Marathon runners boost beach season

When Hurricane Sandy blew through New York, canceling the New York Marathon, Hillary Beveridge was determined her training was not going to go to waste.

She and several friends signed up for Rehoboth Beach Seashore Marathon, and they say they’re glad they did.

“I really enjoyed it. It’s a nice course, with lots of water,” Beveridge said.

“We especially liked the trail part of the race ­– there was so much nature!”

The Dec. 8 Rehoboth Beach Seashore Marathon was a boon for the area’s accommodations industry including a double victory for the Boardwalk Plaza Hotel, which was not only sold to 92 percent capacity the day before the race, but also because race winner Enos Benbow’s father, Enos Sr., works there.

Benbow Sr., who has worked at the hotel for 16 years, said his son picked up running at school. Benbow said he used to be a runner but no longer does it. Enos Benbow Jr. won the race with a time of 2:45:21.

Chad Moore, co-owner of the Bellmoor, said the inn was 100 percent full for race weekend, with more than 45 runners staying, as well as support staff. Moore said the marathon was the biggest event weekend of the year, bringing in people from nine different states, including as far away as Montana.

As for why business was so good, Moore said some hotels around Rehoboth have closed for the winter, reducing supply, and the number of out-of-towners the race brings into Rehoboth.

“It’s a great event,” he said, before joking, “I wish they had one in March.”

Moore said  next year he is considering opening his other hotel, the Admiral on Baltimore Avenue, which is typically closed for the winter, specifically for the race.

Holiday Inn Express was also filled to capacity the night before the race, just like 2011. Hotel representatives said some of the runners stayed for the whole weekend, although most stayed just the night before.

Beveridge said her group stayed in Dewey Beach because all the Rehoboth Beach hotels were full by the time they signed up to run. All five said the race exceeded their expectations.

The race, co-organized by Seashore Striders and Rehoboth Beach Running Company, has grown significantly in its brief five-year life.

Mary Beth Evans, owner of Rehoboth Beach Running Company said, “I am not surprised that the race has grown to become a big event. We planned on growing a little bit every year. We have such a great location for running.”

“It’s nice that it’s a small race,” Beveridge said. “It has a small-town feel, and people are so friendly.”

She’s run the marathon twice in New York, but she said, “This was my best marathon ever. I’d recommend it to any first timers as well as people who have run a marathon already. They do a great job.”

Gina Chupka, 35, came all the way from Golden, Colo., to run the marathon. She’s been doing a lot of traveling recently, one of a growing legion of runners on a quest complete a marathon in every state. She’s finished 47 so far.

“I liked the course. The scenery is nice and you get to run by the beach. It’s my second fastest, so I’ll take it!” Chupka said.

Evans said, “We get so much positive feedback. Some runners come back every year and they bring more people. Word has spread about how much people love our race.”

The marathon, which also serves as a Boston Marathon qualifier, began in 2008 for practical reasons.

“There were lots of races in town, but there was no marathon,” Evans said.

Evans, a runner, and Tim Bamforth, race director for Seashore Striders, first had the idea for the marathon in 2006, and after two years of planning held the first annual event in 2008. The event has grown every year; this year 858 people finished the half-marathon, 824 finished the full marathon, an increase from 2011 when 691 finished the half-marathon and 643 went the full 26.3 miles.

“People seem to feel like this is one of the big events in Rehoboth. It 's a quieter time of year, and many of the hotels are full, and the restaurants and shops are very busy,” Evans said.

Bamforth said, “Fall is known as a busy marathon season with Marine Corps, New York, and Philadelphia as the big three in our area. We did not want to compete with them on the same weekend, so we decided that we wanted to be the last event in the season and Delaware weather is mild enough to have it."

“We get a lot of runners that may not have gotten in the big ones, may be injured, or may have dropped out and our marathon becomes a good fit for them. No one wants to be last, but in our case being last in the marathon season has worked out ok for us,” he said.

Greg Chaconas of Washington, D.C., said it was a fast, flat race.

“It can be windy, but it was perfect conditions today. It’s a good marathon,” he said. Chaconas would know; Rehoboth was his 90^th marathon, finishing in 4:10:23 to place second in his age group.

Isaac Mativo, a Kenyan who now lives in Washington, D.C., said the Rehoboth Beach race is unique. A veteran of the Marine Corps, New York, Pittsburgh and Chicago marathons who finished the Rehoboth race in 3:27:34, Mativo said the support and camaraderie he felt during this race sets it apart, and he plans to come back again.

“Everybody supports each other, he said. “You don’t get what you get here from any other marathon.”