More than 3,000 runners took part in Sunday’s half marathon, which winds through downtown and along the lake. They came from 31 states and three Canadian provinces, wearing everything from serious racing flats to banana costumes, and they ran 13.1 miles under a cool, gray sky that most of them called perfect running weather. By the time the last walkers crossed the finish line in the early afternoon, the race had produced a new course record, dozens of personal bests and one marriage proposal at mile 12.
The City Half Marathon, now in its 18th year, starts at the waterfront park at 7:30 a.m., loops through downtown, climbs into the hill neighborhoods, and then follows the lakeside bike path north before returning along the water to the finish. Organizers say it is one of the largest one-day sporting events in the state.
The winners
A local nurse set a women’s course record; a college senior won the men’s race. Kara Lin, 32, a nurse in the emergency department at the city’s main hospital, finished in 1 hour, 14 minutes and 52 seconds, breaking the previous women’s record by 41 seconds. She led from the third mile and ran alone for most of the race.
Lin started running seriously only six years ago, after a friend talked her into a local 5K. She now runs about 50 miles a week, often early in the morning before a 12-hour hospital shift, and much of her training happens on the same lakeside path used in the race.
I train on this course before my shifts. It felt like running home.
Kara Lin, women’s winner
“Around mile 10, I could hear people yelling my name — coworkers, patients’ families, people from my running club,” Lin said after the race, wrapped in a foil blanket. “I didn’t know I was on record pace until the last mile. Somebody on a bike told me, and I just tried to hold on.”
The men’s race was closer. Eli Brandt, 22, a senior on a state university’s cross-country team, pulled away from a pack of four runners on the long climb at mile 8 and won in 1 hour, 6 minutes and 18 seconds. Second place went to a high school math teacher from a nearby town, just 14 seconds behind.
The course, mile by mile
Runners say the course is fast but not easy. The first few miles are flat and crowded through downtown, where spectators pack the sidewalks. The hardest part comes in the middle, with a steady climb between miles 7 and 9 through residential streets. The final stretch is the most scenic, with long views across the lake toward the mountains.
- Miles 1–3: Downtown streets lined with the biggest crowds and a drum group at the first turn.
- Miles 4–6: Quiet neighborhood streets, where residents set up orange slices and hand-made signs.
- Miles 7–9: The hill section, which runners call “the wall.”
- Miles 10–12: The lakeside path, mostly flat and shaded, with views of the water.
- Mile 13: A gentle downhill to the finish at the waterfront park.
Faces in the crowd
Organizers estimated that more than 10,000 spectators lined the course. Neighbors set up lawn chairs and boomboxes. A group of retirees in one hill neighborhood handed out cups of water and slices of oranges from a folding table, as they have for 15 years. A local church choir sang near mile 5. And a school band played its fight song on repeat at mile 11, which several runners said gave them a much-needed push.
Stories from the back of the pack
Not every runner was chasing a record. Among the finishers were:
- An 81-year-old retired postal worker who finished his 18th consecutive City Half, having run every edition.
- A group of 12 nurses and doctors from the hospital’s cancer center who ran in memory of patients.
- A father and daughter who trained together all summer for her first half marathon.
- A runner who stopped at mile 12 to propose to his girlfriend, who was cheering from the sidelines. She said yes, and he finished the race.
The race also raised money for local causes. Runners collected about $185,000 in pledges for charities, including the city’s food shelf, a youth sports program and a nonprofit that provides running shoes to kids.
For many runners, the money is as much a reason to race as the medal. Jenna Ortiz, who ran with the hospital’s cancer center team, said each member carried a small card pinned to the back of their shirt with the name of a patient they had cared for. “When it got hard on the hill, I’d think about the people who fought much harder things than a few miles,” she said. “It’s the least we can do.”
Behind the scenes
Organizers say the race could not happen without volunteers. About 800 people helped on race day, staffing nine aid stations, guiding runners at turns and handing out medals at the finish. Medical teams from the hospital and the city’s fire department staffed tents along the course. Officials said medical staff treated about 40 runners, most for cramps, blisters or dehydration, and no serious injuries were reported.
Race director Paula Kim said the organizing committee begins planning each year’s race nearly 10 months in advance. “People see the race morning,” she said. “They don’t see the hundreds of meetings, the road permits, the porta-potty orders. But that’s all part of making it work.”
Kim also reminded runners thinking about next year that a half marathon is a big physical challenge. She encouraged anyone new to distance running to build up gradually, follow a training plan and check with a doctor before starting, especially if they have health conditions.
Road closures
Most streets reopened by noon. City police and public works crews began clearing barriers behind the last runners, and downtown streets were mostly open by late morning. The lakeside bike path and a stretch of the lake road reopened around 1 p.m., after the final walkers passed.
The city received a handful of complaints from drivers who were delayed, according to the police department, but officials said traffic moved smoothly overall thanks to detour signs posted a week in advance. Buses ran on modified routes until noon.
Several downtown restaurants and cafés said the morning was among their busiest of the year. A breakfast spot near the finish line opened an hour early and ran out of pancake batter by 11 a.m. “Runners are hungry, and their families are even hungrier,” the owner said. Business owners along the hill section said they were glad to see the crowds, even if their streets were closed for a few hours.
See you next year
Registration for next year’s race opens on January 1, and organizers expect it to sell out within weeks, as it has the last several years. The race will again cap the field at about 3,200 runners.
Lin says she’ll be back to defend her title — if she can get the day off. “I’ll have to trade a shift,” she said with a laugh. “But I’m not missing this.”
Key takeaway: The City Half Marathon brought out thousands of runners, thousands more fans and a hometown nurse who made history on the same streets she runs before work.
Full results, including age-group winners, are available on the race website.