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“Runners are making more choices,” Aguiar said. “I’m not overly concerned that opening registration is down because I don’t see anything troublesome.”
The series of races — a full- and half-marathon and 10K and 5K races — traditionally sell out all 15,000 slots by mid-summer. The event stands as the single biggest economic impact weekend in Greene County, posting a $13.7 million tally in 2016, officials said.
In prior years, runners could log in at midnight Jan. 1 to claim a spot. This time, runners couldn’t register until 9 a.m. Monday, Jan. 2. Aguiar said the later start was selected to ensure that staff was available to handle registration issues.
Runners from 48 states and eight countries claimed a slot to run the full or half marathon or a 10K race Sept. 16, starting at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force. The 5k is set to launch Sept. 15 at Wright State University.
A rush of runners to register in the first hour Monday morning caused the marathon’s main website to temporarily become overwhelmed, leading some to use an alternative website to pay the entry fee. Runners who signed up on the first day paid $10 less to run the full and half-marathon and $5 less for the 10K and 5K.
The marathon’s economic impact represents money spent on lodging, meals, travel, and shopping, said Allen Stebelton, sales manager at the Greene County Convention and Visitors Bureau.
The $13.7 million spent last year was a slight decrease compared to $14 million spent in 2015, according to Stebelton. More local runners participated in 2016 than the prior year, accounting for the difference, he said.
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