In the Manuel F. Correllus State Forest on Sunday, Lee Danforth of Norwood was out front and all alone. Maintaining his lead ahead of the pack, he went on to win the Martha’s Vineyard Marathon, clocking in at 2:42:37.
“It felt like at some points I was just out in no man’s land a little bit,” Mr. Danforth said after the race.
The first woman to cross the finish line was Kathleen Barada of Stamford, Conn., with a time of 3:05:02. “I knew it was either going to be torrential downpour and high winds, or better weather, and I couldn’t have asked for a better day,” she said.
Those who completed the race at a more leisurely pace had some company. For a first-time event, the marathons drew a large crowd of runners. The marathon had 323 finishers, and about three times that number, 992, completed the half marathon.
The event was sponsored by the SD Run Club Foundation, a nonprofit based in San Diego that organizes races nationwide in tandem with USA Endurance Events, a road race production company.
The event will benefit the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School, which was home to the starting line, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cape Cod and the Islands, and 261 Fearless, a nonprofit founded by Kathrine Switzer, the first woman to run the Boston Marathon with an official bib.
Lee Ann Yarbor, race director for USA Endurance Events and coach for SD Run Club Foundation, said the two Island organizations were selected because of their focus on youth engagement. “We like to get young people involved in running,” she said.
She said USA Endurance will donate approximately $12,000 to the three organizations, split evenly among them.
Alex Watt of Vineyard Haven won the half-marathon woman’s division with a time of 1:25:04, and Andrew Foxenberg of Kirkville, N.Y., was the first man with a time of 1:17:27.
The race did have some difficulties. Mr. Danforth said it was “a little challenging at spots, going through the forest there, some of the up and down rolling, and a couple of spots I was a little unsure of where to go, but I was able to figure it out.”
Ms. Barada agreed. “There was a little section of dirt roads, and that kind of threw me for a loop, but once I got through 21, you just keep telling yourself nobody quits on the 22nd mile of a marathon, so that kind of gave me the motivation to the end.”
To occupy herself during the run, Ms. Barada listened to podcasts and fantasized about a refreshing post-run dip. “I was thinking of that through the last miles, I cannot wait to just collapse in the ocean.” She added that she would follow that up with a well-deserved nap.
Mr. Danforth, who achieved a personal record with his winning time, had similar plans. And he was happy he had made a ferry reservation for the following day. “I get to rest up a little bit and then try to make my way over to the ferry a little sore.”
More photos from the Martha's Vineyard Marathon and Half Marathon.
Comments
Comment policy »