ST. GEORGE — For 13 miles, more than 1,000 runners from all over Utah and many neighboring states gathered and raced through a scenic route as part of the St. George Half Marathon Saturday.

See videocast at the top of the story, click the play arrow    in the center.

The race began at the Crosby Family Confluence Park at 2000 South Convention Center Drive. The course followed loops and hills across town, to River Road and Brigham Road, before returning back to the park and ending at the Dixie Center.

The winner was Nathan Peters of Salt Lake City, who finished in one hour, eight minutes and 54 seconds. The first woman to cross the finish line was Christi Webb, of Farmington, New Mexico.

Webb finished in a time of 1:21:10.7 which put her in eighth place overall out of the 1,085 runners that finished the race.

Webb ran the St. George Half Marathon as part of her training to qualify for the Boston Marathon on April 26. She hopes to qualify and run at the Olympic Trials this year, as well.

Webb, who was raised in Spanish Fork, said she has been running since she was in high school. She competed in college as part of Utah State University’s track and cross country team.

“It’s just one of those sports that’s addicting to me,” Webb said. “I can’t get enough of running. Once I finish a race and have a time, I want to beat that time. There is something with running and setting goals to achieve that keeps me coming back.”

Charlie Redden, 23, of Las Vegas, Nevada, finished with a time of 1:40:25. Redden said this was his fifth marathon, and he just enjoyed the experience of running and feeling the excitement of accomplishing a goal.

St. George resident Leslee Henson ran with her two daughters, Haley Warner and Lindsey Mackey in support of their cause, “Don’t Drive Distracted.” Henson’s husband died when a distracted driver hit both of them while they were on a walk June 18, 2014.

Henson said her husband had run many marathons, and she and her daughters wanted to keep the running tradition alive in his absence.

“We decided we had to keep running for him because that was his love,” she said.

Warner said running was something the family always did together, and that it has kept each of them motivated throughout their lives.

Related posts

• St. George Half Marathon kicks off 2015 running season; 2,000 racers expected
• Explore: Make 2015 a ‘trailtastic’ year; where to run, hike and ride in the new year
• Snow Canyon Half Marathon attracts runners from afar; STGnews Videocast, Photo Gallery

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @STGnews

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2015, all rights reserved.