Some downtown Wheeling business owners say extra foot traffic always is welcome, especially from events such as the upcoming 29th Annual Ogden Newspapers 20K Classic.

Scheduled for Friday and Saturday, May 27-28, runners and walkers will come to the city to test their physical and mental abilities during race events. In between, however, many also will patronize local restaurants, coffee shops and hotels.

Mary Ann Lokmer, owner of Wheeling Coffee and Spice, said she usually opens her shop early to allow runners, visitors and race organizers to charge up before events. Armed with extra employees and extra coffee, Lokmer said catering to race enthusiasts each year has been lucrative for her business. Her shop on 14th Street, located near the start-finish line of the race, has been open since 1993.

"We've been in the business a long time. It's a piece of cake," Lokmer said.

Jason Miller, manager of River City Ale Works, said he expects his restaurant to receive 20K-related business on Friday. Dishes offering plenty of carbohydrates usually are most popular with the athletes.

"We sell a lot of pasta dishes," Miller said.

Michael Kurner, operations manager at the Ramada Plaza City Center Hotel, said each year race participants fill between 30 and 40 rooms at the hotel. Most stay at least one night.

"It's great for Wheeling and great for our business," Kurner said. "We're a big supporter and happy the race happens every year."

Kurner said the location of the hotel, which is situated on Market Street in the downtown, makes it a popular resting place for race enthusiasts. He said many are repeat customers. "The location is key. We budget to have a strong weekend every year of the race. It always has been," he said.

Terry Sterling, president of the Wheeling Area Chamber of Commerce, has run the 20K race 13 times. He said it is an important event that he believes has a "substantial economic impact."

Sterling also believes the race serves, for many, as a family reunion of sorts. Family members who now live elsewhere come home to either run or watch the race together.

"People come from all over the Ohio Valley and our region to Wheeling to run, by far, one of the hardest 20K races in the United States," Sterling said.