Pubdate: Sun, 27 Mar 2016
Source: Los Angeles Times (CA)
Copyright: 2016 Los Angeles Times
Contact:  http://www.latimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/248
Author: James Queally

PUFFING AT THE FINISH LINE

At the First Santa Monica 420 Games, Marijuana Advocates Seek to 
Dispel the Stoner Stereotypes Surrounding the Culture

The first 420 Games fun run in Santa Monica started half an hour late.

The leader of the pack threw up his hands at the two-mile mark, 
confused about where he was supposed to turn on the course. And the 
eventual winner got lost on his way to the finish line, running in 
from behind the crowd waiting to cheer his victory.

"Typical stoners," the winner, Chris Barnicle, joked before dozens of 
participants took off about 10 a.m. The 4.2- mile fun run - which 
included runners as well as cyclists and skaters - followed the bike 
path between the Santa Monica and Venice piers.

Jokes aside, the Saturday event is part of a larger effort to wipe 
away the "lazy stoner" stereotype, as laws governing medical and 
recreational cannabis use continue to be relaxed nationwide.

Four states currently allow recreational marijuana use, and 
California is expected to pass a ballot measure and become the fifth this year.

The 420 Games concept was developed by Jim McAlpine, a former 
executive with a ski lift company and a medical marijuana user. He 
has run similar events in San Francisco since 2014 and plans to bring 
the 420 Games to Denver, Seattle and Portland, Ore., later this year.

Saturday's event marked the first time it was held in the L. A. area.

"I use marijuana every day, multiple times a day.... I use it on a 
level where people have called me a stoner my whole life, and I'm the 
farthest, farthest thing from a stoner," said McAlpine, a California 
resident who holds a medical marijuana card. "I own my own company. 
I'm married. I'm a good athlete. I do very well for myself."

Representatives from marijuana delivery companies, food trucks, 
musicians, marijuana dispensary employees and doctors dotted the 
parking lot north of the Santa Monica Pier on Saturday morning after 
the race ended. Though people were more than ready to share 
information about marijuana, none was actually smoked. Event 
organizers didn't want to send the wrong message.

R. J. Balde, 23, was at the event doing promotional work for Eaze, a 
company that developed a medical marijuana delivery app. Balde, who 
moved to California from Michigan two years ago, said events like the 
420 Games are important because some people still pass judgment on 
his use of medical marijuana. "I still get a little bit of a 
side-eye, so I have to, to some extent, hide it."

Barnicle, the race winner and a former college athlete, laughed at 
the idea that the champion of a marijuana-themed race would get lost 
on his way to the finish line.

The long-haired Boston native was well ahead of his competition in 
the final mile, but he banked to the right near Ocean Front walk, 
veering under the Santa Monica Pier and around a bike path as the 
crowd at the finish line stared at the empty straightaway he was 
supposed to be sprinting down.

"This is the most unique exercise group in the world," he said.

Mariana Vieira started training for the race a month ago and made 
sure she had a solid breakfast and a good night's sleep before 
stepping off the starting line. She was all business for 4.2 miles.

But once the race was over ...

"We just smoked," she said, laughing.

Still wearing her 420 Games racing bib, Vieira said she doesn't 
understand why a plant can cause so much controversy in certain circles.

"It's 2016," the 31- year-old Angeleno said. "It's a plant. It's 
acceptable in this society for people to stuff their face with pills, 
but it's a problem for me to smoke a plant?"
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom