Los Angeles Comes to Life for the 2024 Marathon
At the crack of dawn, more than 25,000 people, many of whom were wearing green, took to the streets for a particularly festive 39th annual Los Angeles Marathon this St Patricks’ Day.
Volunteer Benjamin Ainsworth believes it’s more than just running that has kept him coming back for the past 7 years. “I like the camaraderie and the spirit of bringing people together from all over the world,” Ainsworth said. “You know, the diversity, people supporting their families, and the health aspect, all really good things.” With thousands of participants, onlookers, volunteers, and vendors, the LA Marathon is an annual spectacle that showcases the city’s pride and its diverse cultures and people that you can only find here.
While some join to beat their records or run competitively, others run for enjoyment. “I wasn’t really aiming for a specific time or anything. I just really wanted to prove I could run a marathon,” said Zola Hoffmeister, a freshman at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) who ran her first marathon this year.
Other runners have more personal motivations for completing the 26.2-mile trek. Santa Monica College (SMC) alumnus Irvine Salas says he made the trek in honor of his late girlfriend and running partner, who passed away last year. “Whenever I run, I always keep a picture of her, so it’s like she came here with me,” Salas said.
He believes the key to running a marathon is finding the personal motivation and inner strength to keep moving, especially during difficult times. “You gotta stay consistent. Sometimes you just don’t feel like doing it, like maybe it’s too hot, but you’ve gotta put in the miles because it’s those little runs that are gonna push you through this.”
Three years ago, the marathon course route changed from the iconic “ Stadium to Sea,” where participants started at Dodger’s stadium in Downtown LA and crossed the finish line in Santa Monica on Ocean Ave. While the route remains unchanged for its first 22 miles, the course now comes mere blocks away from the city border of Santa Monica before racers turn around at San Vicente and Bundy and run the last four miles back to Century City. The reason for the change, as McCourt Foundation, the race organizers, cites, was “the dramatically increased costs quoted by the city of Santa Monica for the 2021 running of the marathon and future events made remaining in Santa Monica financially infeasible.”
After crossing the finish line at the end of a long day, Armando Perez reconvened with his family and reflected on his training experience. As a 16-year immigrant from Guatemala, Perez put the time in to motivate himself and his relatives for the following year. In Spanish, Perez said, “Apart from motivating you, it’s good for your health and is a good sport. Honestly, there’s no doubting this sport for the athleticism.”
