Beginner Edwards wins Coeur d’Alene Marathon

Sunday morning couldn’t have gone any better for Ken Edwards.

He woke up early, presumably ate a light breakfast and drove about five miles from his home in Hayden to Coeur d’Alene on an overcast day – perfect conditions for running.

By 7 a.m., the 31-year-old Edwards had started his first marathon, and three hours later he crossed the finish line in front of Christensen Gymnasium at North Idaho College to win the overall men’s title at the 30th annual Coeur d’Alene Marathon.

Edwards finished the 26.2-mile course in just under three hours, with a time of 2 hours, 59 minutes and seven seconds, more than eight minutes ahead of second-place finisher Tony Phillippi of Tacoma (3:07.39).

The course is a double-loop of the 13.1-mile half marathon course, which begins with a loop around North Idaho College, continues across City Park before turning onto Front St. From there, runners head south on 8th St. and east onto Mullan following the Centennial Trail along Coeur d’Alene Lake.

Edwards took the lead for good after the first loop. He said he knew early on in the second half that he was going to win.

“I knew after we finished the first loop that I had a pretty good lead on the next guy,” Edwards said.

The winning time was signifigantly slower than last year’s overall champion. Jim Rucker of Spokane won the 2006 men’s race in 2:35.04 – but that didn’t make Sunday any less special for Edwards, the marathon rookie.

“It’s pretty exciting,” said Edwards, who frames houses for a living. “It feels great.”

The women’s race also featured a new champion – Kjersten Welch, 36, of Sioux City, Iowa.

Welch’s finishing time of 3:18.14 was good for fifth place overall. She finished ahead of Paula Molstead of Charles City, Iowa, who came in at 3:22.57.

Though she had a four-minute pad, Welch said she was never really sure that she would cross the finish line first until the final miles of the race.

“I’m never really sure because I don’t know exactly where I am,” Welch said. “You’re not supposed to look behind you, so I just always assume someone is there and that pushes me a little.”

Welch, now a three-time marathon winner, including her hometown event, discovered the CdA marathon when she and her husband drove through the area a few years ago. She thought the city was beautiful so she decided to see if there was a race available.

“I just went online and sure enough there was a race,” said Welch, who admits this was a one-time deal.

“I don’t think we will come back,” she said. “It’s a 20-hour drive. I guess never say never, but it’s probably my first and last time racing here.”

More than 1,700 people participated in this year’s event – spread out among the 5k, half marathon and marathon.

Coeur d’Alene’s Daniel Shaw won the men’s half marathon, finishing with a time of 1:10.58, ahead of Spokane Valley native Evan Sims (1:19.56).

In the women’s half marathon, Haley Cooper of Spokane, edged Amber Hamilton, also of Spokane, in an exciting sprint to the finish. Cooper held on for a 20-second victory over Hamilton, finishing in 1:25.09.

In the masters division, Jim Kruidenier (Goleta, Calif.) won the men’s race in 1:23.03 and Jan Janke (Spokane) won the women’s race in 1:31.11.