Myrtle Beach Marathon announcement due early next week

Myrtle Beach Marathon organizers have promised participants will receive an announcement early next week -- likely Monday, but Tuesday at the latest -- about how the organizers plan to try to make it up to them after weather forced the race's cancellation this year.

Shaun Walsh, the marathon's president and race co-director, said the group is planning special offers for next year's race and is working with another race that will also offer this year's disappointed runners a discount. But the group has had to compile a lot of data, including the names of those who signed up and showed up, versus those who never checked in for the run, and e-mail lists, as well as preparing the race Web site to receive the special registrations that will be offered.

"We wanted to make sure we have everything in a row so nothing gets messed up for anyone," Walsh said Thursday morning.

He said an announcement would be made to the media likely Monday.

He did not give any indication about refunds for the runners. He has already said the marathon group would be unable to give full refunds because so much of the costs associated with the race are paid for long before race day arrives.

Runners who came for the 14th annual marathon were disappointed to learn the city chose to cancel the race because of snow the night before.

But Walsh said earlier this week that the marathon group's emergency plan calls for heeding the most up-to-the-minute National Weather Service forecasts, and the night before the race, the weather service was predicting icy conditions and downed tree limbs and power lines. Many runners complained, saying they've run in inclement weather before, but Walsh said it wasn't just the runners' safety he and the city worried about. There were 1,500 volunteers and city staff members who were scheduled to be involved with the race, too.

Delaying the race's start until noon wasn't really an option, either, he told the city, because it would have meant volunteers would have had to reschedule all their afternoon plans or not participated, and without volunteers to staff water and sustenance stations, direct traffic and help runners, the marathon would not have been the quality event the organizers guarantee people.

Contact reporter LORENA ANDERSON at 444-1722.