MormonTimes.com runner talks about St. George Marathon

Hi my name is Carlee Platt. I recently completed my last year of collegiate eligibility at BYU. I have specialized in the 800M but decided to tackle the experience of running a marathon. I have always felt it was a rite of passage for a runner and took the opportunity. I ran at the Olympic Trials in July and took off some time because of how long my season was. I began training for the St George marathon in August, it was really fun for me to train at a slower pace but difficult to get in the extra miles required for marathon preparation. I ran about three long runs before the race so I felt pretty good about my fitness going into the race. It was pretty cold and the start and I was really tired after getting up a 3:45am but the excitement of the race kept my attitude positive. We ran in rain and a headwind but the course was still beautiful and the volunteers were amazing. It helped so much to have crowds cheering for us throughout the course. It was such an amazing experience running with 7,000 other people for 26 miles, the motivation you can pull from other people is truly amazing. I was able to run a lot of the race with my former teammate Carolyn Quebe, and we both qualified to run in the Boston Marathon. Although I am still suffering from the muscle soreness and stiff joints I loved the experience and feeling of accomplishment I got from running. I hope to recover quickly and get back to more road-racing! Happy running:)