Nike Women's Marathon race results: Sacramento area runners share their experiences and photos

Photo courtesy of Steph Matulich

Hundreds of Sacramento area runners were among the over 20,000 runners who participated in last Sunday's Nike Women's Marathon in San Francisco, CA.   Below are some of their experiences, stories, and shared photos.  All runner results can be viewed at Eternal Timing's website. 

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Linsey Fredenburg:  It is such a great race- so much enthusiasm! I love this race!

Rod Harmon:  I watched my daughter and her best friend (from 5 years old, now 23) run their first marathon. I got lucky and parked within two blocks of mile 18, then walked to the finish from there.

Sarah Strange Garner: I have done numerous races and this is by far the most organized and easy!!!! Bag check was so easy and organized... Finish line was wonderful, picking up the shirts, everything was so well organized! The aid stations were awesome!!! And of course the necklace is so cute!!! ;)

Amy Tomei James: It was awesome. Nike Women’s Marathon is a challenging course with beautiful scenery. Amazing!!

Quiana Florence: My best friend flew in from Atlanta to run. When I met her three years ago she was about 100 pounds overweight. She has turned herself into an athlete over the years. Hearing these women's stories and watching them work through the struggle of training for a marathon for the first time was breathtaking. I am crying just thinking about it! So many women were running in honor of a close family member who had died from cancer. They celebrated having a body that was alive! Alive and able to run 26.2 miles! It was a gorgeous day to be a human and an even better day to be a woman and once more... a runner!

Lee Hinde: I enjoyed the run. Extraordinarily well organized, great scenery and the fellow runners were great to run with. The Team in Training folks were great. There weren't any friction points at all in being a man in a “woman's” marathon. I did my best to “run like a girl”.

I ran the half marathon, so I was doing ok and managed the hour long wait to get on the bus back to Union Square. I just did my first marathon two weeks ago at Cowtown Marathon in Sacramento (also a great run) and was exhausted. I wouldn't have been able to stand up an hour after a full marathon, much less wait in line. I understand there are 20,000 people that need to be moved and maybe that is just the cost of success.

Sarah Strange Garner: I have done numerous races and by far this was the most organized and easy!!!! The bag check was so easy and organized. The finish line was wonderful, picking up the shirts, everything was so well organized! The aid stations were awesome!!! And of course the necklace is so cute!!!

Wendy Pierson Bouzid: The timing on Nike’s timing website, Eternal Timing, messed up by reported times. My chip time and my gun time are identical on the website, but I didn't cross the start mat until 25 minutes after the gun. Oh, other than that, I love this race!

Christeen Mazza: What a great race. I had been sick the week before, so I ran it and didn't race it. It was so enjoyable just running the race and taking it all in. I feel like when I race I don't always get to enjoy what is going on around me. The spectators where great, we had great weather and of course the firemen with the little blue boxes at the end topped it all off!

Jamie Quigley: I went into the whole thing because I wanted the shinny little necklace that was given to me in a nice teal little tiffany's box. I kept saying, "I'm just doing it for the bling!!" But I came away with so much more! Because it is mostly women, there is definitely a different feel to it than most other races I've run. The Women's Nike marathon is one of the most supportive, inspiring, and fun runs I have ever done! It has a camaraderie that is like no other. There is so much support from random women around the world, it was amazing!

Nike had some special touches that I haven't seen in other races too. Like having your name on the wall window of Nike, inspirational quotes lined the streets at about mile 10 I think... and chocolate was handed out at mile 12. There were a lot of water/aid stations! The weather was ideal running weather and the hills were not as bad as the Bay to Breakers race! They were hilly but not the straight up kind. It is no wonder that you need to win a lottery to get in. I would do this race every year if I had a choice. And to top off the perfect race conditions - you get a beautiful medal/necklace at the end and a very nice dri-fit shirt. After having such a great run the necklace was just icing on the cake when it was originally the reason I went!!! It was one of the most fun races I have done!

Michelle Duncan: Best race as far as crowd support, venues, etc. There was so much to see along the course. I could have lived without the hour and a half of traffic to get back to union square to get my car...after 26.2 that's the last thing you want to do...all in all still fabulous!

MacKenzie Wilson: The race was very congested but the support out there was second to none! It was really well supported and very well laid out.
 
Debbie Tavalaro-Pearson: The race was fantastic! We had a splendid time and my girlfriends and I came over the finish line all holding hands. It was very emotional seeing all of the signs and pictures of the people that the race was dedicated to. It was also fun to spot how many different states had Team-In- Training representatives there.

Bernadette Austin-Bower: I did the half marathon at eighteen weeks pregnant with a little moral support from my brother. I sported a shirt that said, "Baby's 1st Half Marathon" on the front, and on the back it said "I'm not puking because this race is hard. I'M PREGNANT!"

Steph Matulich: I love this race. Love it, love it, love it! Every year Nike justifies its dominance by presenting a race that is well-organized and eerily intuitive in providing services and attractions that cater specifically to women who like to tough it out with world-class athletes while maintaining our femininity. A lot of runners at the finish line rave about the course’s unique views of the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz which are, admittedly, stunning. Personally, I favor the dramatic seascapes the course skirts as it meanders along the city’s rugged western edge. Still, the most notable aspect of this race is not the profound competence of its organization or the striking views of globally-recognized landmarks but the fact that – as the name suggests - the event is populated mainly by women. While some men do run they are far outnumbered and more likely to be found on the sidelines, holding up signs bearing personal messages of encouragement to wives, daughters, girlfriends, sisters and even the occasional grandmother. It’s enough to bring a sentimental tear to the eye… for those of us whose eyes aren’t trained on the Ghirardelli chocolates offered at Mile 12.

Pamela Lim: I had a great time running in San Francisco yesterday! The weather was perfect. This was my sixth year doing the Nike Women’s Marathon and I finished with my best time for this event!

Betsy Elizabeth Sheldon: This was the 2nd year I did the Nike Women’s Marathon. It's lots of fun and a beautiful course and of course, the necklace is great. It is way better than a medal!

Cynthia Villarimo: This was my first Nike Women's event that involved a fireman and a Tiffany. It was awesome! I don't know if it was the huge female comradre-ness that was associated with mostly every woman doing this race either with a friend, a group of friends or for a friend or family member.

There was a whole different dynamic with this race that had nothing to do about racing. That is what I loved the most! Strong runners were out there not to race, but to participate. It was a huge population of women meeting to celebrate life. It was totally awesome! The weather was perfect, the audience was alive and excited, and we were all able to get some kind of group photo together in the end! I hope that I can do this again next year!

Janice Bishop:  The Nike Women's Marathon was amazing! Especially the support of Team in Training. I can't wait to do it again!!

Jen Delucch: The Nike Women's Marathon is the ultimate "girlie girl" event. Every detail, from the chocolate and manicures at the Expotique to the handsome firefighters decked out in tuxedoes on a red carpet handing out Tiffany & Co. finisher necklaces. It is all about pampering and rewarding ourselves for our accomplishment. This was my second year running the half marathon. I was joined by 16 girlfriends (12 of which were first-timers!), and we made a complete girls' weekend out of the event. The inspiration that comes with running with 20,000 women for such an important cause is unparalled. I couldn't help but get emotional a couple times during the race and at the finish line.

Julie Visger: Yesterday I ran like a girl and got a Tiffany necklace!! SWEEEEEEEET!!

Jennifer Martin: Union Square was off-the-hook with pre-race hype! It was exciting to witness the thrill and energy that was present with all that took place in the expotique. Seeing my name on the NikeTown wall started it for me! I knew this experience was going to make me a different person.
The morning of the race was something I will never forget. When I stepped out of the hotel, all I could hear was the humm of people...it was like a locust infestation over Union Square....AMAZING! When I crossed over the starting line of the race, it became real. The things I began to think about as my 13.1 journey began blew even my mind. All my senses became numb in one way and overly sensitive in another way, it is hard to explain! The sound of that many feet hitting the pavement at once was surreal!
Nike did an amazing job coordinating this whole race, from the water stops, power surge stops, the orange slice stop (wow, the smell of that!), to all the motivating signs that were placed in all the rights places. The views were breathtaking and the most beautiful sights seemed to come right when I felt like I could not run any longer.

I will never forget this experience and am praying that I can be part of the 2010 race. I ran like a girl, made friends like a girl, cried and laughed like a girl, ate chocolate like a girl and just did it like a girl and am wearing my Tiffany Necklace like a girl....all in the Nike Women's Marathon!

Chris Tom-Albertson: I continue doing STEPS4ACURE for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Team in Training mission which is finding a cure and because I can for those who cannot.  Race day was AWESOME!  The weather, was "picture perfect", atmosphere was beaming with excitement, anxiety and hope for those we either honored or in memory of them.  I had dedicated this training season to Nick Glasgow, 28 years old who fought his leukemia battle bravely until his death on October 2, 2009. I was sad to learn of his passing.  He was truly an inspiration with his will and spirit.
 

• View Sacramento area runners Photo Slideshow        
• Additional Sacramento area running news and photos                                         
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Steph Matulich, who took the cover photo for this article, is a professional photographer located in Northern California. She is the founder and owner of Matulich Photography, with a practice that includes weddings, sporting activities, people in all settings, and all kinds and sizes of events. Steph can be reached at 916-508-3333 or through her company