Mayor Karen Bass will be the honorary starter when 22,000 runners take off this morning on a 26.2-mile trip around the city for the 38th annual Los Angeles Marathon. If she has any advice for competitors this year, it could be “watch your step.” Light rain greeted the runners, which made the course slicker than usual, but officials had vowed to fill as many of the this year’s storm-spurred potholes as possible.
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After weeks of record-setting wet weather, organizers warned runners to watch for road damage, though crews had been out fixing storm-battered streets them for days. Participants — and the spectators aiming to cheer them on — were greeted by a cloudy, wet, 58-degree morning on Sunday, March 19, with light put persistent showers. The worst of the rain from a small storm swooping in to the north was expected to divert away from L.A., but light showers were expected as the runners strode though the morning.
Winds whipped around the stadium, however, making it feel cooler than the thermometer revealed.
For runners young and old alike, the “Stadium to the Stars” course starts at famed Dodger Stadium, winds through some of the city’s most iconic neighborhoods including Chinatown, downtown Los Angeles, Echo Park, Hollywood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Brentwood, with its finish in Century City.
Race officials worked with the Bureau of Street Services to fill in such hazards along the route before race day, according to Dan Cruz, the marathon’s head of communications.
Although runners should watch where they step, they can also catch a glimpse such landmarks as the El Pueblo de Los Angeles State Historic Park, Los Angeles City Hall, Little Tokyo, Disney Hall and Music Center of Los Angeles County, Dolby Theater in Hollywood, part of Historic Route 66 in West Hollywood, and Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills before finishing in Century City.
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