SOUTH BAY MARATHON

The South Bay Marathon is a major event in the South Bay area which involves thousands of runners along a route that includes the Clinton Narrows Bridge. MacGyver himself had run the South Bay Marathon twice.

When Hatcher, an arms dealer, had orchestrated the theft of several Snake-Eye missiles with the intention of selling them to interested buyers, he also arranged for the abduction of Kate Lafferty, a young but brilliant student who had helped to solve a problem with the missile's guidance system. With no choice but to cooperate, Kate provided the solution, and with the system now functioning, Hatcher arranged the sale of the missile with his buyer. Before making the purchase, however, the buyer demanded a demonstration to prove that the guidance system was operational, and he designated the coordinates for the test: 37° 47' N and 122° 30' W, the location of the Clinton Narrows Bridge, unaware that the South Bay Marathon would be taking place at the same time.

With MacGyver's help, Kate was able to escape from Hatcher, and together they were able to prevent the launch of the test missile, however Hatcher, at another location, launched a second missile instead. Kate removed the guidance system chip from the first missile, returning it to its original surface-to-air heat seeking configuration, and when launched, the missile sought and destroyed its guided counterpart in mid-air. The bridge and the marathon were unaffected, and the authorities were able to arrest Hatcher and his men, as well as the buyer.

Cross Reference: Clinton Narrows Bridge, Hatcher, Kate Lafferty, Snake-Eye Missile

Episode Reference: Ugly Duckling