Locals participate in marathon, half-marathon

Des Moines - F.I.T. (Friends In Training) Running Club is giving a shout-out to all the area runners who participated in the IMT Des Moines Marathon and Half Marathon on Oct. 21. 

Several area residents, including some members of F.I.T., were part of this 26.2-mile marathon and 13.1-mile half-marathon, which was founded in 2002.

Susan Ollendieck and Stephanie Ollendieck finished their first full marathon. The two crossed the finish line together but they didn’t train with each other. Brad Burke ran his second full marathon as one of the 1,275 finishers.

Those finishing the half-marathon were Olivia and Spencer Christensen, Carol Tesch, Joe Krentz, Keith Krentz and Barbie Jo Tupy, who ran for her brother. They joined 3,698 finishers of the race.

Elaine Stika participated in the I-35 Challenge, where she ran a half-marathon in Kansas City, Mo. on Saturday and then the one in Des Moines on Sunday, making a full marathon in two days. Her plans are to do a half-marathon in all 50 states.

If you are a runner and want to join a group, contact Burke or Diane Krentz. “We don’t want anyone who isn’t a member {of F.I.T.] to feel excluded in any way. This year we are trying to get area runners and walkers involved to join us in social runs as a group and not really needing to be an official member.” Look them up on Facebook.