Valley of Fire 1/2 Marathon Numbers Down

By VERNON ROBISON

Moapa Valley Progress

Runner attendance experienced a drastic drop this year at the Valley of Fire half marathon event which was held on Saturday. The race, which in the past has brought more than 200 runners only saw 72 registered participants. That number was the total of runners signed up to participate in three different races during the day: a half marathon, 10K and 5K.

Event organizer Deborah Bowling of Planet Ultra suspected that timing of the race could be part of the problem. She said that she had received feedback from many runners who wished that the race had been held the week earlier so that it could take place in coordination with the Las Vegas Marathon held on the same weekend.
“A lot of people were telling me they could travel for both weekends,” Bowling said. “They said they would like to use our race as a Saturday morning warm-up to the bigger Las Vegas marathon run on Sunday.”

Therefore, Bowling said that she plans to hold the Valley of Fire event a week earlier next year.
Those who did participate were a diverse lot. Runners came from 14 different states; as well as Canada and Germany; to participate in the race.
After a windy night, the weather calmed down and Saturday morning was perfect for running through a beautiful desert setting, many runnners said.

The Valley of Fire course is a grueling ordeal for many runners. It begins at the Visitor’s center and immediately hits an extreme uphill slope climbing up towards Mouse’s Tank. Half marathon runners wind their way all the way out to White Dome and then turn around and come back. In the 5K and 10K races, participants turn around early and return to the Visitor’s Center parking lot.

Half marathon runner Danielle Bales had never been to Valley of Fire State Park before. She is currently stationed with the Air Force in Las Vegas but originally comes from Wichita, Kansas.
“When I was deciding what race I would run it was a choice between this event here and a race at Red Rock (National Conservation Area)”, Bales said. “I chose this one because of the pictures that I saw of the landscape here. It looked spectacular and it is even better in real life.”
Bales ran the race with a time of 2:13:16.

Half marathon runner Susan Martinovich travelled from Carson City to run in the event. “I am questioning my sanity on this a little bit right now,” Martinovich said eyeing the first steep assent.
Martinovich ended up coming in second place overall for females in the half marathon with a time of 2:05:50.

Edwin Garcia, of Glendale, CA, came with running partner Prince Arrogante from Beaumont, CA. Neither had run at Valley of Fire before.
“I have done Death Valley in the past,” Garcia said. “It was great. But it is nothing like this. This is truly amazing.”
Arrogante agreed. “People talk about the Rock N Roll marathon (in Las Vegas); but it is running through an all man-made landscape,” he said. “This is all mother nature. It is millions of years at work. What a beautiful area!”
Arrogante took second place overall in the male 10K with a time of 00:55:29. Garcia finished with a time of 1:10:13.

The first place runner in the half marathon event was Markus Lehr who resides in Wetzlar, Germany, near Frankfurt. Lehr has been coming to Valley of Fire to run this event annually for the past 11 years. He has taken first place three times in past years when the race was a full marathon. And he has won the half marathon for three years as well.
Lehr said that the weather was warmer this year than he has experienced in past events. But his time was a lot slower than it has been in the past as well, he said.
“I had a slow run this time,” Lehr said. “I think it is because there were not many runners out there. There was not as much competition on the course, so I slowed down.”

When the results came in, the top runners were announced and were presented with awards.
In the half marathon, the first place male finisher was Markus Lehr of Wetzlar, Germany with a time of 1:35:04. The first place female runner was Jennifer Fralick of Henderson, Nevada with a time of 1:59:47.
In the 10K, the first place male runner was Thomas Gaudette of Palos Hills, Illinois with a time of 00:50:20. The first place female in the 10K was Lorriane Christian of St. George, UT with a time of 00:52:56.
In the 5K race, the first place male finisher was Leon Durbin of Mesquite, Nevada with a time of 00:21:16. The first place female in the 5K was Catherine Eksteen of Calgary, Alberta, Canada who ran a time of 00:36:16.