Oct 5, 2008 10:59 pm US/Central
Winners Reach Finish In Drizzly TC Marathon
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) ―
It's often billed as "America's Most Beautiful Urban Marathon," but this year, that beauty was definitely in the eye of the beholder.
By anybody's standards this year's Twin Cities Marathon was a soggy, chilly mess. Runners battled wind and rain for much of the 26 miles, turning the race into a test of both fitness and will.
A cool, but mostly dry start to the 27th Twin Cities Marathon soon turned into a cold downpour.
"In the middle of the race it was coming down, wind straight in your face, rain pouring down, I could barely see," said Nathan Nowak of Hastings.
It meant big adjustments for elite runners, many who are used to training at a faster pace.
"I was thinking 'Man, my quads are kind of getting cold and kind of tight and my hip flexors. That's not good early on, but if I'm hurting, my competitors, they should be hurting as well,'" said Fernando Cabada, the Men's Champion.
Men's champion Fernando Cabada of Boulder, Colorado pulled away from the pack at about mile 19. The 26-year-old finished more than a minute ahead of the next runner with a time of 2:16:32. This was only his third marathon.
"I worked so hard for this, I sacrificed so much," said Cabada, who broke down into tears after he crossed the finish line.
Last year's marathon looked much different with sweltering heat and humidity.
"I'd much rather have it cool," said Nowak.
Other runners agreed.
"The temperature was pretty good. The rain actually felt good except for my feet felt like ten pounds because they were full of water," said Joel Tuttle of Des Moines, Iowa.
Katy Trandem of Iowa City, Iowa had a better time in last year's heat.
"I actually enjoyed the heat. Last year was better for me, especially with the rain and pouring that we had at the beginning of the race," she said.
And the rain didn't water down the enthusiasm of those cheering on the runners.
"Anything for my son," said Dan Chapman.
St. Paul's Matt Gabrielson came in second in the men's division and Olga Glok of Russia was the women's winner.
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