Kaiser Permanente Medical Team, City of Pasadena and Race Organizers Will Make Runners Safety Top Priority
Pasadena, Calif. (Nov 13, 2008) — With temperatures likely to reach the 90’s for this Sunday’s (November 16) inaugural Pasadena Marathon presented by Kaiser Permanente, race organizers, the Kaiser Permanente medical team and the City of Pasadena are doing extensive preparation to ensure the runners’ safety in potentially sweltering weather. An expected 8,000 runners, walkers and cyclists will converge on Sunday morning to compete in the Kaiser Permanente Pasadena Marathon, Half Marathon, Bike Tour, 5K and Fun Run/Walk. “I’m really looking forward to participating in the bike tour,” says Benjamin Chu, MD, President of Kaiser Permanente Southern California. “Kaiser Permanente is proud to be the presenting sponsor for an event that truly encourages everyone to exercise and thrive; and what better place to do this than in beautiful Pasadena!”
The Start/Finish Line is located directly in front of Pasadena City College on Colorado Boulevard. The Finish Line Festival is from 6:00 AM – 2:00 PM on the college campus, and is free to the public.
Kaiser Permanente’s medical team, led by Race Medical Director, Alexander Espinoza, MD, has been intimately involved with preparations for Sunday’s race. Kaiser Permanente will staff six medical aid stations on the course and at the finish line, and will also have four medical aid vans patrolling the course. ”I’m a long-time Pasadena resident and marathon runner myself,” says Dr. Espinoza, physician at the Kaiser Permanente East Los Angeles medical offices. “Our call for medical volunteers was a resounding success. I’ll be joined by approximately 70 enthusiastic physicians, nurses, physical therapists and medical professionals from Kaiser Permanente who are coming out to provide medical attention and encouragement along the route. We want everyone to enjoy themselves, but we also want them to be safe.”
Additionally, the City of Pasadena Fire Department and Police Department will be on hand throughout the course to help insure all race participants are not overcome by the possible heat.
Pasadena Forward and race organizers will have water stations along the course at approximately every mile beginning at Mile 1.5. Ultima Replenisher, the official on-course electrolyte drink, will be available every two miles starting at Mile 4. Runners will also receive bottled water at the race finish line.
Additional preventative race day precautions include having water misting stations on the marathon course at Miles 14.5, 15.5, 19 and 21/23, and air-conditioned cooling stations in buses located in later stages of the course.
All participants are encouraged to prepare for the heat by bringing their own hydration packs, and are urged to discontinue if experiencing signs of dehydration or heat-exhaustion. These symptoms may include heavy sweating, muscle cramps, weakness, dizziness, headache, nausea or vomiting.
If experiencing any of these symptoms, in addition to drinking water at the on-course stations, participants are advised to run through water misters placed on the course, or stop and go into one of the air-conditioned buses placed on the course. More severe heat stroke symptoms can include confusion as well as red, hot and dry skin. Heat stroke requires immediate medical attention. Medical aid personnel will be located throughout the course and participants are encouraged to seek help if experiencing symptoms. To see the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) about extreme heat please visit FAQ.
The Full and Half Marathon will start at 6:30 AM with the expected temperature to be in the high 50’s. Elite runners should complete the full marathon in approximately 2 ˝ hours with elite half-marathoners completing the race in just over an hour. The bulk of the marathon finishers should have completed the race by noon. Weather predictions state that the temperature could rise steadily, hitting the high 80’s to low 90’s by noon.
All athletes are expected to pick up their race packets at the Expo located at the Pasadena Convention Center which will be open on Friday, November 14, from noon-7:00 p.m., and Saturday, November 15, from 9:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. Participant friends and family are also encouraged to attend the Expo which features a variety of health and fitness related vendors. The event is free to the public and is also expected to attract spectators upwards of 50,000 at the Start/Finish Line and along the course.
Event sponsors for 2008 include: Kaiser Permanente, Think Marketing, Run With Us, Pasadena Cyclery, Catz, Ultima, Charter, Crown City News, Pasadena Magazine, San Gabriel Valley Newspaper Group, The Westin Pasadena, RideLinks, Tiffany & Co., Gel Communications, Vons, Whole Foods, Unified Grocers, PowerBar, Smart Box, PMX, Coyle Reproductions. For more information, visit www.pasadenamarathon.org.
About Pasadena Forward: Pasadena Forward was founded in 2004 by Executive Director, Israel Estrada. The organization’s mission is to promote enhanced quality of life for those who work, live, or attend school in the Pasadena area. By offering needed financial and logistical support to local civic and charitable agencies, Pasadena Forward aims to have a broad impact on the nonprofit community’s ability to deliver services. The Pasadena Marathon was conceived as a large-scale fundraiser to further the mission of Pasadena Forward.
About Kaiser Permanente—Kaiser Permanente is one of the nation's leading integrated health plans. Founded in 1945, it is a nonprofit, group practice prepayment program with Southern California headquarters in Pasadena, CA. Kaiser Permanente serves the health care needs of 3.3 million members in Southern California. Today it encompasses the nonprofit Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc., Kaiser Foundation Hospitals and their subsidiaries, and the for-profit Southern California Permanente Medical Group. Kaiser Permanente's Southern California Region includes more than 55,800 technical, administrative and clerical employees and caregivers, and more than 6,400 physicians representing all specialties. More information about Kaiser Permanente can be found at kaiserpermanente.org.
About International City Racing: Led by Olympic Gold Medalist Bob Seagren, International City Racing, Inc. (ICR) specializes exclusively in the development, management and implementation of endurance, health, fitness and other special events. Besides the Inaugural Pasadena Marathon, ICR events include the Dana Point Turkey Trot 10K, 5K and Kids Fun Run that hosts over 12,000 runners and walkers on Thanksgiving Day, the OC Marathon held in May 2009, the Pacific Open Water Challenge/FINA Marathon Swimming World Cup to be held in Long Beach in August 2009, the Long Beach International City Bank Marathon that will host over 20,000 runners in October 2009, and the Annual Long Beach Belmont Shore Christmas Parade in December.
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