LA Marathon 2011

3/20/2011 - LA Marathon, Los Angeles,California

Running review of LA Marathon is below with some tips for those of you who consider to run this race,  26.2 miles full marathon in Los Angeles California ,  in the future:

Distance: 26.2 (Garmin GPS measured 26.44)

Course: The LA Marathon is a "stadium to the sea" marathon. Starting the marathon in Dodger stadium and running through downtown LA, Hollywood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills to the end in Santa Monica. See full course on the map below.

Elevation profile: net loss of about 400ft, the LA marathon started at ~500ft above see level and ended at at about ~100ft. 

Crowd: Elite and recreational runner, many natives of Los Angeles and California.

The easy part: The LA Marathon is downhill and passes through LA's most distinctive streets & neighborhoods

The challenging part: The Marathon has some short yet steep hills

Price: $146

Pacers:Yes

Timing: LA Marathon timing chips are on the back of the bib (don't fold it)

Qualifying: N/A

Official website: LA Marathon

My 2 cents: Where should I start...? Some of the finishers of the 2011 LA Marathon were awarded, in addition to the medal and the aluminum blanket, a hypothermia at the finish line and pneumonia the day after. I can understand that weather on the Marathon day can be unpredictable and I don't mind running in the pouring rain, crossing the Santa Monica Blvd "river" and the Rodeo Drive "creek".
BUT, why couldn't the organizers assist with the very basics such as heated tents at the starting and the finish lines? The lousy space blanket in the 40mph winds on the Santa Monica beach after running 26miles were a nice try of curing cancer with Advil.
I will let the numbers speak to it all, the 2011 LA Marathon had 23,000+ entrants, merely ~18,000 finished the Marathon.

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