St. Paul Inline Marathon Skate Race 2007

St. Paul weather is usually nice, but it can be chilly in the morning. I doubt that will be a problem this year.

The route is a two lap course with some hills, tight turns at each end, and a tough finishing climb to test your resolve. You can see by the elevation profile (http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/activity/123953) that you will have some moderate climbs.

Don't try to skate down the very steep downhill from the hotel to the course. It is a very steep and uneven. I saw more than one person fall before the race.

The staging area is good with room to get ready and lots of porta-toilets. Head down early enough to warmup on the course and see the pro start.

Stay to the left in water zones unless you are getting water. They hand out the water bottles with the tops removed, which causes lots of spills. The areas were hazardous last year between the wet roads and some improperly discarded trash.

The turn-arounds at each end could certainly be better, so be careful. Last year, one was in a rough bank parking lot and the other went under a bridge over some very questionable pavement in an industrial area. The under bridge turn-around was also narrow. They changed it to eliminate the formerly tight U-turns, but I am not sure it was an improvement.

I listed a few issues, but it is still a very good marathon. Some of my fellow skaters from St. Louis are headed up, but I am skipping it this year while transitioning to larger wheels.

Have fun...Jb