Road Closures: Tulsa Police And Firefighters Go Head-To-Head In Route 66 Marathon In Relay Race

The Route 66 Marathon is bringing in runners from all over the country. Eight of those runners are trading their uniforms for running gear.

The Tulsa Police and Fire departments will go head-to-head in a relay race between the departments. 

The prize? The losing department buys lunch.

This isn't the first competition between the police and fire departments. They've played hockey, basketball, even their longtime smoking gun competition. With lunch on the line, competition between Tulsa's finest can get pretty heated.

"We got quite a few firemen that would love to remind every cop that they see on scene about how the fire department is a little quicker than them," said Roy Zoellner, Assistant Fire Marshal.

All that running will build up an appetite for the winning team, and the loser picks up the bill. 

"When the fire department is picking up our lunch, that'd be great," said Josh Metcalf, a Tulsa Police Department officer.

Roy Zoellner is running the first leg for Tulsa Fire; he says his experience gives him an edge.

"I'm a runner myself and so are some other team members," Zoellner said. "I just came off the New York marathon and my 28th Tulsa Run, so my legs are ready. They're rested, recovered, and ready to go."

On the police department side, Officer Josh Metcalf will take the first leg. He wants everyone to know what's on the line for him.

"It's during deer season, and so I'm making a sacrifice to be there on Sunday," said Metcalf. "I'll be hunting on Saturday, but on Sunday morning, I'll be at 7th and Main getting it started."

The respect each one has for the other is bigger than the race. 

"The great thing about it, once we all cross the finish line, which will be right here Sunday afternoon, we'll all be together," Zollner said. "We'll all be celebrating a great event."

Race time on Sunday is 8 a.m., and they'd love to have you cheering on the sidelines.

Road Closures For Route 66 Marathon