Barton leads local runners at Grandma’s

With a huge throng of supporters cheering on the 8,555 runners at Saturday’s 24th-annual Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth, Mn., three local marathoners used that atmosphere to finish the gruelling 26.2-mile route in impressive fashion.
Doris Barton led the trio, finishing in a personal-best time of 3:50–a full six minutes off her previous full marathon time. That left her in 397th place in the women’s division, which was won by Svetlana Tkacj-Shepeleva of Moldova (2:33.53).
Barton was joined for much of the way by fellow local runner Kerri Tolen, who clocked a time of 4:01 to finish 661st among the women.
Barton said running beside Tolen made a difference.
“Definitely it helps us because we train together and it helps to have someone there,” said Barton, adding she wants to improve her time in order to eventually qualify for the prestigious Boston Marathon.
“It helps you concentrate, sometimes you can really slow down if you start concentrating on an injury,” she remarked.
Barton said she felt good throughout most of the race, which was run under cool (40 F) conditions, despite having a tight hamstring. But she said signs of encouragement from many people lining the scenic course along the shore of Lake Superior helped keep the runners focused on their goals.
“There are signs that say ‘There is no wall’ and there are signs of encouragement,” she noted.
Meanwhile, Bob Tkachuk of Fort Frances, running in his full marathon, agreed he needed that type of support. He finished in a time of 4:16:07 to place 2,678 in the men’s division.
“It was harder than I thought. Thirteen to 17 [mile range] was not too bad, 18 I walked through the water area, and I chipped away to mile 24,” he recalled. “I was running on pure grit and gumption.
“In my head, I didn’t feel like quitting. I walked a little longer and I looked at people and said ‘They’re doing it.’ You have a guy 60 years old blowing past you,” he added.
But despite the gruelling ordeal, he’s already rented a hotel room for next year’s race.
Tkachuk described running a marathon as first being a physical race, which then becomes more of a mental one during the latter stages.
“Ten percent of the race is mental. You start to think about [finishing] more during the late stages. It’s very mental,” he remarked.
Still, Tkachuk said the experience was overwhelming, especially racing among 8,000-plus participants.
“I want to do it again, it’s one of the top 10 marathons in the U.S. You’re in the middle of a crowd of 4,000, the gun goes off, and everyone is bearing down on you, moving up and down like popcorn,” he noted.
“It’s a bit overwhelming.”