‘Master’ runner using marathon as a tune-up

For most of the 29,000 participants in Sunday's Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon or its half-marathon offshoot, finishing the race will be a benchmark in their lives.

For Josh Cox, it will simply serve as a warm-up.

Cox is the American record holder for 50 kilometers, the equivalent of 31 miles. He set the mark of 2 hours, 47 minutes, 17 seconds, in 2009 as part of the Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon in Phoenix. He completed the marathon, then continued on to the Arizona State University track a few hundred yards away, where he ran the final five miles to reach 50 kilometers.

Now, he wants to rewrite his current record, and he's tuning up with the Las Vegas race, which starts at 7 a.m. on the Strip near Mandalay Bay.

"This is going to be one of my key workouts," said Cox, who will run the Arizona race on Jan. 16 in his record-setting attempt. "I've got a couple more good weeks of training before I begin to taper. Everything is totally dialed in for the Arizona race. I'm pumped up for it."

Cox's plan is to take it relatively easy for the first half of Sunday's race, hitting the halfway point in 73 to 74 minutes -- just under six-minute miles. Then he plans to put the hammer down.

"I'll do 10 to 12 miles hard, blasting eight to 10 miles really hard."

So hard, in fact, that he expects he can challenge for the win in the marathon, even though he might have quite a bit of ground to make up in the second half of the race.

"I'm really hoping to win, to be totally frank," he said. "I did that in 2008 at the Rocket City Marathon in Alabama. I did the half in 73 minutes, ran hard on the back half and came through to win in 2:21:23. So I definitely think I have a shot.

"I'm definitely trying to come away with a 'W.' That's always the idea."

Cox, 35, is a big fan of the Rock 'n' Roll events. The San Diego native's first marathon was in 1999 at the Rock 'n' Roll San Diego Marathon. He said the Las Vegas event is a perfect fit for the brand.

"This is awesome. Vegas in the winter has ideal running conditions," he said. "I see a lot of snowbirds here to run. It's vacation for them. They just need to try and hold off on partying until after the race."

Cox is one of several athletes involved in Nissan's "Master the Shift Program," along with fellow American marathon star Ryan Hall and renowned cyclist Lance Armstrong. Those three and others are using social networking to dispense knowledge to runners of all abilities, at facebook.com/mastertheshift.

Cox is also on hand at the marathon's expo, being held through Saturday at the Sands Expo & Convention Center. He'll host a training tips seminar at 1 p.m. Saturday, followed by an autograph session, and he'll have another autograph session at 10 a.m. Sunday in the Nissan booth at the Finish Line Festival, in the Mandalay Bay Convention Center parking lot.

HALF-MARATHON HIGHLIGHT -- Though there will be elite runners in both the marathon and half-marathon, the shorter distance will have the speedier competition. Kenyan Shadrack Biwott, a 25-year-old who was an All-American at Oregon, has a personal best of 1:01:40.

Patrick Smyth, 24, of Mammoth Lakes, Calif., took second in the Houston Half Marathon in January with a personal-best time of 1:02:01.

On the women's side, Amy Hastings and Jen Rhines -- both of Mammoth Lakes -- are among the top contenders. Hastings, 26, has a 1:11:39 half-marathon to her credit, and Rhines, 36, is a three-time Olympian with a PR of 1:11:45.

The aforementioned Cox is among the favorites in the men's marathon, with a personal-best of 2:13:51, while Poland's Dorota Gruca leads the women's field.

Gruca was part of one of the most breathtaking finishes in the history of marathons in Las Vegas. In 2005, prior to Rock 'n' Roll's takeover, she took third in 2:31:55, and the top four runners were separated by a mere three seconds after a spectacular sprint to the line.

Gruca, who turns 40 on race day, has a PR of 2:27:46.

RUN-THRU WEDDING -- This year's event will again feature the run-thru wedding ceremony, to be held on the Rialto Bridge in front of the Venetian. Ceremony organizer Laurence Cohen said 75 couples will either be married or renew their vows.

Even top-flight athletes are getting in on the fun. Sarah Reinertsen, the first woman with a prosthetic leg to complete the Ironman World Championship in Hawaii, will take things a bit more leisurely Sunday morning by renewing her vows with husband Brooke Raasch.

The two are just coming off their official wedding, on Oct. 10 -- or 10/10/10, as Reinertsen noted.

"This race for us is really about having a good time and soaking it in," she said. "We'll bring a camera, take pictures, bring our cell phones. We're just gonna enjoy it. There are plenty of other times where you can feel rushed and in a hurry. We're going to enjoy the Strip one mile at a time together. And it's great people watching."

Reinertsen was born with a tissue disorder that caused her left leg to be much shorter than her right. The leg was amputated above the knee when she was 7, and she said running has been key throughout her life to give her a competitive athletic outlet.

"I've really lived through a lot of the technology," she said. "I was excluded from a lot of sports as a kid. Running helped make me feel whole. Not letting anybody down, you know, as the one-legged person on the kickball team."

The Orange County, Calif., resident met her husband through running, so the run-thru wedding was a natural.

"We wanted to do something cool as a running couple," she said. "I ran here last year, and he had an injury. He's healthy this year, and I said, 'We've got to do this, because I want to renew vows.'

"The way I see it is it's a vow to each other to be married, but to also always incorporate health and fitness into each other's lives. It's an extension of our vows, to always look out for each other, to take care of ourselves.

RACE REGISTRATION -- Anyone still interested in running the marathon or half-marathon can register today at the expo from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

KIDS ROCK RACE -- The Kids Rock Las Vegas 1-mile fun run is at 8 a.m. Saturday at Sunset Park. The mile is the culmination of a program in which hundreds of Southern Nevada children from kindergarten through sixth grade ran 25 miles in the weeks leading up to Saturday's finale, giving them the full marathon distance.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED -- If you aren't the running type, but would still like to get involved in Sunday's race, volunteers are needed in a variety of capacities, including: race crew, medical, start/finish lines and water stations.

Interested parties should send an email to volunteerlv@competitorgroup.com or to medical@competitorgroup.com, or call 800-311-1255. For more information, go to las-vegas.competitor.com/volunteers.

FACTS AND FIGURES -- Event officials are aiming for 30,000 participants, expecting to at least break 29,000, with 21,500 entered in the half-marathon and 7.500 taking on the full 26.2-mile distance.

There are runners from all 50 states and 39 countries, and women will make up 60 percent of this year's field.

As usual, this event attracts a bundle of Elvis-costumed runners. The "Running Elvi" group is expected to number 300 this year and will take part in the run-thru wedding.

There will be 33 live bands along the course, along with hundreds of high school cheerleaders urging the runners along. Also aiding the runners: 21 water/sport drink stations, manned by 1,000 volunteers.

And in the just-in-case-you're-wondering department: there will be 300 portable toilet facilities, primarily in the start/finish area.

Contact Patrick Everson at peverson@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0353.