kansas city marathon

Preview of Waddell & Reed Kansas City Marathon

The Waddell & Reed Kansas City Marathon has had a surge in its number of participants. In 2005, there were about 2,500 runners. This year more than 6,000 are expected.
Today's races

?WHEN: Marathon, half marathon and marathon relay begin at 7 a.m. today. The 5K run starts at 7:15.

?WHERE: Starts at Crown Center (Pershing and Grand) and finishes in the Freight House District.

?WEATHER FORECAST: At the start of the races: 53 degrees and windy. At noon: 70 degrees and windy, according to weather.com

How many?

Race director Karen Raymer estimated 5,800 runners had registered for all the races as of Friday afternoon, and that total was expected to continue to increase throughout the night until registration closed.

But Raymer said the goals of marathon organizers had already been exceeded with the total number of participants roughly 1,500 greater than the final total from last year. The race also saw an increase of more than 1,100 last year from its 2005 totals.

"We just keep increasing and increasing," Raymer said. "Evidently, we're doing something right."

Of the estimated 5,800 who had already signed up, Raymer said 1,500 had registered for the full marathon and 2,800 for the half marathon.

By the numbers

100,000 Total number of cups distributed to aid stations around the course.

6,000+ Total runners expected to have registered for one of the event's four races by the end of Friday.

4,312 Total runners who signed up last year for one of the four races.

1,100 Total volunteers stationed throughout the course.

42 States represented by runners who had registered as of Thursday.

26.2 Standard length of full marathon, in miles.

7 Countries represented by runners who had registered as of Thursday.

6 Hours the course will remain open after the race starts.

2006 race in review

<< OVERALL MARATHON WINNER: Thad Bartram (left) of St. Joseph, 2 hours, 40 minutes, 2 seconds.

?TOP WOMAN FINISHER IN MARATHON: Lisa Cowling of Urbandale, Iowa, 3:12:56.

?OVERALL HALF MARATHON WINNER: Vincent Topiwo, Shawnee, 1:08:08.

?TOP WOMAN FINISHER IN HALF MARATHON: Christine Ensian, 1:21:06.

?OVERALL 5K WINNER: Brett Guy, Overland Park, 16:48.

?TOP WOMAN FINISHER IN 5K: Cindy Dickson, 21:29.

2007 preview

Bartram is expected to make a run at defending his Waddell & Reed Kansas City Marathon championship. But Mike Lundgren, who helps coordinate the finish line and has been working with the marathon in one duty or another since 1989, said there were probably a half dozen runners with a chance at seizing the top spot.

Among runners to watch are Dale Dexter of Topeka, and Peter Sercer, a Division II track standout from Hillsdale College in Michigan.

On the women's side, Lundgren said Lisa Tittle of Lee's Summit and Heidi Bryant of Kansas City have a chance to finish in less than three hours.
Lenexa man will run second marathon in two weeks
By RYAN YOUNG
The Kansas City Star
As of a few weeks ago, Esteban Ponce had never run a marathon. A few years ago, he could never have imagined running a marathon.

Now look at what he's gotten himself into.

Ponce, 33, of Lenexa, had been planning to complete his first 26.2-mile race this Saturday at the Waddell & Reed Kansas City Marathon. But a friend lured him into the Chicago Marathon two weeks ago, so he'll be a savvy veteran when he approaches the starting line Saturday morning at Crown Center.

Although some people might have another way of looking at it.

"People think that I'm crazy," Ponce said. "People think that I'm out of my mind ― that it's just unbelievable that you're trying to accomplish something like two marathons (so) close to each other."

Excuse the 6-foot-4, 220-pound Ponce if he's not intimidated by a forecast that calls for temperatures to hover between 63 and 79 degrees. He's seen much worse in his short marathon running career.

According to The Associated Press, almost a third of the runners who participated in the Chicago Marathon didn't finish the race because of the oppressive heat ― upwards of 88 degrees.

Several runners collapsed, scores had to be taken to hospitals and one man died (although autopsy reports attributed his death to a heart condition and not the heat).

Ponce did finish. It took him 5 hours and 20 minutes, but he did finish.

"When I saw so many people laying on the sidewalks, getting help, getting medical service, just listening to the ambulances," Ponce said, "You feel like, 'Oh my gosh, I have a lot of energy.' … I was clearly blessed just finishing it."

And he's ready for more.

Ponce said he pushed himself to run his first marathon as a tribute to his father, who died in June. He has special motivation for this one, too, which is why he didn't want to let his experience in Chicago change his plans for this weekend.

Ponce moved to this area 10 years ago from Mexico, and he calls Kansas City his second home. This is where he developed his interest in running.

He remembers struggling through six-mile runs when he started working out with The Runner's Edge a few years ago. He thought then he'd never be able to go the full 26.2 miles.

And then he remembers something else about his Chicago experience. Not the people lying on the sidewalks. Not the wail of the ambulances.

He remembers the mass of people ― a field 40,000 strong ― at the starting line, the anticipation and knowing what he was about to accomplish.

"It's just one feeling that nobody can take away from you," Ponce said. "I think it's one thing that every single person should experience."
Heads up: Star's classifieds move to business section

Saw IV teaser movie poster Classified ads inside

Starting today, The Kansas City Star's classifieds will be published inside the Business section Wednesdays through Saturdays. You also can find the crossword puzzle from The New York Times on the inside back page.

See Saw

AMC Theatres, which will return to public markets soon, is looking for film enthusiasts with iron stomachs to go along with iron backsides. Before the opening Friday of horror film "Saw IV," Kansas City-based AMC will show the previous three films in the slasher series at 42 theaters across the country for the cost of a single ticket. The Sawfest marathon will begin at 6 p.m. Thursday and will lead to the 12:01 a.m. debut of the new sequel. It will show in this market at the AMC Studio 30 in Olathe.

Airfare jump

American Airlines, Northwest Airlines Corp. and US Airways Group Inc. raised their U.S. round-trip fares as much as $20 Friday as jet-fuel prices approach record levels. Delta Air Lines Inc. and Continental Airlines Inc. raised their ticket prices Thursday. Southwest, which dominates the Kansas City market, didn't match the increase.

Google it

Google shares rose $5.09 to $644.71 Friday after the company reported that third-quarter net income had jumped 46 percent. The share gain gave Google a market value of $201.2 billion, making it the third-largest U.S. technology company by market capitalization, topping Cisco Kansas City, MO - infoZine - In a move to challenge serious horror movie buffs, AMC Theatres today announced details of Sawfest, a marathon of the three previously-released "Saw" movies leading up to the midnight show of the newest installation, "Saw IV," all for the price of a single admission ticket.

Sawfest will take place Thurs., Oct. 25, in 42 participating AMC theatres in 25 U.S. markets. The marathon will begin at 6 p.m. with short intermissions between each film, culminating in the 12:01 a.m. release of "Saw IV." Seating is limited and tickets are available today at all participating AMC theatres and at AMCTheatres.com (the list of participating theatres is attached).

"The "Saw" series is quickly becoming a Halloween tradition, and we've seen few horror films release on the same date because of its recent success," said Zach Baze, vice president, marketing, at AMC Theatres. "Sawfest is a rare opportunity for fans to see this exciting film series in succession, building to the much anticipated release of "Saw IV."

The "Saw" film series is a popular horror film franchise created by James Wan and Leigh Whannell, beginning in 2004 and continuing to the present.

The series' main plot revolves around the Jigsaw Killer, a vigilante who kidnaps victims and places them in deadly traps to test them and see if they are deserving of the life they have abused. The victims, almost always chosen because they have taken their lives for granted, are usually linked to each other in one way or another. The films tend to conclude with a twist-ending that wraps things up, but also creates more questions to be answered in the following film.

Guests who attend Sawfest are free to come and go throughout the duration of the series, but will need to keep and produce their ticket stub to ensure re-admission into the Sawfest auditorium. Due to the "R" ratings of each of the films, guests under 17 will not be admitted without a parent or guardian.