Courtesy: event press release

3M confirmed today its sponsorship of the 2008 3M Half Marathon, which will be run on the same fast course as the 2007 3M Half Marathon.

Scheduled for Sunday, Jan. 27, 2008, the point to point course starts on Stonelake Blvd. near the Baby Acapulco Restaurant & Cantina and ends at Waterloo Park. The 13.1 mile course features long straight-aways and minimizes turns while passing through a variety of Austin neighborhoods: Westover Hills, Northwest Mesa Oaks, Hyde Park and the University area, just to name a few. Also included in the event are a two-person relay with legs of 6.4 miles and 6.7 miles using an exchange point near Northcross Mall and a Kids non-competitive Fun Run for children 10 and under at Waterloo Park.

Now in its 14th year, the 3M Half Marathon starts at 7 a.m. and runs generally north to south. The rolling, urban course is certified by USA Track and Field (Certification No. TX06017JF). The course begins 272 meters (892 feet) above sea level and finishes at 170 meters (557 feet) above sea level. The course drop is only 4.8 meters/kilometer, less than the previous course drop of 6.1 meters/kilometer. The 3M Half Marathon offers $18,250 in prizes and bonuses. The event offers open/age group and Clydesdale/Filly categories.

3M selected Any Baby Can of Austin as the 2008 event beneficiary. Any Baby Can's mission is to ensure that all children reach their potential through education, therapy and family support services. Any Baby Can will receive a guaranteed $30,000 donation in conjunction with this year's event.

Winners of the 2007 event were Ethiopian Alene Reta in the Male Open Division, who ran the course in one hour, 1 minute and 46 seconds (1:01:46) and Great Britain's Kathy Butler in the Female Open Division, who won her first 3M Half Marathon in 1:11:12. Reuben Chesang won the male masters division in 1:08:46. Russian Runner Albina Gallyamova won the female masters division in 1:15:50. Bogota's Hildebrando Botero was the overall male wheelchair division winner at 58:09. The winner for the overall female wheelchair division for the fourth consecutive time was Austin's Kristen Messer with a time of 1:57:02. More than 4,300 runners registered for the 3M Half Marathon, relay and Kids Fun Run, a record for the event.

The record holder for the event is Andres Espinoza, who ran 1:01:16 in 1999 in the Male Open Division. 3M has sponsored the Austin event since 1995.

The 2008 3M Half Marathon is part of the 2008 Runtex Distance Challenge. To date, the Gold Sponsors of the 2008 3M Half Marathon include 3M Scotchlite Reflective Materials, Brooks Sports, Cliff Bar, JetBlue Airlines, KLBJ 93.7 FM, Kolar Advertising & Marketing, Liaison Resources, Reunion Band, RunTex, and Rudy's Country Store and Bar-B-Q.