Jack Staph, executive director of the Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon, said the event set a mark with about 12,400 runners and walkers who registered for Sunday's marathon, half marathon and 10K and Saturday's first-ever 5K.
According to the marathon Web site, the number of actual finishers was around 10,000: 416 for the 5K and 9,500 for the other three races combined.
The 10K, half marathon and full marathon each started at St. Clair Avenue and East Ninth Street at 7 a.m., so runners headed north toward the lake into a stiff wind (East Ninth is a natural wind tunnel even on calm days). It made 46 degrees at the starting bullhorn feel like about half that. Teeth chattered. Goose bumps leaped from uncovered legs. Some runners tried to keep their muscles warm clad in "Bill Belichick chic," aka Hefty bags with arm-holes cut out.
But aside from the wind, which was mostly at runners' backs in this year's reconfigured course, Mother Nature laid out what runners like to call "no excuse weather" - coolish and clear.
Making a comeback?
Pre-race activities included brief welcomes by Mayor Frank Jackson and Councilman Joe Cimperman, whose ward includes downtown Cleveland. Obviously, both know how to run and win, at least politically. It seems that Cimperman is also keenly familiar with pounding the pavement physically, reminding an observer that he clocked a 3:38 in a Pittsburgh marathon in 1996.
"I need to start [running] again," he said.
Medic!
All in all, the event went off with few major medical issues. Dr. Robert Dimeff of Cleveland Clinic Sports Health said 55 runners were treated at the medical tent, mostly for bumps, bruises and fatigue - no heat stroke or cardiac problems.
Three people were transported to emergency rooms for further treatment, although only one was a runner. One fan fell and banged his or her head. A volunteer stepped in a hole and did the same. And one marathoner fell at around mile 16, suffered a gash above his eye, but continued and finished the final 10 miles. Dimeff wouldn't identify those treated because of privacy issues.
But, as it turns out, the unstoppable runner with the gash was 69-year-old Francis "Bud" McNellie of Bedford, one of only three people who have run all 32 Cleveland marathons. His son, Mark, head football coach at Lake Erie College, said it took about 20 minutes to stop the bleeding before his father picked himself up and continued the race.
Better half:
Race officials said 60 percent of the half marathoners were women - a number that continues to increase. For all three races Sunday, 4,960 women and 4,540 men crossed the finish line.
Cha-ching:
Race day is also a big charitable fund-raising day. Teams of runners representing 11 charities were registered this year, and that doesn't even count the number of participants running to raise money for less-publicized causes of their own.
Happy ending:
Race organizers were pleased that the change in the course route resulted in a more scenic finish, creating a dramatic corridor along Lakeside Avenue between City Hall and the Convention Center, while grassy Mall C allowed a comfy spot for fans and participants to gather afterward.
Pregame meal:
Some days it doesn't pay to get out of bed, even for a third-place finisher.
Just ask Heath Boylan, 23, of Mount Vernon. He finished third Sunday in the men's half marathon despite a series of mishaps.
"This has to be the worst running day in my life," said Boylan, who ran 1:16:11 and finished third behind winner Chris Paulett of Bath and Aaron Apathy of Parma. "I've run faster times on a daily basis. But maybe drinking that chocolate milk before the race wasn't a good idea."
It likely wasn't. Boylan said a few steps into the race, his right side began hurting. Halfway into the race, he suffered a stomachache. And later in the race, he was forced to take a bathroom break.
Regarding bathrooms:
Runners choosing to use one of 55 portable restrooms on Rockwell Avenue and East Ninth Street before the races had a monstrous wait.
By 6:40 a.m., each bathroom had a minimum of a dozen people waiting to use them.
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