Sports

By Tom Robinson
Go Lackawanna sports correspondent

The Steamtown Marathon cut back and bulked up at the same time.

click image to enlarge

Runners approach the finish line of the Steamtown Marathon on Washington Avenue in downtown Scranton last year. This year’s Steamtown Marathon will be held on Oct. 11.

File Photo/Ben Freda

Select images available for purchase in the
Times Leader Photo Store

The October 11 marathon will be the largest in the 14-year history of the 26.2-mile road race from Forest City to Scranton.

Race director Bill King said the marathon reached a record number of entries this week when it surpassed 2,100 for the first time. King said Thursday morning that the last time he had checked Wednesday the count was up to 2,184.

“Registration closes midnight October 8,” King said. “We’re expecting over 2,300.”

That was not the case when plans for this year’s race were made.

The marathon switched to online-only entries for the first time this year, cutting out the direct mailing of entry forms while also reducing advertising. King was prepared for the possibility of a slight reduction in entries.

King said that economic troubles may have instead helped boost the entry count in two different ways.

“I have heard entries in marathons across the country are up,” King said. “When people are out of work, they have more time to train. That may be the only positive in unemployment.”

A cost-conscious public may also be helping the Steamtown Marathon go head-to-head with the Chicago Marathon the same day.

“We’re so close to so many major metropolitan areas like New York, Boston, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.,” King said. “For some who can’t afford to go to Chicago, our entry fee is $60, which is one of the lowest in the country and staying in Scranton certainly isn’t as expensive.”

The marathon has already drawn entries from a record 42 states, along with the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Canada and the United Kingdom.

For the first time, there are five states with at least 100 entries. Maryland (184) and Virginia (116) have joined Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey, which make up about two-thirds of the runners who are registered.

There are 60 runners signed up from South Carolina along with 40 from Massachusetts and 38 from Connecticut.

The Steamtown Marathon, one of the events where runners can qualify for the Boston Marathon by hitting qualifying standards for their age group, begins at 8 a.m. October 11 at Forest City High School.

King said the course remains the same as it has been in recent years.