A lone runner in the 21st annual Montana Marathon appears to be floating as he makes an uphill climb on the Molt Road, heading east to Billings. Click on the arrow at top right for more photos.
Dozens of volunteers, including Dale Jennison of Billings, help make the Montana Marathon possible. He was one of several motorcyclists who provided security for runners from Molt through Billings to the finish line at Pioneer Park.
With light from the rising sun in their faces, runners break from the line to start their 26.2-mile trek to Billings. Some entrants were participating in relays and had considerably fewer miles to endure.
Jehremy Felig, a Billings Skyview coach and science teacher, leads a pack of runners early in the race. He held on to win the 21st annual Montana Marathon.
Marathon walkers enjoy the downhill slope into Echo Canyon on the way into Billings. The Winifred trio of Kristin Carlstrom (No. 70), Steph Knox ( 10) and Jamie Wickens (71) made the trip in 6 hours, 46 minutes. Their event had a 5 a.m. start.
Billings Skyview running coach Jehremy Felig catches his breath after his first-place finish in the 2017 Montana Marathon. His winning time was 2:57.53. Lauren Zent of Billings won the women's marathon in 3:34:39.
At the corner of Virginia Lane and Parkhill Drive, four dummers from Senior High add energy to runners' closing kicks at the end of the race at Pioneer Park.
Runners pick up the pace as they head down the final slope to the finish line in the Montana Marathon races Sunday. Race officials said 790 competitors took part in the races.
The top overall finishers in the half marathon (male and female) pose for a post-race photo in Pioneer Park. Mary Owen (No. 415) won the race with Chelsea Dana not far behind. Owen clocked in at 1:21:55 and Dana was 1:22:26.
No smoky skies. No steady rain. No high-prairie winds. No searing heat.
Conditions for running 26.2 miles from Molt to Pioneer Park in Billings don’t get much better.
The 21st annual Montana Marathon, which is a qualifying race for the Boston Marathon, was the main event of Sunday’s day of running and drew participants from around the U.S. The 2017 edition drew more entries from females (69) and males (59) than did the 2016 races (53 and 43).
But the most popular Sunday race was the half marathon, with 221 female entries and 91 male runners. The 10K drew 161 female runners and 51 male contestants.
Adding in the runners for the team relays and one-mile fun run for kids, about 800 people signed up for Sunday’s action, race officials said. Also enjoying the weather were dozens of volunteers placed along the route to direct traffic, serve up water and guide and protect runners.
School buses started loading up runners and walkers from Senior High at 4 a.m. to deliver them to the marathon start line. The Molt Community Center served as a gathering place as folks waited sleepily and a bit anxiously for their run to begin. Shuttles also took participants to the half marathon and 10K lines.
Frontrunner for best sign of the day? “Pain now, beer later. Go Gram!”
Half Marathon:
Male: Scott Skokos, Billings (1:27:23); Christopher Blomquist, Billings (1:28:15)
Female: Mary Owen, Billings (1:21:55); Chelsea Dana, Billings (1:22:26)
10K:
Male: Scott Sneddon, Billings (36:13); Mark Hovland, Billings (36:53)
Female: Mackenzie O’Dore, Billings (39:30); Amber Williams, Billings (42:13)
