The Malibu Times staff will participate in the media invitational challenge part of the race.
By Andi Peterson/Special to The Malibu Times
This Sunday more than 10,000 runners will participate in the 23rd annual Jimmy Stewart Relay Marathon hosted by actors Robert Wagner and Chris O’Donnell. All proceeds from the marathon, which takes place in Los Angeles’ Griffith Park, will benefit programs and services at Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica. Since the first race in 1982, $8.2 million dollars have been raised.
The largest five-person relay marathon in the United States, the Jimmy Stewart Marathon is comprised of more than 20 divisions, categorized via age, gender and corporate/industry affiliation. Each team member runs 5.2 miles before passing the baton, for a total of 26.2 miles. Specialty races include the Diaper Dash and the Kids Races, as well as the first-ever Media Invitational Relay Challenge in which The Malibu Times is participating.
“The whole event is kind of like a big picnic. Teams come out and warm up together, eat lunch together, and there’s also an expo center with various booths set up around the park,” said marathon media representative Julie Watt. “It’s really a lot of fun, especially the Kids Races.”
Last year, the winner of the relay marathon was Team Gardena Reebok, finishing the race with a time of two hours, 17 minutes and 20 seconds.
The proceeds, raised via registration fees and corporate sponsors, specifically benefit a Saint John’s Emergency Department program called Fast Track. The amount raised this year will not be tabulated until after the race. Fast Track, which relieves ER congestion and improves the time in which patients are treated, was introduced by Saint John’s in 2001 and expanded in 2002. If a patient has been assessed by a triage nurse and found to have relatively less urgent needs than other patients, he/she can be treated and discharged in less than one hour without waiting for more severely injured patients to be seen first. Fast Track treats as many as 600 patients each month.
“Fast Track has helped relieve the ER and improve patient care and service,” said Russ Kino, M.D., medical director of the Emergency Department at Saint John’s. “Without Fast Track, a patient with minor injuries might have to wait while more emergent or acutely ill patients are seen. When the wait gets long, it can add to everyone’s level of stress and anxiety.”
Patients who are brought to the ER by paramedics, children under the age of two, anyone with chest pains or anyone with a potentially infectious disease do not go to Fast Track. Additionally, an ER physician is always available to help the triage nurse make patient assessments.
Additional information regarding the Jimmy Stewart Marathon and Saint John’s Health Center can be found at www.stjohns.org. Teams can register up until the start of the race at 8 a.m. Specialty races occur throughout the morning as well, with the media invitational relay challenge taking place at 10:30 a.m.