Herd finishes his mission

Nick Christensen

Monday, Jan. 26, 2004 | 10:05 a.m.

38th Las Vegas Half-Marathon

Men

1. Kevin Herd, South Jordan, Utah, 2:28:13

2. Phil Kochik, Seattle, 2:42:14

3. Chuck Moeser, Sterling, Va., 2:44:51

4. Robert Durrant, Langley, B.C., 2:47:40

5. Eric Dewitt, Park Ridge, Ill., 2:48:01

6. Ron Balezantis, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, 2:48:08

7. Jiri Skrobanek, Vsetin, Czechoslovakia, 2:48:30

8. Kevin Koch, Grand Junction, Colo., 2:49:49

9. Konrad Mucha, Chicago, 2:49:47

10. Simon Toon, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, 2:50:23

Women

1. Kari Anne Bertrand, Gilroy, Calif., 2:45:46

2. Kathryn Kasischke, San Diego, 2:47:40

3. Ellen Hart, Denver, 2:49:28

4. Julie Peterson, Beverly, Mass., 2:55:06

5. Laura Ankrum, Grand Blanc, Mich., 2:55:34

6. Emily Bates, Cambridge, Mass., 2:56:53

7. Becky Sondag, Casper, Wyo., 2:57:35

8. Michelle Chille, Manhattan Beach, Calif., 2:57:48

9. Rebecca Henry, Portland, Ore., 3:01:40

10. Cassandra McCune, Nashport, Ohio, 3:03:07

38TH LAS VEGAS HALF-MARATHON

Men

1. Jason Warick, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, 1:07:31

2. Christopher Magill, Albion, R.I., 1:07:48

3. Jerome Ross, Anchorage, Alaska, 1:07:51

Women

1. Kate Fonshell, Ardmore, Pa., 1:14:23

2. Andrea Niggemeier, Philadelphia, 1:17:08

3. Kim Harrity, Haverford, Pa., 1:17:25

Kevin Herd crossed the finish line for the first time in his life Sunday. There were media photographers, cheering fans and even a tape across the finish line waiting for him to break.

But the attention wasn't because it was Herd's first time completing the full 26.2 miles. In just his second attempt at competing in a marathon, Herd led the pack, crossing the finish line at Sunset Park 2 hours, 28 minutes, and 13 seconds after starting the race at Jean.

Herd, 32, finished the race under less than ideal conditions. A strong headwind picked up around 9 a.m., and the gusts to around 30 mph buffeted the runners as they ran up Las Vegas Boulevard.

"Through 18 miles, I felt great. But then the headwind came, and that was brutal," Herd said Sunday at Sunset Park shortly after his finish. "At about mile 20, I was at 1:50, and I hit the wind. It sucked the life out of me, and I was just hanging on."

Women's winner Dr. Kari Anne Bertrand, who finished at 2 hours, 45 minutes, 46 seconds, said the wind nearly took her out of the race, when a male participant jogged in front of her as a windbreak.

"Some guy saved my life for a mile, then said he had to leave," she said. "He was a godsend. ... I wish he could have stayed longer."

But the surprise of the day wasn't the wind, it was Herd.

A sales executive from the Salt Lake suburb of South Jordan, Utah, Herd gave up running in 1996 after participating in 5K and 10K events for the University of Iowa. He said he got caught up raising a family and keeping a job, but decided in August to get back into running shape to lose weight.

"I wanted to get my fitness back, and it's hard to run without a purpose," he said. "So I set a goal to run in 2:30. I started out running 20-30 miles a week, I got to 80-85 miles a week."

In December, Herd ran the Tucson Marathon, resigning from the race after 20 miles. But in his second try, Herd beat second-place Phil Kochik of Seattle by 14 minutes.

"My lungs feel great, but my legs feel dead," he said. He added that the downhill nature of the course, which started at Jean and went along or near Las Vegas Boulevard to Sunset, put added strain on his quadriceps and hamstrings.

Bertrand, an OB/GYN from Gilroy, Calif., was also fairly new to marathon. Competing in her fifth marathon, her first was in 2000 in New York City, where she placed 18th at 2:45:45. She completed all five of her attempts, except for last year's Las Vegas Marathon.

Bertrand said she picked up marathon after competing at Georgetown as an undergrad and training with the Washington's Reebok Enclave when she was in medical school.

While in her residency in New York, she started preparing for marathon running after turning 30.

Bertrand took the lead near mile 17.

"I passed her at 17 or 18 ... I was in third for a while, to about mile 10," she said. "It was all a blur from 18 to 26."

Alan Bergman, from Cobble Hill, British Columbia, finished first in the wheelchair division at 1:26:20. Half-marathon winners were 30-year-old Jason Warick of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, in 1:07:31, and 34-year-old Kate Fonshell of Ardmore, Pa., in 1:14:23.