St. George Half Marathon celebrates 40th edition; runners of all ages compete

ST. GEORGE — The running community throughout Utah descended upon St. George Saturday morning for the 40th running of the St. George Half Marathon.

Runners of all ages and abilities ran in a kids race, a 5K, a Fun Run and other smaller races along with the 13.1-mile main event.

All the participants and spectators spoke of the beautiful warm weather and the spectacular scenery on the run through the heart of St. George.

The route covered a course from the Dixie Convention Center along River Road, to Fort Pierce Drive, then south along Bloomington Hills Drive and onto Brigham Road.

Paved trails brought the runners back to the finish line at the convention center.

Men’s Half Marathon

Eric Nelson from Cache Valley won the half marathon in a time of one hour, nine minutes, 18 seconds.

“It wasn’t as hilly as I thought it would be,” Nelson said to St. George News after crossing the finish line. “I got up to the end of mile seven and I thought we still had a big climb to go up. But we just got to the top and could see all the downhills and it was not as bad as I thought it could be.”

The top three men’s finishers at the St. George Marathon (L to R): Eric Nelson, Nathan Peters, Mark Summers, St. George, Utah, Jan. 15, 2022 | Photo by E. George Goold, St. George News

Nelson ran the race for the first time but is a regular runner in events up North.

“I liked the course. It’s really very pretty, the red rocks, the trails coming around the hill, were all super nice,” he added.

Nelson finished just 25 seconds ahead of second-place finisher Nathan Peters of Salt Lake City, who crossed the finish line in his time of 1:09.43.

“It’s a beautiful course, as always,” Peters said, adding that he’s run in St. George a few times in the past. “It’s nice to be able to race in the winter time down here.”

“It’s a nice tune-up for Spring,” Peters added. “The course is generally pretty fast, and it’s fun just to be able to get into a little bit warmer temperatures and there’s usually some good competition.”

Finishing third was Mark Summers from Logan, who posted a time of 1:12.27.

“This is the second time I’ve run the half marathon,” Summers said. “Back in 2020 I won the race, which was fun. I ran three minutes faster today and got third place. Just some great talent out here today.”

Summers trains with Nelson, so he wasn’t surprised that they were in the group of leaders together.

“I was running with the leader for the first five miles,” Summers said. “I was feeling confident. When you’re racing you kind of have to do a lot of pretending, you have to trick yourself, you know?”

“Running with my good friend Eric Nelson, I know what kind of shape he’s in and I know how strong he is. So I’m not too disappointed to get beat by a guy like him.”

Women’s Half Marathon

Ogden resident Jackie Hendrickson was the first to cross the finish line in the women’s division, posting a time of 1:20.19.

“It’s a fun course because you have some hills and some downhills, and you’ve got to have strength, grit and speed to be able to get through it,” Hendrickson said. “It’s not like most Utah downhill courses where you just have to vomit.”

The top two female finishers at the St. George Half Marathon (L to R): Carolyn Williams and Jackie Hendrickson, St. George, Utah, Jan. 15, 2022 | Photo by E. George Goold, St. George News

The winner said she liked the scenery on the course but it wasn’t her ideal.

“The scenery is beautiful, but I wouldn’t say it’s a 10 out of 10,” Hendrickson said. “I love running on trails, so being next to the cars is one thing. But it’s fun to be able to go fast.”

Hendrickson was in the race for the second time after completing it 10 years ago when she was a runner at Lehi High School.

“I’m really glad I had run it before,” she said. “It was nice to have that mental preparation this time.”

“I love to come down and run with the St. George community,” Hendrickson added. “Especially in the winter time when the trails up at home are covered in snow.”

Second-place women’s finisher Carolyn Williams came in about a minute and 20 seconds behind Hendrickson with her posted time of 1:21.39.

Williams now calls St. George home after moving from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania recently.

“St. George is beautiful,” Williams said, still a little bit winded after her strong push to get across the finish line. “To be honest when you’re racing, I don’t even notice. I’m just like, going for it. But the weather is perfect, it’s just beautiful.”

“Up around mile 9, up on the ridge, it was really pretty,” she added.

Williams kept pace with Hendrickson briefly during the run.

“I tried,” Williams said. “But to be honest the first four miles were above my paygrade. So I just tried to stay with her as long as I could and after that, just go for time.”

The race served as a perfect introduction to the area for Williams.

“I’ve been a lot of different places, and St. George has one of the best running communities I’ve ever been around,” she said.

Complete results of the St. George Half Marathon will be posted on the Vector Timing Facebook page.

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.

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