Marathons mix high-tech with long trek

Some of the U.S. marathons that offer instant alerts or online tracking systems for runners and spectators:

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Boston (April 16):

• Messages automatically sent to registered cell phones or e-mail addresses at six miles, halfway, 18 miles and the finish.
• Online updates available at the start, halfway point and finish and every three miles in between.

Rock 'n' Roll Marathon, San Diego (June 3):

• Alerts and online updates at six miles, halfway, 20 miles and finish.
• A race simulator that allows finishers to stage virtual races between themselves and up to five other competitors, including elite runners.
• Plans experiment at this year's race with continuous tracking of phone-carrying runners using Global Positioning Satellite technology.

San Francisco (July 29):

• Alerts at the start, 7.5-mile mark, halfway, 21-mile mark and finish.

Chicago (Oct. 7):

• Messages sent at the start, halfway point and finish and every three miles.
• Runners' progress is searchable online.
• Race officials with laptops available at 10 Starbucks coffeehouses along the race course to look up runners' progress.

Marine Corps Marathon, Washington, D.C. (Oct. 28):

• Updates sent from the start, five miles, 10 mile, halfway, 15 miles, 20 miles, 23.5 miles and finish.

New York (Nov. 4):

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FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

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FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

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FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe debate over AI’s future rages on both coasts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDecades-old march dispute reignites in Northern Ireland, threatening political crisis

• Online updates and alerts sent at the start, halfway, finish and every three miles.

Houston (Jan. 13, 2008):

• Instant update options include start and finish only, or start, six miles, halfway, 18 miles and finish.
• An online map showing a runner's progress around the course.
• A multipage graphical rendering of a runner's results, including comparisons with other runners by age and gender.
• Searchable online video clips of every runner's finish.

Triathlons in San Francisco (June 3), New York (July 22) and Chicago (Aug. 26) offer e-mail, text message and voice alerts, along with graphical renderings of results and searchable video clips of athletes finishing.

Source: AP research.