SPRINGDALE -- When Jon Bitler crossed the finish line at the 41st annual Hogeye Marathon on Saturday morning, he was unsure whether he was the overall marathon winner.
A few minutes passed before Race Director Tabby Holmes confirmed the news to Bitler, who drew applause from those close by. Bitler, 45, finished with a time of 3:04:28.33 -- a seven-minute, two-second per mile pace.
41st Annual Hogeye Marathon results
Overall
Jon Bitler^Fayetteville^3:04:28.33
Emily King^Bentonville^3:12:38.60
Michael Zadnik^Orlando, FL^3:12:57.19
Charles Konzelman^Fort Smith^3:13:23.48
Tony Wysocki^Broken Arrow, OK^3:18:55.64
Joel Fenlason^Santa Maria, CA^3:21:11.58
Beau Bledsoe^Springdale^3:21:42.51
8.Kevin Hanna^Orlando, FL^3:22:57:21
Andre Geis^Fayetteville^3:23:10.16
Travis Appel^Springdale^3:24:32.52
5K results
Cameron Efurd^Rogers^18:03.38
Jose Rueda^Rogers^18:57.31
Garrett Wade^Farmington^19:29.28
Frank Arellano^Rogers^19:41.90
Kory Callaway^Magnolia^19:43.91
Michael Cagle^Houston, TX^20:10.78
April Shroff^Broken Arrow, OK^20:11.80
Jake Lane^Fayetteville^20:28.53
Matthew Gentry^Springdale^20:41.41
Jordan Akiyoshi^Fayetteville^20:42.98
"It was a nice start. It was nice and cool at the start," he said. "It's not a first-year event, but it's all different logistics-wise, and they did a nice job with volunteers, and the Springdale police were out in force. It's a nicely run event for kind of a new space. They did a nice job."
A Fayetteville native, Bitler has run in the Hogeye Marathon before but was a last-minute register for this weekend's event. The decision proved to be a good one.
"I was feeling good, so I did it," he said. "I didn't do any specific training for this, but I did the Bentonville half-marathon last week and did pretty well considering I didn't have high expectations. Today, my time was a little faster (than what I expected)."
One of the big changes to this year's event was the course. Parts of the course were challenging, Bitler said, including a hilly region near the 11-12 mile marker. It also opened his eyes to new parts of the city.
"I got to see a lot of places in Springdale I've never been, a couple parks I've never been to," he said. "It seemed like they stringed a lot of things together in town. It was logistically challenging going across the interstate, but nice course."
And trailing Bitler -- not by much -- was John Brown University student and Bentonville native Emily Brown, who grabbed the women's title and second place overall with a time of 3:12:38.60 Saturday.
King said she was very pleased with her performance, and rightfully so, considering Saturday was her first full marathon. Despite that, the 19-year-old ran at a seven-minute, 21-second per mile pace and finished a full 16 seconds ahead of the women's second place finisher.
"It felt pretty good. It got a little bit windy at the end, which was hard to go against, but it felt good," King said. "It was pretty hard. I'd like to do it again. Maybe not as fast, but for fun. I was very satisfied with my time."
Aside from a few hilly areas along the course, King said she enjoyed running on the new course.
"I thought the course was really pretty," she said. "I liked running by the lake. It got a little bit hilly at the end, but the temperature was perfect to run in."
Several competitors who finished in the top 10 Saturday were from out of state. Michael Zadnik, an Orlando, Fla., native finished third overall and the top finisher from outside the region. Another Orlando native, Kevin Hanna, joined Zadnik in the top 10. Joel Fenlason, who traveled in from Santa Maria, Calif., placed sixth.
Six from the top 10 hailed from northwest Arkansas and the River Valley. Cameron Efurd of Rogers came in first place in the Hogeye 5K, finishing with a time of 18:03.38.
Sports on 04/09/2017