Posted: May 19, 2004

Athletics: MarathonGuide.com and Chicago's Lakeshore Marathon to Debut Runner-Tracking Technology at May 31 Event

VoiceTrak(TM) phone calls will announce progress of runners on the race course.

CHICAGO, May 18 /PRNewswire/ -- The future of real-time runner-tracking arrives on May 31, 2004 as thousands of phone calls, powered by MarathonGuide.com's VoiceTrak(TM) system, will emanate from Chicago announcing the progress of runners as they pass the 10K, Half-Marathon, 20M and finish line in the Lakeshore Marathon and Half Marathon. This will be the first use of voice messages tied to runner performance and will be offered in addition to the older technologies of text messaging, website searches and email updates.

Friends and family of runners in the Lakeshore Marathon will be given the opportunity to register for voice phone calls to be sent to their phone number. As runners pass over timing mats on the race course, data will be transmitted to a central facility where it will be used to generate personalized voice phone calls that will include current status of the runner, estimated finish time and any number of other options such as weather conditions, award information, sponsor message and more customized for the event and specific runner.

"VoiceTrak(TM), our patent pending technology, will change the way spectators experience the marathon. With this innovation, spectators on the course can receive updates and will know when to expect their favorite runner to arrive at the finish line or other point on the course - facilitating the opportunity to watch the runner and simplifying post-race family reunion. Friends and family who cannot be on-hand at the event can receive real-time phone calls announcing their runner's progress and will feel like they are part of the race. Reporters and statisticians can signup for messages announcing the winning runners, making it easier to report on the race. The possible uses for this system are limitless," commented John Elliott, founder of MarathonGuide.com.

Prior technologies for runner-tracking - real-time website updates/searches, email updates and text-messaging will still be provided by MarathonGuide.com, but these require either special hardware or that a spectator be tied to a computer. The VoiceTrak(TM) system will send a voice message to a phone and will be as easy to use as answering any normal phone call.

Elliott continued, "Since we began demonstrating VoiceTrak(TM) to marathon organizers, we have received a tremendous response. The Lakeshore Marathon, which has been a pioneer in many areas with its marathon, was especially excited to provide an extra benefit to its runners and spectators and given our strong relationship with race management, we felt this was the appropriate venue for the launch of this system."

According to Mark Cihlar, founder of the Lakeshore Marathon, "We are always striving to enhance the experience for all participants in the Lakeshore Marathon. We believe that VoiceTrak(TM) will be embraced by athletes, spectators and the media and will be another feature that sets the Lakeshore Marathon apart from other events. Having used MarathonGuide.com's online registration and other systems that support our event, we have seen that they are a technology and service leader and are excited to partner with them on the launch of this new technology."

Cihlar expanded his comments: "The Lakeshore Marathon is proud that it has been an early-adopter of technologies that support runners. We've received great response to some of our previous initiatives: the ability to instant message marathon staff over the internet; our utilizing a wireless network to allow runners to register from our booth at the Boston Marathon Expo; and our introduction of wave starts in a major marathon. The VoiceTrak(TM) introduction is another indication of our commitment to our runners."

ChampionChip timing for the Lakeshore Marathon will be provided by Gault Race Management, who will be an integral part of this initial launch. After the Lakeshore Marathon, the Hartford Marathon will be providing VoiceTrak(TM) technology for its event on October 9, 2004 and MarathonGuide.com is in discussion with a number of other events and timing companies to provide voice tracking services.

"From its inception, MarathonGuide.com's mission has been to support and provide a conduit for communication between and among race organizers, runners, and fans of the marathon - using website technology to support running in general. For runners, the website, http://www.MarathonGuide.com, has become a favorite online destination and receives more than 10,000 unique visitors each day. For event organizers, we provide a number of unique technologies that support their event and have also become the most beloved online registration provider. We're proud to introduce another new technology that supports our mission and supports the running community," concluded Elliott.

For more information, visit www.MarathonGuide.com and www.LakeshoreMarathon.com.