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The San Blas Half Marathon route
This year, around 1,000 national and
international athletes from 7 countries
and 150,000 spectators will visit
Centro del Universo, Coamo,
Puerto Rico, to enjoy a real
long-distance competition, the San Juan
Half Marathon. The 21.0975 kilometers of
this event offers competitors and
spectators a sample of what the town of
Coamo and its history are all about. It
is also a way to experience the warmth
of our Coamo folk, with the slogan
“Come to Coamo and you will love it like
I do”.
While on the route, your will discover
more than 14 historic places to visit,
each representing our Puerto Rican
culture. Look for one of those historic
places, park your vehicle, and watch
while cheering for the participants of
the San Blas Half Marathon.
The Starting Line
Sector Calabazas, Km. 36.2, 14th Road
was part of the route taken by the
Spaniards on their way to the town of
Aibonito, during the U.S. invasion in
1898. From north to south, the road goes
on and on until reaching Coamo.
The
Niagara Sector
The athletes will get by the Obelisk in
honor of Commander Rafael Martínez
Illescas, Captain Fruto López Santos and
the three Spanish soldiers who died in
battle on August 9, 1898. Then they will
get to Las Casillas, the home of the
boss in charge of the truckers who used
to clean the edges of the 14th Road.
After that, they will cross the iron
bridge known as Puente de Hierro Padre
Íñigo built between 1876 and 1910 in
Belgium and mounted by Engineer Reimundo
Camprobí over the masonry foundation
part of the famous “Carretera Central”.
Right next to it, a modern bridge that
is currently in use was built.
The Town
Right next to Avenida Héroes, into the
José Ignacio Quintón Street, they get to
town passing by the public square Luis
Muñoz Marín, where they can see the San
Blas Illescas Catholic Church. Its
construction started in the year 1661.
On November 18, 1867, it was seriously
damaged due to an earthquake.
Immediately after the old church, there
are three very important buildings.
First of all, Museo Histórico de Coamo (a
museum), a two floor Neo Classic
construction with an atrium, brick walls
and ceilings supported by rope beams.
Right next to it, you find the Baptist
Church, a construction with a zinc
ceiling built between 1905 and 1910 by
Architect Crowley, later restored in
1980. Then, there is the Valvarena Chapel,
also know as “Ermita”, built in 1685 as
a means of divine gratitude to the end
of the cholera epidemic. There were 48
founders to this Chapel.
Getting Out of Town
We find the
Osvaldo Rivera Escalera field reaching
the Piel Canela Boulevard where there is
the Francisco (Pancho) Coimbre sports
complex. After the Muñoz Marín Avenue ,
road number 14 from Coamo to Juana Díaz
takes us directly to the Manuel Méndez
Vigo bridge over Las Minas river. It is
the only one bridge used today for
crossing traffic. It was built in
geometric hoops going over 20 feet with
a brick formation, on an edge a form
resembling a Castle. As history goes,
this bridge was dynamited by orders of
Commander Rafael Martínez Illescas to
hide the retreat of the Spanish troops.
It was restored in 1898 by the U.S.
troops.
Ajoguillo Slope
Along road number 14, in front of Los
Llanos grazing field, there is the
second “Casilla”, then we see road
number 545, where close to kilometer
number 12 on that same road, there is
the famous Ajoguillo Slope. The athlete
who first reaches the front edge of this
slope almost surely will win the San
Blas Half Maraton.
Intersection to Road
#150
Reaching the intersection to Road #150,
they cross the Río Chiquito bridge and
the facilities of the Delta Phi Delta
Fraternity, organized in 1957. They are
the masterminds behind the San Blas Half
Marathon.
Entry to Town
Just next to Delta Phi Delta, they
continue to the Ramón Baldorioty de
Castro street. Known as the Maratón San
Blas Avenue, they get to the public
square where the athletes turn right to
City Hall. It was built in the second
half of the XIX Century. Two fires
damaged the building and destroyed its
archives in the years 1869 and 1897. It
was rebuilt in 1929 by Architect Manuel
V. Doménech and Foreman Don Víctor
Santiago, following the Andalusian
architectural model. Immediately after,
right next to the corner of José I.
Quintón street, they turn right, once
again going downtown and arriving to
road number
14
in front of the
Francisco (Pancho) Coimbre Sports
Complex.
Note: Information compiled by Mr. Eligio
Olivieri, former Executive Director of
the San Blas Half Marathon, about the
history of Coamo written by Don Ramón
Rivera Bermúdez, Coamo Historian, and
also through data from Puerto Rican
historians found through the Internet.
Elevation Scheme
The biggest challenge for the
competitors of this Coamo tour de force
is the famous Ajoguillo slope, which
marks the highest place of this
difficult competition. |
