Poway Considers Hosting Half-Marathon

Runners may soon take over the streets of Poway—13.1 miles worth, at least—if a proposal to bring a half-marathon here takes off.

"I think it'd be great to host a world-class marathon here in Poway," Councilman Steve Vaus said at Tuesday night's Poway City Council meeting.

After meeting with a Safari Park Half Marathon organizer with city staff, Vaus said he was excited about bringing a similar event to a "sporting community" like Poway at no cost to the city.

The other council members said they support adding a half-marathon to the city's work plan for the year, though Deputy Mayor John Mullin said they will have to consider how the event will affect the business community.

Poway Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Dolores Canizales, in an interview with Patch on Wednesday, said she thinks local business owners would support a half-marathon, though she hasn't yet spoken with any.

"A race would be great," Canizales said. "It also brings a lot of people into Poway which I think would benefit the businesses."

Canizales said she has worked on runs in other cities and creating a win-win opportunity was just a matter of everyone sitting down and working through their concerns. Having the events early in the morning on the weekends typically has not been a problem for business owners, she said.

Tell us: Would you run a half-marathon in Poway? Where should the course be?