RACES REPORT STRONG ENTRY TOTALS
By David Monti
(c) 2009 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved. Used with permission.

Two significant USA road races reported today that their entries are piling up at a fast pace, despite the nation's tough economy.

In Richmond, Va., the Ukrop's Monument Avenue 10-K, scheduled for Saturday, March 28, already has 26,000 runners registered, well ahead of last year's pace when the race recorded a record 31,158 entrants and 24,055 finishers.  Those totals don't include the 1,200 children who have registered for the companion First Market Mile Kids Run.  The race will allow 35,000 entrants this year.

In Spokane, Wash., a tough winter has played a role in boosting registration for the Lilac Bloomsday Run, scheduled for Sunday, May 3.  Race director Don Kardong reports that his entry numbers are 3000 ahead of the same time last year.  In 2008, the massive 12-K had 47,505 entrants and 43,629 finishers.

"Discouraging winter weather seems to work in our favor," said Bloomsday Association President Jerry O'Neal through a media release.  "And while nothing is certain, early online registrations seem to suggest another growth spurt this year."

This will be the 33rd edition of the Bloomsday, which has seen 1,265,828 finishers since the race's inception in 1977 when just 1,198 runners crossed the finish line.