Locals conquer Portland Marathon

Susan Fullhart (center, left) and Dierdre Kanzig (center, right) head for the finish line.

After a summer of training on the roads and trails in the Sisters-Camp Sherman area, 12 local runners and walkers competed in the 30th annual Portland Marathon on Sunday, September 30.

The organizers of the race, which began with just a couple of hundred runners in 1972, reported 7,448 finishers this year.

Randy King, 41, was the top local finisher in three hours 22 minutes (376th overall) in completing his fourth marathon.

King had his sights on qualifying for the prestigious Boston Marathon, which requires a time of 3:20 for 40-45 year old males, but was slowed a bit by a train that interrupted the runners in north Portland.

After the turnaround in the industrial part of Portland, King heard the dinging of bells and was astonished to see the lights flashing and the bars lowering at an upcoming train crossing.

"It held us up a bit and threw us off our pace as we took off quickly when the caboose finally went by," he said.

King, whose 16-year-old son, David, joined him for the last 6.2 miles of the race, went ahead and sent his entry in for Boston, with an explanatory note about the train, in the hopes that he will still be allowed into the April race.

Deirdre Kanzig, a 39-year-old mother of five running in her third marathon, described the run as "a fantastic, friendship run" for herself and friend Susan Fullhart.

"We trained diligently together for the past four months and enjoyed exploring the trails and wilderness this summer," said Kanzig. "As I looked up at the skyscrapers in downtown Portland near the start, I was struck by the contrast between the urban setting of Portland and the wild beauty of our training runs.

"I remember thinking 'This is a long way from Broken Top.'"

Fullhart, 37, says she will never forget her first marathon.

"The training all summer was a big part of the experience along with being able to run with my friend Deirdre," she said. "It was great to see what I could do; I pushed myself to the limit."

After "hitting the wall" in the final six miles, Fullhart was grateful to near the end of the course.

"There was nothing like the sight of the finish line," she said. "I had a smile a mile wide in those last yards. I walked around for at least two days with a smile on my face, proud of my accomplishment.

"I can say that I will run another one," she added.

She and Kanzig finished in 4:27. David Carlson, 39, running in his second marathon (he ran one in Bend on July 15 of this year) was awed by the large crowd and fanfare in Portland, but he suffered in the late stages of the race, missing his goal of 3:30.

"It was an amazing experience because of the number of people who participated," he said. "I ran into trouble at mile 23 so things didn't go quite as well as I hoped.

"I was hoping for 3:30, but it turned out to be 3:50."

Carlson was forced to walk about two miles due to pain from bloody toes, muscle cramps and overheating.

Rochelle Curtis, 32, of Camp Sherman echoed the sentiments of the other area runners in finishing her second marathon.

"It was a great experience, much better than last year, mostly because I improved my time by so much," she said.

"Last year I finished in 4:53 and this year I shaved my time down to 4:06."

Curtis attributes her gain in performance to better training and improved strategy during the race.

Angeline Rhett and two of her employees, Patty Evered and Keith Brandt from Angeline's Bakery, started the 26.2 mile adventure walking together.

Brandt finished in 5:45 while Evered and Rhett went nearly the entire distance together, finishing just two minutes apart in 5:56 and 5:58 respectively. It was first marathon for Patty, who admits to a certain competitiveness.

"I loved the whole thing and loved the competition," she said.

"It was especially sweet at the finish when my husband and two daughters surprised me by showing up to see me come in."

The mother-daughter duo of Mary and Andie Lesowske decided during the summer to walk the marathon together after Mary had run it alone in 1998 and 2000.

"I wanted to try walking it this year and felt it would be satisfying to have my daughter along to visit with," said Mary.

The two finished in seven hours as Andie, a high school sophomore, battled some painful blisters over the last 11 miles.

"The first 15 miles were faster than the final 11 due to Andie's blisters and the heat," said Mary, "but we made it."

Andie, like others, was impressed by the size of the crowd.

"I was surprised at the number of people who came out to do the marathon," said Andie. "It was so fun to talk to people along the way. I got to visit with people from all over the United States."

Asked how she kept herself going when her feet became so painful, Andie replied, "I just knew that I was going to finish no matter what even if it took a long time."

Scott Fetrow completed his race in an even four hours. Anne French crossed the finish line at 7 hours and 50 minutes.