Proper clothing was the name of the game at the Inaugural Fredrick Marathon. The conditions were more than was expected with the predicted light rain turning to wet sticky snow just before the gun went off for the start of the race.

The runners headed off from Frederick High School on this double loop course and headed through historic downtown Frederick as the snow continued to fall. Just 30 minutes into the race as most of the runners were heading north, snow was blowing into the runners' faces and coming down so thick it was sticking to their clothes, and one had to continually brush it off, especially from your hands to try to keep them warm. The support crowds were enthusiastic but small on this first loop, with some offering fruit and one little girl handing out those little yellow marshmallow peeps to the runners.

As the runners returned from this first loop, they headed south for the longer second loop through the Mt. Olivett Cemetery. By now the route was slushy from the wet snow. Once the runners left the cemetery they headed out on New Design Road. There was little crowd support on this loop. What support was there was warmly welcomed by the cold, wet, runners. As the leaders headed back in, the outbound runners could see them and a few cold cheers rang out for them. The ones wearing hats also had two inches of snow on their bills.

At two hours into this event this section was where the conditions were at their worst. The slush was so thick that as runners ran along they splashed ice on each other's feet. The snow had let up and trails had started to clear out in the slush, but they were filled with little steams of melting snow. A few runners were heard to comment, "I can't feel my toes any more!" The trails did clear out more and there was a lot less water for a while.

In the photo at left, winner Maurits Vanderveen (35) from Philadelphia, PA steps on snow covered ChampionChip mats as he crossed the finish in 2:37:11. Photo courtesy of Frederick.com.

Grant Salisbury (20) from Middletown, MD was more than twenty minutes behind, finishing second in 2:58:21. Ed Koontz (32) from Pittsburgh, PA was less than a minute behind in 2:59:03.

In the women's race, Becki McClintock (23) of New Cumberland, PA, took first place with her 3:28:25. Barry Salisbury (46) of Middletown (Grant Salisbury's mother!) also placed second, finishing in 3:34:56. Dana Smith (39) of Annapolis, MD was third in 3:38:25.

Three and a half hours into the event the snow stated to come down hard again and the runners still out there, as before, had to contend with worsening conditions. As the runners entered into the high school track to finish out the last little leg of this marathon they had to all be happy that this journey was over as they all headed into the school gym for refreshments and music. Hypothermia from mild to severe was commonplace in the gym. All who suffered from it could not have been happier to have a warm building in which to retreat.

Hats off to the organizers, volunteers, and the local police for their superior effort in putting on this first marathon in Frederick, it will be a marathon to remember and all those who even attempted this event should be proud!

See full results of the marathon.