More than 2,000 runners take part in Bend Marathon, half marathon, 10K and 5K

Published 12:00 pm Monday, April 17, 2023

More than 2,300 runners competed in the seventh edition of the Bend Marathon races on Sunday.

Events included the marathon (26.2 miles) half marathon (13.1 miles), 10-kilometer and 5K races.

The races started and finished in Bend’s Old Mill District near the parking lot adjacent to the Hampton Inn.

The marathon and half-marathon courses featured Bend parks, neighborhoods and the paved trail through the Deschutes National Forest (paralleling the Cascade Lakes Highway). Runners started from the Old Mill and ran into downtown, then headed west through Northwest Crossing and Tetherow before connecting to the paved path. The courses were almost entirely paved.

The half marathon was by far the most popular event, as more than 800 runners competed in the distance. Bend’s Colton Gale won the half marathon in 1 hour, 14 minutes. Chris Erxleben, of Redmond, was second in 1:17:04, and Bend’s Jonathan Sees finished third in 1:18:09.

Bend’s Lindsey Hagen won the women’s half-marathon competition in 1:25:23 and was 10th overall. Danielle Snyder, also of Bend, took second in 1:27:45, and Portland’s Johanna Nielsen was third in 1:28:49.

Bend runners dominated the marathon as well, as Chris Jackson finished in 2:53:07 to take the title. Salem’s Caleb Kauffman was second in 2:53:46 and Bend’s Hillary Kupish was third overall (and the winning woman) in 2:55:15.

Katherine Charters, of Spokane, Washington, finished second among the women in 3:22:57 and Bend’s Kendall Brown was third in 3:27:57. More than 250 runners competed in the marathon distance.

The 10K and 5K courses took runners along the paved paths paralleling the Deschutes River in the Old Mill District. Steven Crum, of Grants Pass, won the 10K in 36:17, Bend’s Lucas Crespin was second in 36:34, and Matthew Kolb, also of Bend, finished third in 38:14.

Bend’s Kacie Talcott won the women’s 10K division and finished sixth overall in 47:06. Bend’s Ann Scott-Plante was the second-fastest woman in 47:51, and Ellen Kramer, of Coos Bay, finished third in 48:32.

Dodson Avrit of Brentwood, Tennessee, won the 5K in 18:00, followed by Jake Needle (18:01), of San Diego, and Hakon Rozell (18:15), of Portland. Bend’s Allison Grace Morgan was fourth overall and won the women’s division in 18:21, followed by Bend’s Sara Kuhn (21:53) and Bend’s Emily Conlee (22:41). 

The Bend Marathon was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021, but runners had virtual race options. The event returned in-person in 2022 with about 1,600 runners across all four races.

Runners have virtual options again this year, and can run their race distance wherever and however they want through May 1, and then upload their finishing time to bend-marathon.com.

For more information and complete results of the in-person races, visit www.bend-marathon.com.