oWynston Alberts set the Vancouver USA Marathon record when he won last year in 2 hours, 20 minutes and 15 seconds.
oThe fastest time by a woman at the VUM was Lauren Breihauf’s 2:54:08 in 2011 at the first Vancouver USA Marathon.
oThe races start and finish on Columbia Street between Sixth and Eighth, on the east side of Esther Short Park. The marathon begins at 7 a.m. Sunday, the half marathon at 9 a.m. Sunday.
oThe course is open until 2 p.m. There will be traffic revisions and some street closures starting at 6 a.m. Sunday.
oWynston Alberts set the Vancouver USA Marathon record when he won last year in 2 hours, 20 minutes and 15 seconds.
oThe fastest time by a woman at the VUM was Lauren Breihauf's 2:54:08 in 2011 at the first Vancouver USA Marathon.
oThe races start and finish on Columbia Street between Sixth and Eighth, on the east side of Esther Short Park. The marathon begins at 7 a.m. Sunday, the half marathon at 9 a.m. Sunday.
oThe course is open until 2 p.m. There will be traffic revisions and some street closures starting at 6 a.m. Sunday.
USA is in the name, and many of the 1,700 who signed up in advance to run 26.2 or 13.1 miles are local, but there is a certain international flavor to the Vancouver USA Marathon.
The defending champion, for example, lives in Japan.
Wynston Alberts, who won the 2014 race, is registered for an attempt to repeat his victory on Sunday morning when the marathon hits the streets of Vancouver for the fifth time.
A year ago, Alberts established a Vancouver USA Marathon record with his winning time of 2 hours, 30 minutes and 15 seconds.
Alberts is a native of Roseburg, Ore., who lives and works in Japan.
There likely will not be a repeat champion in the women’s field, or in the half marathon.
Defending women’s marathon winner Tonya Lutz of Salem, Ore., was not among those pre-registered for Sunday’s event.
The defending half-marathon winners are Jesse McChesney of Vancouver and women’s champion Lauren Johnson. McChesney is registered, but might not run. Johnson is not registered.
Top local runners who are registered for the half marathon include Cody Barton, James Bren and Eric Dolezal. Barton was the winner of the full marathon in its inaugural year, 2011.
There are a couple of course changes this year which should improve the experience for runners, according to race director Brian Davis. A portion of the course along the Waterfront Renaissance Trail that reopened this winter will be used as runners return from Wintler Park toward downtown. Also, the course has been adjusted to miss the heavy traffic area around the Grand Central shopping center.
The course continues to be a Boston Marathon qualifier, meaning that runners who complete the course within the time parameters for their ages can enter the 2016 Boston Marathon. Another thing that has not changed: the course is basically flat, with a total of 80 feet of elevation change over the 26.2 miles.
Davis said online registration numbers were 850 for the marathon, 1,850 for the half marathon. Another 400 had registered as of midweek for Saturday’s Freedom 5-K. The races are open for registration from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday during the VUM Active Expo at Esther Short Park, which is also the place for registered runners to check in.
For the second year in a row, prize money is being awarded courtesy of Grindstone Collection Strategies and Altus Global Trade Solutions. This year cash awards will go to the first three men and women to finish the marathon: $500 to the winners, $250 for second place and $100 for third place. The first-place man and woman in the half marathon will each receive $150.
Additionally, every finisher of either race can enter to win one of five $100 prizes that will be awarded by raffle.
Another Vancouver USA Marathon tradition continues with Bart Yasso manning the microphone at the start/finish line.
An accomplished runner, an author and the designated chief running officer for Runner’s World magazine, Yasso will lead a casual run from the Vancouver Hilton at 8 a.m. Saturday. At 1 and 4 p.m. Saturday, Yasso will speak about motivation at the VUM Sports and Fitness Expo at Esther Short Park.
