Bob Seagren Interview: Saving the Long Beach Inline Marathon

The Planet Interview with Bob Seagren:
Trying to Grow Inline Skating in Long Beach

Race Promoter Says New Grand Prix Event Is Intended to Draw More Skaters to the Long Beach Marathon

By Robert "Olympic Fool's Gold Medalist" Burnson

As I mentioned earlier, I was expecting to receive word this week that the Long Beach Inline Marathon was being discontinued. So I was surprised when the news arrived, and it was all good! Not only is the marathon being continued, but there will be a new inline event in Long Beach this April.

To learn more about these unexpected developments, I talked to Bob Seagren, the chief executive officer of International City Racing, the company that puts on the marathon. Bob said that the idea of the new event (which will include inline skating, running, bicycling and a new blend of triathlon) is to "grow" participation in the Long Beach Marathon.

Anyway, here's what Bob -- who, as you may recall, won the 1968 Olympic gold medal in pole vault -- had to say:

Robert: Can you tell me about the new inline event?

Bob: The event will be on April 3rd, a week before the Long Beach Grand Prix [a Champ Car World Series race that attracts more than 100,000 spectators]. It will be on the Grand Prix racecourse.

We will have a six lap bike race [each lap of the racecourse is two miles], a four lap inline skate, and a two lap running event. Then we will finish with a triathlon, which will be the premier event. In the triathlon, contestants will start by skating two laps. Then they will go into pit row, take off their skates, jump on their bicycles and ride two laps. Then they will come back to pit row, drop off their bikes and run the final lap. ... At least, that's what we are thinking so far.

We want to mimic the feeling of the Grand Prix as much as possible. So we are going to use the public address system and have some fun with announcing the races.

We are thinking of a $30 registration fee. For that, you will get a long-sleeve T-shirt, a goodie bag that will include tickets to the Grand Prix, and we will have lots of different prizes and giveaways. We are looking at about $12,000 in prize money, depending on registration.

Robert: What made you decide to create a new inline event?

Bob: Our thinking was that we needed a way to get inline skaters to think about training for the marathon -- and that in this way, we could help grow the marathon.

That's why the new inline event is only eight miles: to make it easier for the novice and recreational skaters. We're hoping to plant the seed in their minds that they could be ready -- six months down the road -- for the marathon. [The Long Beach Marathon is Oct. 16th.]

Actually, developing the concept of the Grand Prix event is what makes us think we can continue with the inline marathon.

Robert: So your goal is to build participation in the marathon?

Bob: Yes. The Long Beach Marathon is a carnival of events. [Aside from the running and inline marathon, it includes a half marathon, a 5 K run and a bike tour.] But our focus is building the marathon distance, whether it is inline, bike or running.

We have had to consider the cost of the inline event: the extra expense for police, which is astronomical, the expense of building a second finish line, the timing costs, and what have you. And we have found that with the lack of sponsors, we aren't making any money on the inline event.

But on the other hand, we need the numbers. Last year, we had almost 13,000 participants in the marathon [roughly 9500 runners, although only a fraction ran the full 26.2 miles, 2400 bicyclists and 640 skaters]. Our goal is to hit somewhere between 15-and-17,000 participants this year. And I want to have 25-to-30,000 participants in the near future.

And we can't do that with marathon runners, alone. We need to build participation in all the events. The city of Long Beach doesn't care if our racers are running, inlining or biking. They just want us to get people into Long Beach to experience what a wonderful city it is.

Robert: Final question: Do you ever go near a pole vault anymore?

Bob: (laughs) No. But I do put inline skates on.

Robert: Really?

Bob: Oh, yeah. I skate the city of Long Beach bike path all the time. It's good exercise. It's a little easier on the knees than running. ... But no, pole vaulting is not a lifelong sport.

Talk:

• How Can We Increase Participation in the Long Beach Inline Marathon?