With media crowded around him at the finish line of Sunday's inaugural Mount Lemmon Marathon, James Miles was asked to verify the spelling of his last name as M-I-L-E-S.
"Yeah," he said, cracking a smile. "As in, I just ran 26 miles up that mountain."
Everyone laughed. It's easy to joke when you just won your first marathon, but especially this one.
The Tucsonan, 25, finished the 26.2-mile course, which followed Catalina Highway from the base of Mount Lemmon to Summerhaven at the top, in 3 hours 13 minutes 42 seconds.
Miles' time was exactly six minutes faster than second-place runner Johannes Rudolph from Boulder, Colo. Miles was eight minutes faster than friend and fellow Rincon/University High School graduate Craig Dye, who came in third.
Like most of Sunday's 785 participants, Miles wasn't quite sure what to expect of the course, which featured a steady 6,000-foot elevation gain. He knew it would be hard, and admitted afterward it was. But he said his body handled the climb surprisingly well.
People are also reading…
Miles' win was impressive for several reasons. For one, it was just his third marathon. Then, there's overcoming the obvious challenges that come with running uphill for such a distance, as well as running at a high altitude.
But here's the kicker: He decided to enter the race only this past week.
"My friend Lucas Tyler and I were talking about it a few days ago and I said 'I kind of wish I had decided to do it. It seems like fun.'"
Tyler, who works at The Running Shop, scored Miles a last-minute entry from a sponsor and just like that, Miles was in.
Many runners, including Tyler, said they trained at places like Sabino Canyon to get used to running uphill, but on short notice, Miles didn't have that luxury.
"I thought I'd just come out here to see what happened," Miles said.
Tyler ran the half marathon. He also came in with no particular expectations, yet got the same result - his first victory. He finished the 13.1-mile race in 1:34:12. It started at Windy Point, a lookout located partway up the highway, and ended at the same finish line in Summerhaven.
The women's half marathon was won by Oro Valley's Beth Utley in 1:52:10.
Like Miles, Tyler said he had a surprising amount of energy left at the end, despite finding the course challenging.
"It just seemed like forever and it just kept getting steeper," said the 29-year-old Sabino High School grad. "It was definitely a lot harder due to the altitude. I really couldn't tell how hard to push."
Emily McGregor wasn't too sure of her tactics, either, being that she had never run more than 19 consecutive miles in her life. But that didn't stop her from winning her first ever marathon try in 3:59:13.
McGregor, 25, who ran for Mountain View High School and then the UA, said she had to stop quickly at the 22-mile mark to stretch out her quads, but was then able to push through to the victory.
"Once you get past the half, you're at 15, then 17," McGregor said. "They just mesh together and next thing you know, you're at 23 and you're almost done."
McGregor had a simple answer for why she decided to make one of the toughest marathons in the world her first.
"If you can do this, any other marathon should be a piece of cake," she said.
And she wants to try others, especially because she knows her time will be worlds better on a flat course. Higher-than-average times were the theme of the day due to the climb.
For example, Miles ran 2 hours 34 minutes in his last marathon, the California International. He finished that race third despite running almost 40 minutes faster than he did in Sunday's win.
The winner of last year's flat - even downhill - Tucson Marathon won it in 2:41:26.
In exchange for slow times, runners got to enjoy what must be one of the most scenic marathon courses in the world. From views of Tucson's city lights to the south, to rolling mountains to the north, or breathtaking rock formations rising up along both sides of the road, the course was simply gorgeous.
"I even saw a couple of deer, which isn't probably something you'd see in a normal half-marathon," Tyler said.
"Also, I can't remember ever seeing my breath during a half marathon, especially in Tucson."
Race organizers said the temperature at the base of the mountain for the 6 a.m. start was in the mid-50s, but the temperature dropped into the 40s closer to the top.
Most runners agreed that the weather was perfect for running, though, and the race itself seemed to go about as smooth as a brick of fudge from the Mount Lemmon General Store.
Co-director Dan Brinkman said he hopes the success of this year's event will spur an even bigger turnout for next year. The cap for the race was 2,500 runners, but about 1,200 entered and even fewer raced. The vast majority were locals.
"Being the inaugural year, there may have been a little hesitation by some," Brink-man said. "After seeing how well this turned out, I think we'll see a lot more jump on board."
BY THE NUMBERS
3:13:42
Men's winner (James Miles)
3:59:13
Women's winner (Emily McGregor)
10 degrees
Approximate difference in temperature between the 50-degree start and the 40-degree finish
6,000 feet
Change in elevation from the start to the finish
Mt. Lemmon Marathon top finishers, Page B23
