Blues Marathon to make history Saturday

 
Mississippi sports history will be made in Jackson Saturday with the running of the seventh Mississippi Blues Marathon.
The marathon, sponsored by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Mississippi, will become the first sporting event in Mississippi in which competitors will represent every state in the union. That’s right: Runners from all 50 of these United States will be among those taking part in the marathon.
Said race director John Noblin: “One of the original ideas behind the Blues Marathon was to put together an event that would show off Jackson to visitors from out of the area. After the success of the first race back in 2008 we realized that we were generating interest all over the country. Collectively, we’ve had runners from all 50 states and about 15 countries over the years but we had never drawn from all 50 states in a single year.”
They have now. In October, a New Hampshire runner sent in his entry form, in essence checking off the last of the 50 states.
Said Noblin: “Achieving this goal really points to the quality of our event, which is a reflection of our sponsor, BlueCross BlueShield of Mississippi, and all the volunteers who make the runners feel so welcome. Hospitality is something this race, and this city, has become known for throughout the national running community.”
The Mississippi Blues Marathon events include of a marathon, half-marathon, marathon relay and kids’ run. The event benefits the Musician’s Benevolent Fund of the Mississippi Blues Commission.
This year, the marathon. Said Noblin: “The Art Garden is an ideal location for an event like ours, with a permanent stage, sound system and lights. Additionally, the grounds are not only beautiful but functional for what we need, with all the area for people to relax after the race and enjoy the music. There is also some protection from the elements, with covered areas under the planetarium and inside the Jackson Convention Center, should the weather be bad.”
The forecast is not bad, calling for a race time (7 a.m.) temperature of 57 degrees with just a 10 percent chance of rain. The predicted high Saturday is 64.