SALT LAKE CITY — A marathon is not for the faint of heart, especially in the heat of July.

Julia Cassidy overcame not only the heat, but also an injury to take the title in the women's Deseret Morning News/KJZZ TV Marathon.

After running across the line with a time of 3:04:59.9, Cassidy, 45, ran directly to her friends and family to talk about her run.

"I wish I could have run a little faster, but it's so hot," she said. "Right as you're coming out of the canyon it hit me."

Cassidy is also battling plantar fasciitis, an injury to her heel that flared up this spring but hasn't been bothering her too much the past few weeks.

"I thought I was going to have to quit at about mile 18," she said, "because it hurt so much. It was all I could do to get down the stretch."

After reaching the finish line, she also noted that the heel was numb, and in concession she planned to take a week off before continuing her training for the St. George Marathon in October.

"It's just exhausting. My legs are really cramping," said the Park City resident, who trains by running about 85-100 miles per week. She was particularly happy with the fact that she defeated women "half my age."

Melinda Courage-Carlberg, a 32-year-old mother of two, wasn't bothered by the heat at all, but the downhill portions of the course cramped her muscles before she ran across the line in second place, nearly five minutes behind Cassidy.

The woman from Iowa ran her best marathon with a 3:09:58.6 time in only her second start. Her first marathon came 11 years ago, but she has been running 70-90 miles a week in preparation for the 24th of July race this year.

"I think I'm insane," she said when asked why she trained for two marathons so many years apart. Her game plan was to keep even splits, and she accomplished exactly what she set out to do.

Last year's fourth-place finisher, Angie Boren, improved her place to third but ran 10 minutes slower than her fastest-ever marathon time with a 3:11:22.7 finish.

"I feel pretty good, but I'm a little disappointed that I wasn't faster, but it was so hot," Boren said. "Down South Temple was the worst; it was just blazing hot."

The 33-year-old took seven years off between marathons to have four children before returning to the sport last year. She has run five marathons in her career and said her game plan for the event was to run hard and run a lot.

"I just do it for fun," she said. "I'm tired, but I feel pretty good. I feel strong,"

She also plans to run in St. George this October.

Lorie Hutchison and Salem's Gina Hendrickson rounded out the top five women finishers.

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E-mail: jolsen@desnews.com