JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Runners can expect a change to the Gate River Run’s start/end line, parking and expo because of the ongoing construction for the Stadium of the Future at EverBank Stadium.
Some of those changes include moving the start and finish line to the Shipyards rather than Duval Street or Gator Bowl Boulevard.
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Some runners might take issue with this because the mile markers have changed and runners were training and pacing for the original route.
The biggest change is that parking for the event is now at least a mile away to watch the race because race organizers have lost several parking lots due to Stadium of the Future construction. Action News Jax observed Lot J packed with construction worker-related vehicles Thursday morning.
Doug Alred runs 1st Place Sports stores, the company that manages the race.
“Parking is gonna be a pain for everybody. Matter of fact, my best advice I can give people is to come early. Don’t think you’re gonna come down there and park and get to the starting line,” Alred said.
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The race expo will now be at the Mandarin Point Shopping Center this year, which is 15 miles south of where it was held last year. But Alred said none of these inconveniences have been a deterrent to runners.
“Matter of fact, we’re having [record] registration, this is our biggest year that we’ve had since 2012. That was our record year and hopefully we might surpass that, we have a chance to do it. Unfortunately we have probably the least amount of room for parking,” Alred said.
It certainly won’t deter 75-year-old Jean Schubert of Jacksonville. She runs – A LOT! Over 400 races, that is.
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“The Gate, which will be my 15th Gate, will be 463. I do like racing. I actually love racing,” Schubert said. “I don’t like running, I do love racing. It’s the people, it’s my tribe!”
To help alleviate the walk from parking areas, race organizers will run shuttles from the east side of the stadium.
For more in-depth information on all the changes, go to gateriverrun15k.com.
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