Central & Eastern Washington - Washington, Oregon and the Pacific Northwest - page 406

Hotel Lusso BOUTIQUE HOTEL$$$
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( 509-747-9750; www.hotellusso.com ; 808 W Sprague Ave; r from $100; ) Offering a
heritage-style plushness that's on par with its illustrious neighbor the Davenport (the ho-
tels are also under the same management), excellent-value Hotel Lusso is a labyrinth of
twisting and turning hallways leading to rooms with glittering marble bathrooms and sol-
id wooden furnishings. Service is equally spiffy. Ask for a room facing the street rather
than the alley.

EJ Roberts Mansion B&B B&B$$$ $$$

( 509-456-8839; www.ejrobertsmansion.com ; 1923 W 1st Ave; ste $140-200; ) You haven't
really absorbed Spokane until you've sniffed around the upper-crust Browne's Addition
and its stately homes. After nearly 25 years of renovation, this historic 1889 Queen Anne
mansion that once belonged to a local railroad tycoon is in business as a plush five-suite
B&B. Retaining its Victorian essence without being too frilly, expect exquisite breakfasts
and service.

BLOOMSDAY

It is said that Spokane breeds two sorts of citizens: those who run Bloomsday and
those who watch. Born out of the 1970s running craze, the 12km Bloomsday Run
professes to be the largest timed road race in the world. There's merit in the claim.
Outstripping the longer and more arduous New York Marathon, Spokane's annual
May dash regularly garners a minimum 50,000 participants and reached a peak of
61,298 runners in 1996.
Bloomsday was the brainchild of local runner and schoolteacher Don Kardong, a
US representative in the 1976 Olympic marathon (where he finished a respectable
fourth in two hours 11 minutes), who suggested putting to good use Spokane's fine
riverside trails in the wake of the 1974 World's Fair. An impressive 1000 runners
turned out for the first race in 1977, which was won by the gazellelike Frank Shorter.
The event mushroomed the following year when the presence of US marathon le-
gend Bill Rodgers cemented its lofty reputation. Good organization, an attractive
course and high-class opposition have since made Bloomsday one of the high-
lights of the US running calendar, with its manageable 7.5-mile (12km) course at-
tracting many runners for whom a marathon is a step too far.
For entry details check the official race website at www.bloomsdayrun.org .

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