RIGONOMICS:

It was official Tuesday night. The Costa Mesa City Council approved the Orange County Marathon’s route through Costa Mesa to the finish line at the Orange County Fairgrounds. The vote was unanimous.

The marathon, in its fifth year, previously was routed though Newport Beach and Irvine. Costa Mesa got the opportunity to be a part of the race when the race directors were looking for a way to make the race more interesting and fun for the runners. The previous course had a three-mile stretch on Portola Parkway in Irvine that had a grueling 300-foot incline. This part was not only difficult for the runners, but was so far away from any residents that the runners were running alone without any crowds to cheer them on.

Lastly, it was impossible to find a great finish line that has an area large enough to accommodate the 36,000 family members, friends and runners at the end of the race.

Costa Mesa fit the bill perfectly. The race will still start the morning of May 3 in Newport Beach at Fashion Island, travel through Corona del Mar to the ocean, and then head up Bayside Drive to the Back Bay. Instead of heading east through Irvine, it will go west to Costa Mesa’s Eastside on University/Del Mar Avenue. The half-marathoners will take Mesa Drive over the 55 Freeway to finish at the fairgrounds while the rest of the runners will head north on Red Hill. The course is flatter and faster.

The revamped marathon course is getting a great reaction in the running world. Race registration is up 40% from last year. So far, runners from 32 states and Canada have registered. An interesting note — so far, 56% of them are female.

With the economy down, this will be a nice little boost for our local economy. The event is actually over a three-day period, with three separate adult races; a marathon, a half-marathon, and a 5K. In addition, there is the kid’s marathon, which is coordinated with local schools where the kids do 25.2 miles in a 10-week program and finish their final mile, for a total of 26.2 miles, on the Saturday before the race. The Health and Fitness Expo starts noon on Friday at the Orange County Fairgrounds Event Center. Thousands of the runners are expected stay at local hotels and dine at local restaurants. As of now, the main-events hotel has not been finalized. To handle the large crowds, 50 shuttle buses will be used to move runners and their friends between participating hotels and the finish line.

The numbers look like this: By race day, organizers expect 12,000 to 15,000 participants. On average, each participant brings two additional people who are family or friends. That means over the weekend, more than 36,000 people will be in Newport and Costa Mesa just for the race. Also, the demographics of marathon runners are extremely high. It makes sense that a person, who trains for a 26.2-mile odyssey, is a very driven and highly goal-oriented individual. Needless to say, on average that type of individual is also a high-income earner.

The marathon is a nonprofit event. The net proceeds help fight juvenile obesity and other children’s health issues. In addition, there are 16 approved children and health-related charities that will use the event as a fundraising vehicle for their own causes.

Runners can register now online at www.ocmarathon.com. There is also information on the website to get your child’s school involved in the 10-week kid’s marathon program.

As you can see from my picture, I am not a marathoner. But if I start now I can be in shape to do the 5K. Join me and be part of one of the biggest events in Orange County. Get in shape and support children’s charities.

JIM RIGHEIMER is a Costa Mesa planning commissioner, a local developer and a GOP activist. He may be reached at [email protected].