5 questions for Dave McGillivray, race director of the Denver Marathon

Brian Metzler, Special to the Rocky

Published September 25, 2007 at midnight

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McGillivray is one of the country's best-known race directors, having organized or consulted with more than 700 events, including the Boston Marathon since 1987. He's the race director for the Denver Marathon, which returns Oct. 14 after a successful debut in 2006 that drew 5,000 participants in the marathon, half- marathon and four-person marathon relay race. Brian Metzler spoke with McGillivray.

1 How is this year's Denver Marathon shaping up?

"We've gone from not having an event to having 5,000 participants to now closing in on 10,000 participants. That's pretty significant growth, and I think it's a statement, a strong statement as to the interest in the Colorado and the Denver running community to have a quality event like this one."

2 Is Denver's elevation a limiting factor in attracting more visiting runners?

"I don't know that it's a deterrent at all, I really don't. I haven't personally received one e-mail or one phone call and haven't heard one person say, 'Oh, it's at altitude, a mile high, the air is thin, I'm not sure I want to do that.' A lot of it is word of mouth, and it's all about a quality of the event and the experience. I think it's all based on expectation. People run up mountains all over the place, Pikes Peak in Colorado and Mount Washington in New England. It's the expectation of knowing what the parameters are, whatever you signed on to do. Other than that, it's about the experience."

3 How has road racing changed?

"It's not just a road race. It's not just a process where the gun fires, people run down the street, get a bowl of beef stew and go home. That's what races used to be, and a lot of them are still that way. But I think what separates a race like the Denver Marathon from an also-ran is the extras, you know. It's about all of the unique and creative concepts that enhance the event. The most important thing, bar none, is what goes on from the time the gun fires to the time the runners cross the finish line. So we make sure we take care of what goes on there, but then we also have an outstanding peripheral experience."

4 Can Denver continue to support two marathons?

"I never look at another race as competition, unless it's on the same day. The way I look at it is that it's all infectious. It's all stimulating interest and new blood. Whether you think you're competing against one another or whether you want to compete against one another, the bottom line is that you're still helping each other because you're promoting the sport. . . . And the beauty of the Colfax Marathon and the Denver Marathon is that we both offer a full and a half. So you can mix and match: One year you can do the Colfax full and our half and then the next year you can do our full and their half or whatever. The point is that they're not in the way of each other."

5 What happens if your Red Sox are in a playoff game on the day of the Denver Marathon?

"The race will be all over by about 2 p.m. and the game probably won't start until later, so I'll have plenty of time to catch it on TV."

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