Posted: December 3, 2007

Athletics (RWire): Avia Orange County Marathon Website Has Training Route Feature

New online features help runners/walkers plot training runs and communicate with other runners ORANGE COUNTY, Calif. - With training for the Avia Orange County Marathon Presented by Nutrilite in full swing, a new online feature at OCMarathon.com can help runners and walkers better prepare for the Sunday, January 6, 2008 event. The OC Marathon has introduced a route planning feature to help individuals plan and track their training runs. Similar to the popular "Mapquest" when plotting driving directions, the route planner allows runners and walkers to click and develop their routes using an easy to access map. After creating an account, individuals can start accessing area maps based on inputting a zip code and creating a starting point on the map. The remainder of the feature allows people to navigate through that map, creating the course desired. Created by realbuzz.com, a UK-based lifestyle and community networking site focused on running, health and fitness, along with travel and entertainment, the route planning feature will record the distance of the run, while also providing street names and landmarks. In addition to the route planning feature, runners and walkers can also post their own blogs and create discussion groups on the marathon's website, allowing people to exchange race advice, training tips and course information. An online diary, which can be shared or kept private, can also be created to track a person's training regimen. The 2008 Avia Orange County Marathon Presented by Nutrilite The fourth annual event, which starts at Newport Center, adjacent to Fashion Island in Newport Beach and finishes in the Greater Irvine Spectrum in Irvine, is scheduled for Sunday, January 6. In addition to the 26.2-mile marathon, a Half-Marathon, a 5K and Kids Run will also be conducted, along with a two-day Health Expo (January 4-5) at the Hyatt Regency Irvine. Last year, 12,000 runners participated in the combined events. In the first three years of the event, more than $1.7 million has been generated for charity. For more information and to register, log onto: OCMarathon.com. Ryan Lamppa, Running USA Media Director (805) 696-6232; Fax = (805) 659-0016 Ryan@RunningUSA.org www.RunningUSA.org. Subscribe to the Runner's Web Weekly Digest