Capacity Field Participates in Marathon of Trail Races

Catalano and Walden take top honors in marathon

The XTERRA Marathon of Trail Races once again featured a sold-out lineup, with a handful of elite runners taking top honors.

A capacity field of 300 runners participated in the event, which was completed on Saturday, Oct. 9. It featured a full-marathon course (42 kilometers), a half-marathon (21 kilometers) and a 5K fun run. All the courses were set at picturesque Cheyenne Mountain State Park in Colorado Springs, Colo.

Andrew Catalano and Caroline Walden ran away with victories on the marathon course.

Catalano, who is stationed with the U.S. Army at Fort Carson, Colo., was the first overall finisher with a blazing time of 3 hours, 33 minutes, 51 seconds. Jason Morgan of Colorado Springs placed second in 3:41:32.

Catalano, 23, said he often trains at Cheyenne Mountain, and his familiarity with the course helped his cause. “If you’ve never run this before, you wouldn’t know how to handle those hills,” he said.

Walden, 35, was the first female finisher on the marathon course with a time of 4:12:35. She is originally from New Zealand, but now resides in Boulder, Colo. Michele Bierstedt, who was the first female last year, placed second at 4:16:28.

Among the intriguing entries in the marathon was Brad Wann. He normally competes in Pack Burro Racing (climbing mountains while running or walking alongside a donkey). This was his first full-marathon trail run, and he finished with a time of 5:57:36.

A majority of the runners in the event participated in the half-marathon, and Doug Ryden and Nicole Mahobian were the winners on that competitive course.

Ryden raced to an early lead, then held off Gerald Romero at the end to finish first overall on the half-marathon course. Ryden finished with a time 1:27:21, and Romero came in five seconds later.

Mahobian dominated the women’s field in the half-marathon, finishing with a time of 1:43:19. Melissa Eichers was second in 1:50:43. It was the second consecutive year that Mahobian won the women’s half-marathon.

For complete results, visit http://onlineraceresults.com/event/view_event.php?event_id=5748.

For additional race coverage, visit www.outtherecolorado.com or www.pikespeaksports.com

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