LA Marathon Returns to Sunday with Stadium to the Sea Route
Tom LaBonge is taking the credit for negotiating with local church’s to return the LA Marathon to a Sunday next year, when the route will take runners from Dodger Stadium to the Pacific Ocean.
Pressure from assorted houses of worship caused the Los Angeles Marathon to move to Memorial Day this year, as church’s complained that marathon related road closures resulted in reduced attendance.
While the return to Sunday during a cooler period will bring unanimous satisfaction to L.A.’s diverse running community, the new route may not. But what do you think?
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And reduced attendance at church means reduced $$$ in the collection basket. Unlike other businesses they don’t get a benefit from hungry throngs watching the race like the restaurants and others do. Lost revenue always brings about a complaint about marathons and similar events.
Yay! I’m really starting to become a sort of fanboy for La Bonge. He supports bikes in the city, acknowledges that the Eastside is located East of Main Street, and sees the beauty of running to the sea on a cool Sunday in March.
Tom LaBonge would take credit for the sunrise, and he probably has.
I’m glad it’ll be back in March and glad it’ll be on a Sunday, and I’m interested in the point-to-point concept to the sea. But there’s talk about the marathon ending in Santa Monica, and something about that just ain’t fittin’.
Sh*t sh*t sh*t! If this goes into Santa Monica and messes up traffic around my place, I’m not going to be happy. I used to live in Crestview, and one year my wife and I left our apartment to go out to eat, but could not get back in because of the marathon. The next year, the route went by THE END OF OUR BLOCK and we were prisoners in our own place for about 8 hours. I hate the marathon.
I remember the first couple years the marathon was a block from our home in Hollywood, and our family had such a great time cheering on the runners as they ran through our neighborhood. This may be the year I finally run LA.
the LA Cacoaphany Marathone rest stop will be there, on Sunset, the hand out beer and donuts to needy marathone runners.
I read in today’s LA Times that some religious leaders were still not completely satisfied by assurances from marathon organizers about accommodating churches along the new route.
I guess the religious don’t like having their faith tested by mundane inconveniences, but how strong can one’s faith be if it’s stifled by temporary parking restrictions?
Y’know, as long as churches are enjoying tax free land and donations, they should shut up when it comes to pressuring a local government to do anything that benefits them. When you pay up, like all the rest of us, then you get a say.