A group of San Antonio runners will run Rock 'n' Roll marathon races in San Antonio and Las Vegas this Sunday.
Edward Leos, his wife and friends Justin Bravo and Sonya Lerma signed up for both the San Antonio and Las Vegas Rock 'n' Roll marathon races earlier this year when they were about a month apart.
But then organizers moved the San Antonio marathon back to Nov. 17, the same day as the Vegas race.
"It was one of those things where we had registered for both of the races and we were just, said, 'What the heck! Let's do both!' so we didn't have to choose," said Edward Leos, who will run both half-marathons along with his wife and Lerma.
"It was kind of a unique opportunity because the reality is there's not a lot of marathons that are ran in the evening," said Bravo, who plans to run both full marathons. "We all were up for the challenge and we all came together as a team to raise money for Run for 21."
Run for 21 raises money for the Down Syndrome Association, where Leos is the chairman of the board. They hope to raise at least $2,500 by Sunday night.
"We love the uniqueness and the physical and mental challenges about it and again combining it with doing something good for the community," said Leos.
The half-marathoners will catch a 12:15 flight to Vegas and should land about two hours before the start of the race there, but Bravo is expected to land about 90 minutes before the starting gun. Cutting it close runs a second to the biggest challenge of sitting on a plane for hours.
"After running a half marathon and sitting there for three hours, it's going to be a little bit of a challenge, something we've never had to go through but hopefully we'll be able to come out on the other side and do pretty well with it," said Leos. "We've been talking to our nutritionist and I think we're going to be in pretty good shape. At least we're hoping to."
"Three and a half hours sitting is brutal," said Bravo. "After a marathon your legs feel like concrete. I don't know if I can get Southwest to give me a few more cups of ice and see how that works out maybe walk around the cabin a little bit extra."
The group is not alone. Organizers of both events said about 200 runners will attempt the rare double and have even done a little to help them reach their goal.
"They're offering showers at the finish line in San Antonio so we'll be able to shower and be ready for Vegas so I'll have my run gear on the plane," said Bravo, "and they're providing sack lunches on the airplane and a shuttle to the airport."
"They will get a nice fun medal for finishing both and it's kind of more bragging rights for those guys," said event director Lauren Kalocay. "It'll be a fun experience."
The San Antonio Rock 'n' Roll marathon begins at 7:30 a.m. but road closures begin much earlier. Check out our special marathon section for the latest news and updates.
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