Posted by Richard Leonard on March 25, 2012 at 15:43:27:
OK Victor, now I'm first! See all following comments...First (ha) let me say that from what I saw at the lead and later with the 10-14 milers on the 10K and merge went pretty good. ATR spent a lot of $$$ to try to solve the issues- going thru Oakleigh. But if you really want to MAKE IT GREAT, and I'm serious here, EVERYONE SHOULD PETITION THE CITY TO LET US START AT CANAL AND DO IT IN REVERSE-FINISHING ON GOVERNMENT, where the trees are shady and people clap for your return. PCP has asked and have been turned away. Reasons being we close the street too long. Senior Bowl had enough clout to do it for years (they opted for the present course because of their office location), Mardi Gras closes the street for two weeks during rush hour.
We could do it like we did last year. The merge which went well last year, we just pushed the problem to Broad. Give 10Kers a heads up on what ahead, barracade the 5K turn and let all blend on the big 5 lane Blvd. Again, I think we could get this done if the runners really want it. City hall doesn't run.
Speaking of that, let me explain why the City had us close lanes and why turns are where they are. The 10K course was the same route it was for many, many years. The Cruise Ship forced us to end at Canal and pushed us to the west bound lane of Canal. The complaint on those years was too many people congregating at the finish, walking in front of exiting cars in the pking lot, etc. That was last year's grip. Police found that leaving Canal east bound open was convenient (safety)(but it was closed????) and had us keep doing it this year. So that's why we squeezed. On top of that, we had to certify the course all over because of the Broad/Canal turn. (anyone notice the start wasn't IN Front of Social Security building like it use to be?)
SO HELP GET US A GREAT NEW COURSE, IT STARTS TODAY WITH YOUR HELP!