marathon

Libby James

/ runningincolorado
LibbyJames

(libbyjames.net)

•   National age group record for 5k (23:30)

•   National age group record for 10 miles (1:19:22)

•   National age group record for 10k

Libby James didn’t enter her first race until her 40’s, but she made a mark from the beginning. The mother of four and grandmother of 12 set national records in the 5k (both 70-74 and 75-79 age groups) as well as the 10k (75-79 age group) and the 10-mile (75-79 age group). She set an age group world record in the 2011 Aetna Park to Park 10-miler with a chip time of 1:19:22 and is the 2011 Running Times Master Runner of the Year in age groups 70-74 and 75-79. In 2010 and 2011 she ran the Bolder Boulder with her oldest grandson when she was 63, and in 2000, she ran the Steamboat Springs Marathon with both her daughters. She currently has a business “oldBags,” (tea bag art) and has also finished the text for a picture book about an old woman who decides to run a marathon (“no research required” she says).

(libbyjames.net)

(libbyjames.net)

Garry Bjorklund

/ runningincolorado
(www.usatfmn.org)

(www.usatfmn.org)

•   Held the MN state high school mile record (4:05.1) for              39 years

•   Five-time All-American

•   Broke Big Ten records in seven categories

•   13th place in 10,000m at the 1976 Olympics

•   Won 10 major road races in 1978

•   Inducted into the Road Runners Club of America’s Hall            of Fame in 1988

•   The Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth named the Garry                Bjorklund Half Marathon after him

Garry Bjorklund started his running career in high school, setting a Minnesota state record mile that lasted for 39 years with a time of 4:05.1. He represented the U.S. at the 1971 and 1975 Pan American Games as well as the 1976 Olympics, managing to make the 10,000m team in spite of losing a shoe during trials. Following his Olympic appearance, Garry became a marathon runner, earning fifth-place finishes in both the 1977 New York City Marathon and the 1979 Boston Marathon. By 1980, he had set a national age group record and personal best time of 2:10.20 at Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth Minnesota. His strong road running during this time earned him a place in the Road Runners Club of America’s Hall of Fame in 1988. Garry has lived in Colorado since the late 1970s, training with the Colorado Track Club and running partner Frank Shorter.

Garry Bjorklund, right, battles with Dick Beardsley in the 5th edition of Grandma's Marathon. Photo: Dulluth

Garry Bjorklund, right, battles with Dick Beardsley in the 5th edition of Grandma’s Marathon. Photo: Dulluth

Danelle Ballengee

/ runningincolorado / 1 Comment
(outdoornewswire.com)

(outdoornewswire.com)

•  Four-time Pikes Peak Marathon winner

•  Six-time, four-sport U.S. Athlete of the Year

•  Unbeaten in snowshoeing 1997 to 2001

•  Multisport Athlete of the Year (‘95)

•  U.S. Pro Duathlete of the Year (’97)

•  U.S. Mountain Runner of the Year (’99)

Danelle Ballengee, “Coach Nellie”, is known as one of the world’s premier adventure sports athletes, boasting four Pikes Peak Marathon wins, three Primal Quest adventure race victories, and six “U.S. Athlete of the Year” wins in four sports. She is the top-winning endurance athlete in the world, having won several hundred events in various endurance sports including skyrunning, adventure racing, mountain running, rogaining, snowshoeing, triathlon, and duathlon. In 2006, she survived an incredible accident where she was stranded for 56 hours with a shattered pelvis when she fell about 60 feet after slipping on an icy rock while trail running near Moab, Utah. Today, Danelle is married with two young sons and splits her time between Dillon, CO and Moab, UT.

Danelle at Pikes Peak Summit in 2005. (Photo: multisports.com)

Danelle at Pikes Peak Summit in 2005. (Photo: multisports.com)