The Los Cabos Inline Marathon: a Planet Preview ...
Is This the Start of Inline Marathoning in Mexico?

Promoters Say Los Cabos Event Will Be First Skating Marathon in Latin America

By Robert "Keeps Lime and Salt Handy" Burnson

As if there weren't enough reasons already to wander down the Baja coastline ... the prickly desert rubbing its flanks into the cobalt blue seas, the dusty towns abundant with Coronas, the shrimp tamales from the aprons of street vendors, the 800 miles of solitude before the 30 miles of luxury resorts ... as if there weren't enough reasons already, now there's an inline marathon.

It's a new inline skating event, which the promoters are billing as the first and only skating marathon in Mexico and Latin America.

Part of Larger Running Marathon

The skating marathon (along with a 5 K skate) will be held on Sunday, Dec. 5, as part of the third annual Los Cabos International Marathon. The Los Cabos marathon has been modestly successful; it attracts about 400 runners a year to the resort town of Cabo San Lucas, at the southern tip of the Baja peninsula.

If successful, the race promoter hopes to make the inline marathon an annual event. As it stands now, it appears to be one of the few inline skating events of any kind in Mexico, which seems remarkable given the country's respectable 17th place finish (39 countries competed) in this year's Inline World Championships in Italy.

Remember Rodolfo?

The race promoter is the famed Mexican long distance runner Rodolfo Gomez (and his racing club). In case you don't remember, Gomez was involved in one of the most memorable marathons in modern history: the 1982 New York City Marathon.

Most of the world's greatest marathoners competed in the race. But almost from the start, the marathon turned into an epic battle between Gomez and the Cuban-American Alberto Salazar. The two runners ran side by side, matching strides for mile after mile -- until Salazar edged out Gomez in the sprint.

Several years later, after some triumphs and some defeats, Gomez gave up racing and became one of the world's most successful running coaches. His protégés include Andres Espinosa and German Silva, both winners of the New York Marathon.

Gomez still trains his runners at his old stomping grounds: the 15,000-foot volcano Xinantecatl, where he developed his revolutionary ideas about high-altitude training in the 1970s.

For our preview of the Los Cabos International Marathon, we sent a list of questions to Rodolfo Gomez.

Here's what he had to say ...

Take about this article:
Any thoughts about the Los Cabos Marathon? ... Would you skate it? ... Add your comments here!

Related Reading:

The official site of Los Cabos International Marathon

Planet Race Previews

• Sign up for the 2005 Los Cabos Inline Marathon, starting in February, at active.com

...

Copyright © 2006 by Robert Burnson

Planet Extras!
Beginner's Guide to Outdoor Racing
10 Ways to Avoid Getting Hit by Cars
Subscribe to the Planet RSS News Feed
Skate Coach Columns
2006 Skate Previews
Event Photos
News Archive


The Basics
Beginner's Guide to Inline Skating!
Top Seven Mistakes of Inline Skaters
Protection From Mr. Bumpy
First Time Buying Guide
Skate Safety
 
News Departments
Product News
Skating Events and Updates
Racing News
Skate Industry News
Skate Governing Bodies
Skaters in the News
Olympic Inclusion

Travel
Skate Trips and Travel
Skate Seminars
Where to Skate
 
Racing
Race Previews
Race Reports
Racing Skates and Equipment

Fitness
Inline Marathoning
Advanced Skating Skills
 
Equipment
Skate Previews
Product Reviews
Buyers Guide
Skate Maintenance
 
Disciplines
Speed Skating
Freestyle
Downhill
Aggressive
Artistic
Ice Skating
Roller Hockey
 
 
Other
The Inline Edge!
If You're Injured
Skating Laws
Inline History
Gifts
Glossary