HUNTINGTON BEACH (CNS) – The 29th Surf City Marathon has drawn more than 15,000 entrants for its three races Sunday in Huntington Beach, including Huntington Beach City Councilmember Gracey Van Der Mark.
Van Der Mark will push a wheelchair runner with special needs in the 5K race as part of Ainsley’s Angels of America, a Virginia Beach, Virginia- based charity which aims to build awareness about America’s special needs community through inclusion in all aspects of life.
“I got into politics to fight and protect children and see them smile,” explained Van Der Mark, who said she was inspired after seeing Ainsley’s Angels participants at past Surf City Marathons and felt compelled to get involved.
“Our disabled children go through so much. This makes them feel free and included. It’s wonderful. I spoke to one mother, and she said, `For just a moment, you forget some of the struggles.”‘
All proceeds from the postrace festival and beer garden are donated to the Southern California chapter of Ainsley’s Angels.
“This is hands down our biggest fundraiser,” said Tricia Benton, an ambassador for Ainsley’s Angels’ Southern California chapter.
Wheelchairs used for Ainsley’s Angels participants cost between $1,600 and $6,000. In the past four years, funds raised through the Surf City Marathon have allowed the organization to purchase four chairs, according to race publicist Dan Cruz.
Benton’s 15-year-old daughter, Bailey was born with Down syndrome and cerebral palsy and is nonverbal.
“At these races, when she’s in that chair and running, her hands are flapping, and her legs are up in the air,” Benton said. “She’s smiling, she’s giggling. Even though she doesn’t have the words to convey it, I know she loves it. It’s the one thing we have for her.”
The charity is named for Ainsley Rossiter, who was born in 2003 and was diagnosed with infantile neuroaxonal dystrophy, an extremely rare terminal illness slowly causes global paralysis, just before she turned 4 years old.
When Ainsley went for her first jog during a local road race in 2008, she gave a radiant wind-induced smile. Running provided the family with a way to fight the pain of having a daughter with a terminal illness. She died at age 12 in 2016.
Ainsley’s Angels was founded by her father, Kim `Rooster’ Rossiter, a professor of disability culture at Old Dominion University and a retired Marine Corps major.
Before the marathon starts at 6:30 a.m., runners will honor Huntington Beach Fire Department personnel for their bravery in battling Southern California’s recent wildfires.
“Our firefighters are the backbone of this community, and their selflessness extends far beyond city limits,” said race director Julie Coleman. “Honoring them at the start line is our way of showing gratitude for their sacrifice and unwavering commitment to protecting others.”
The marathon starts on Pacific Coast Highway between the Pacific Ocean and the Waterfront Beach Hotel. The 26-mile, 385-yard course will then quickly pass the Huntington Beach Pier. Miles two through nine go through Huntington Beach’s Central Park and miles 9 through 15 through the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve.
Miles 16 through 25 are on a beachfront running path paved over the sand. The final mile takes runners along Pacific Coast Highway to the finish line, also near the Waterfront Beach Resort.
The half-marathon is set to start at 7:15 a. m. and 5K at 8:10 a.m.
Among the changes to this year’s races is that the 5K will start after the marathon and half-marathon, rather than between them, in an attempt to “lessen congestion on the course,” Coleman said.
“It also helps with parking and shuttles,” Coleman said.
The marathon, half-marathon and 5K have all drawn capacity fields, 2,000, 9,300 and 4,500, just like they did last year, Cruz said.
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