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Florida > Gasparilla Distance Classic Marathon &
Half Marathon
Tampa, FL
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Date
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Event
Details
Run through the city streets of this city overlooking the waters of
Tampa, Florida's Hillsborough Bay at the Gasparilla Distance Classic,
which includes a full slate of running events for runners at all
levels, including a full marathon, half marathon, 15K and 5K. Mostly
fast and flat and great for beginners, the 13.1-mile half marathon
takes runners along the same course as the full, 26.2-mile marathon for
the first six and a half miles, and then splits off to take the field
across the bridge over Platt Street and back for the remainder of the
course.
Organized by the Gasparilla Distance Classic Association to raise
funding for the Challenged Athletes Foundation, the race welcomed an
estimated 2,300 runners in the half marathon alone at its 2008 running,
in addition to nearly 1,000 runners for the full marathon. From the
starting line in downtown Tampa at the corner of Platt and Parker
Streets, the race takes the field on a winding course, the first half
of which follows a circuitous route around Davis Island, which lies
just to the southwest of downtown.
After running southward along
Channel Drive, which runs alongside the waters of the city's Seddon
Channel, the course then runs around the southern end of the island and
back toward downtown across the Davis Islands Bridge for the second
half of the race, most of which takes runners along Bayshore Boulevard,
with the open expanse of the gorgeously scenic Hillsborough Bay over
the runners' shoulders in both directions. The course takes runners all
the way out to the intersection with West Julia Street, and then turns
around and heads back along Bayshore to the finish line.
The race for those running in both the half and the full marathon
starts at 6:00 AM, and participants in both the half or full marathons
will be expected to keep a pace of 16 minutes per mile or better, as
the roadways will close for race participants and re-open to traffic
after six hours. If they haven't completed the race by 12 noon, runners
will be asked to move to the sidewalk in order to finish
their race.
Race
Weather & Climate
Thanks partly to its proximity to the Gulf of Mexico, the Tampa area
tends to see mild to moderately warm temperatures in late winter, with
March temperatures averaging between 76°F and 58°F.
March precipitation averages about 2.84 inches during the
month, and is among Tampa's driest months of the year.
Fees
$50 if registered by February 1, 2009
$65 from Feb. 2 through the day of the race
Registration
To reserve your place in the 2009 running of Tampa's Gasparilla
Distance Classic Half Marathon, register online at Active.com
or print out and mail in this downloadable entry form.
Website
www.tampabayrun.com
Half
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Your Race Story
Ever run in Tampa's annual Gasparilla Distance Classic Half
Marathon? Share
your impressions and read fellow runners' stories
and tips for the event.
Discuss it in the HalfMarathons.Net
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