Lake Tahoe Marathon is More Than Just a Race

For some, their only connection to the Lake Tahoe Marathon is the billboard sign they see attached to a pick up around South Lake Tahoe. For others, it’s an amazing series of races that fill the south and west shore for several days every fall.

The man behind the race is Les Wright, long time South Lake Tahoe local. It is tough to find time to talk to Les these days. He is working 18 hour days and the time left for rest finds his mind full of marathon details, planning and organizing.

Wright, who taught physical education for 30 years, created the Lake Tahoe Marathon for 4 main reasons: It is 26 miles from Tahoe City to South Lake Tahoe (the length of a marathon), he thought it’d be a great event for the community, he thought it would be a great event for runners and he found he could keep his mind active and continue being engaged with people by coordinating the event. Today, he finds all 4 reasons still true today.

Over 2,000 participants are expected in the event which runs this year from September 27 through the 29th. It’s not just one race either! The first scheduled events are Thursday and include a kayak clinic and a historic fun run, followed by Friday’s Emerald Bay Marathon and Half Marathon, 5 mile Kayak and Stand Up Paddle races. Saturday’s events are a bike ride around the lake, a 35 mile bike ride, the Cal-Neva Marathon, another Half Marathon, the Optimist Kid’s Fun Run as well as the overnight 72 Ultra Run that starts at 9 pm and midnight’s double marathon. Sunday is the big day with Marathon Walker Race, 20 mile Power Walk, 5k and 10k races as well as the Marathon and Half Marathon.

The host hotel is Lake Tahoe Resort Hotel and the beginning and finish lines are at different locations around the lake, depending on the race. The final marathon finish line is at Pope Beach where all of the awards will be handed out. For complete marathon information, visit the event website http://www.laketahoemarathon.com/