Now you have an option to let your your friends and family be notified (via email to up to four email addresses) as soon as you cross 10k Split, Half-Marathon Split, 20mile Split, and the Finish Line. Keeping your friends and family informed of your progress through out the New Yrok City Marathon race just got easier in 2005. Now you can help them keep up with you as you sprint through important milestones along the way.

NYC Road Runners are now offering you an opportunity to auto-notify up to four email addresses -at no cost to you -as you cross 10k, Half Marathon mark, 20mile mark, and of course, the Finish line.

You will have to provide them:

• Your Marathon Runner's Race (your BIB) number,
• Your date of birth, and
• Up to 4 email addresses that you wish to be notified.

Looks like they have now implemented a computer program to trigger an email notification to be sent as soon as the sensors have detected you (actually the "chip") passing through those important milestone markers.

One would think it would not be too long (if not the next year) before they would embed a GPS tracking device alongside that identification chip to allow your progress to be monitored/charted in real time over the web.

If you are a registered New York City Marathon Runner for the 2005 marathon, click on this Athlete Alert Signup page at the New York City RoadRunner Site.