came in 2008, when organizers including Lamm and Pharis concluded that the original finish line on Capitol Ave. near the state Capitol did not have adequate space for post-race activity, and they moved the start and finish lines to the River Market downtown.

This year's race will start on Capitol Avenue at Scott Street going west toward the Capitol. It will finish on President Clinton Avenue in the River Market district near the Museum of Discovery.

"We needed a space where there was enough room to start everybody, and something that was picturesque," Lamm said. "We think it's really pretty running toward the Capitol."

Less than 1 mile into the race, runners encounter a series of turns that will wind them back and forth through downtown. At some points runners in the marathon field will find themselves doubled back on the same streets, running in the opposite direction of other entrants.

"When you're going two different directions on the same path, that's always a concern," Lamm said. "Not that we think we'll have any problems. We're going have cones. We're going to have volunteers, but there's always the human element. You get that herd mentality sometimes, so we just want that herd to be on the right side of the road."

A freakish combination of weather caused an early shutdown of last year's marathon before everyone was finished. Many runners and walkers were pulled from the course as a cold front passed through from the west to generate thunder, lightning, and heavy rain. The temperature soon plummeted rapidly enough to jeopardize many entrants and volunteers with the threat of hypothermia. Later, as volunteers worked to clear the course, heavy sleet began.

"It was crazy," Pharis said. "And it all happened in about four hours."

As of Friday, the forecast for Sunday from the National Weather Service predicted a 50 percent chance of rain or thunderstorms in the afternoon, with a high of 47 degrees.

"I mean, never say never," Pharis said. "But, can you really, possibly have all that happen in one day again, on race day? Really? We were just bonafide unlucky."

Another change this year from all but three previous races is that top finishers will not earn prize money. Lamm said that a lack of money raised made necessary for her and Pharis to decide between offering prize money or funding the Little Rockers Kids Marathon. She said the choice involved little debate.

"The kids race, or elite athletes?" Lamm said. "It was an easy decision. The story of our race is not the elite runners. They're great people, but the story of our race is about everybody else."

Pharis said she believes the new Little Rock Marathon course is "spectator friendly," and is confident it will please the field.

Oversized medals, which have become one of the marathon's trademarks, will be replaced with medallions at the finish after the larger medals failed to arrive because of shipping problems on the West Coast. Runners who complete the course will eventually end up with two momentos instead of one.

Organizers had no control over a massive cargo backup that left the ship carrying the medals anchored at sea for nearly two months, delaying the shipment, but the course is something officials have control over, and they are eager to see how it turns out.

"We'll see if people like it," Lamm said. "If they don't, we'll figure out something else. If it's not well received, we will take a look at it. But I think people are going to be pleasantly surprised as they're going through that first 11 miles, because we are anticipating that there are going to be so many people out there watching."

Sports on 02/28/2015

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