When Alan Marcosson straps on a pair of inline skates, he's faster than most competitors half his age. At 53, the Clevelander is a favorite to win the May Daze Inline Skate Relay, because he's one of the nation's top skaters in his age group. And that's a fact Marcosson not-so-modestly throws into conversation. "There are very few people in the country who can best me," he says. "Then again, there aren't many people my age doing this."
An ex-competitive bicyclist, Marcosson switched to skating 10 years ago on a dare from some friends. Ever since, he's zigzagged the country to compete. But the May Daze race is a first for him. Instead of teams competing on a 100-meter indoor track, two-person teams complete 10 laps on a two-mile outdoor track. "It's very similar to bike racing, but the speeds aren't as high," he explains.
Rick Caldwell, president of organizing group NCN Racing, disagrees. He predicts that the top teams will complete the 20-miler in less than an hour. "These skaters are fairly quick, like a two-and-a-half- [or] three-minute mile," says Caldwell. "It's significantly faster than a runner and even faster than a lot of bikers." The race starts at 8 a.m. Sunday at Lorain County Community College, 1005 North Abbe Road in Elyria. Admission is free; call 440-933-8075. -- Cris Glaser
Field of Dreams
High schoolers take to the Jake.
FRI 5/7
It's every boy's dream to play in the big leagues. Six area high school baseball teams will get a little bit closer to them when they participate in the first Cleveland Indians Charities High School Hardball Classic at Jacobs Field on Friday. (The Tribe will vacate the field to play in Baltimore this weekend.) Archbishop Hoban takes on Walsh Jesuit at 1, Mentor goes up against East Cleveland Shaw at 3:30, and St. Edward plays St. Ignatius at 6 p.m. "This is an absolute thrill of a lifetime [for these kids]," says spokesperson Bob DiBiasio. "There can't be anything better than to play on [a major-league] field." Tickets are $5. Jacobs Field is at 2401 Ontario Street; call 216-420-4200. -- Diane Sofranec
