Many parts of wine country in Napa and Sonoma Counties have hosted marathon's, fun runs and foot races, with one exception, the town of Santa Rosa. Santa Rosa is Sonoma County's largest city and has yet to play host to a marathon which will only be true until August of this year. Arthur Webb, a professional runner, lives and trains in Santa Rosa and is very excited to finally race in his home town this August. He has been toying with the idea of an annual marathon for years and now his vision has transformed into reality. Webb will be organizing the event with a partner, Orhan Sarabi.
So far Webb and Sarabi have secured the permits and mapped out the course. The course will start at Julliard which is adjacent to Santa Rosa Avenue at the southern edge of downtown. From there the course continues along the Greenway, once for a half marathon or out and back twice for a full marathon. Webb and Sarabi have secured several sponsors including the Santa Rosa Police Officers' Association and Heart & Soul. This year's participation is estimated at 500 to 1,000 runners who will participate in the race and enjoy the after-event social in Julliard Park with music, booths and activities for children. Through marketing efforts a buzz has started in many local runner' circles, which will hopefully bump up participation numbers considerably. Webb and Sarabi have high hopes for Santa Rosa's first marathon and hope that this will be the beginning of many more races for this wine country town. This is the perfect event to end a beautiful day of wine country touring so make sure to allow extra time to enjoy the festivities. For more information regarding the marathon please visit thesantarosamarathon.com/home.
