Marketing/PR Director: Nick Scarpello, nscarpello@gmail.com

Elite Athlete Coordinator: Mark Belger, MarkBelger.EncinitasMile@gmail.com

Media Release

                                                          Strava Track Club training for The Encinitas Mile 

ENCINITAS, Ca. [March 9, 2016]  Strava Track Club (San Francisco, CA) has announced that it will send seven top-level athletes to San Diego to compete in the stacked Elite heats for the third annual running of the Encinitas Mile on March 20 on Vulcan Avenue in Encinitas, CA.

Annie St. Geme Beck (4:18 for 1500 meters), Laura Carlyle (Oiselle, 4:16 for 1500 meters), Courtney Heiner (2014 NCAA D2 Champion for 1500 meters), Ayla Granados (4:43 for one mile),  Marco Bertolotti (3:42 for 1500 meters), Justin Marpole-Bird (3:40 for 1500 meters) and Jesus Romo (4:02 road mile) will all travel from the Bay Area to challenge San Diego’s most competitive runners for one-mile glory and to chase this year’s increased prize purses for top finishers.

Strava Track Club is a Pacific Association USATF Elite Development Club competing in the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond, providing coaching and athletic development opportunities for distance runners, and featuring a core roster of more than 30 elite athletes. Jesus Romo, a native of Vista, CA, and graduate from USF, is one such competitor who will have his eyes set on a slice of the $2,000 in total prize money that will be distributed broadly by time bonuses, course record incentives, and overall place awards. Full prize money details can be found at EncinitasMile.com/prize-money.

“Our Strava teammate Kirsty Legg had a phenomenal experience last year at this race, and that’s why we’re so thrilled to come back again to represent,” Romo said.  “Plus, it’s great to be home in North County and see more of these kinds of high-level road races growing in popularity in San Diego.” Kirsty Legg of Strava TC was the Women’s Elite race champion in 2015 and set the course record at 4:46.

Jesus Romo boasts a personal best time of 4:02 in the road mile (2nd place at the 2015 Lodi Mile, where the winner ran sub-4:00). He will be joined on March 20 by several of his teammates, all of whom, he says, are also “fit and ready to go.” The men’s and women’s course records of 4:14 (John Simons, ZAP Fitness, 2015) and 4:46 are expected to be in jeopardy at this year’s race.

Romo added, “No matter the outcome, we’re just really happy being a part of the Encinitas Mile this year, especially because short-distance road races like this give everyone a really interesting new way to challenge themselves. Chances to run a fast mile are so few and far between nowadays, so this is looking like it’s going to be a fun one.”

 About The Encinitas Mile, presented by the Carlsbad Classic

 The Encinitas Mile is a one-mile road race held near downtown Encinitas on Sunday, March 20th along a beautiful and spectator-friendly out-and-back course. The morning’s races feature a series of seven heats that accommodate all ages and abilities, including a Kids’ Mile, Men’s and Women’s Open Miles, Masters’ Mile, Elite Men’s and Women’s Miles, and even a Dog Mile!

 The race runs along Vulcan Avenue with a start and finish line near the Encinitas train station.  The course is flat, fast, and USATF-certified. The 2016 Encinitas Mile will be the official 2016 USATF San Diego Road 1-Mile Championship[SN1]  race and offers thousands of dollars in prize money while supporting local dog rescues such as Coastal German Shepherd Rescue, Shelter to Soldier, Rancho Coastal Humane Society, and It’s the Pits.

 For more information, entry inquiries, or to discuss sponsorship, please contact race co-founder Mark Sarno at mark@encinitasmile.com or (760) 591-4945.  You can also follow event updates at facebook.com/encinitasmile or on Twitter @encinitasmile.