Army Infantry Officer Nathaniel Carter took eight years off from running when he joined the service. He has been back for 19 weeks and that is clearly enough.
Carter surged to the front in the final five miles of a hotly-contested race to win the Garden of Life Palm Beaches Marathon Sunday in a Boston-qualifying time of 2:49:58 in blustery downtown West Palm Beach.
“I didn’t expect it and I’m speechless,” said the 39-year-old husband and father of two. “It’s time for celebration.”
Angela Carron of Milan, Michigan conversely was running her 144th career marathon and it showed. She ran away from second-place finisher Beth Reed in the women’s Marathon in a time of 3:03:24, a margin that grew to 10 minutes.
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Youth was on display in the Half Marathon as a battle of local 18-year-old high school seniors evolved, with Hobe Sound’s Joshua Flynn (1:19:58) outdueling North Palm Beach’s George Santana (1:20:41).
Laena Romand of Brooksville, CT, who finished second in this race in 2022 and third in 2019, won the women’s half-marathon in 1:24:10.
The USATF-certified event also included a half-marathon and marathon relays on Sunday, and a Sun Fun 5K and 10K races on Saturday. The event-record 4,600 runners came from 42 states and 28 countries to race over a flat course without bridges or hills known for allowing runners to record their best times on days when the winds doesn’t wreak the havoc it did in this edition of the race.
A nasty storm blew through the downtown area early Sunday hampering warm-ups and dampening streets. But it also provided a cool opening stretch before temperatures hovered at 72 degrees in late morning.
Carter ‘s last marathon came in 2016, which made it more amazing that Sunday’s race also produced the best time of his four career marathons.
Michael Watts of Islip, NY, who led much of the race but relinquished the lead at mile 21, was second (2:52:26) and Alberto Cruz Ortiz of Guyama, Puerto Rico, was third (2:55:17).
“I’ve been running now for 19 weeks,” Carter said. “At mile 21, I got a gut check. It was pretty hard. But I passed a guy and I didn’t know I took the lead unit a cop told me I was in first place.”
The windy and on-and-off rain was paradise for Carron, in town for a winter work retreat for her job as director of operations for Epic Run of Ann Arbor, Michigan. The 46-year-old runs 80 miles a week and is “always ready for a marathon.” Last month she set her PR (2:58) in Detroit, and she’ll run the Boston Marathon in April.
“I love the rain, I don’t mind it,” said the veteran marathoner who along with the entire field endured a downpour as the race was set to begin. “This is my sweet spot.”
“No one in my family runs,” said Carron, who has run the Boston Marathon 10 times. “My Mom usually calls and asks ‘did you win’?” I can’t wait to tell her I won.”
With his Dad and brother watching him win his first career Half Marathon, Flynn collapsed at the finish line and needed several minutes to recover. The win was hard-earned for the Cardinal Newman product after the duel with Santana, who attends Dwyer High School. Flynn had not beaten Santana during the recent cross country season.
“The wind was pretty bad at first and I was freezing in the first mile, but then I got in the rhythm and felt good,” said Flynn.
With the two running neck-and-neck into Mile 10, Flynn decided to take off and he ended up with a time that was 10 minutes better than his PR.
“The 5K is my strong suit, but with three miles to go I started kicking,” he said. “And the last two miles I was dead.”
Despite losing to his friend and high school rival, Santana was not downcast with the second-place finish. He finished 17th as a 16-year-old in 2022, was 4th a year ago and improved again with this year’s 2nd place finish.
“I stuck with (Flynn) until my head started hurting at the 10-minute mark,” he said. “Other than that, it was a good race. This is my third time in the race, and each time I’ve improved. I’ve been progressing.”
Romond was not initially scheduled to run the Half Marathon. She has wintered in Wellington for several years for her job as an equestrian rider and trainer at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center.
“Our schedule is very busy,” she said. “At the last minute, my morning looked fine. I decided to jump in and do the run. It’s a nice holiday race. Even though it was a little rainy and breezy, overall it was a pretty nice day to run.”
The weekend event benefitted Special Olympics Florida, which serves over 60,000 athletes statewide.
Caron summed it all up best.
“I love it here,” said the Michigan resident. “The ocean is beautiful. It’s just really crazy to me. I wonder what it’s like to live in paradise. I absolutely love it.”
Pos Name City Time
1 Nathaniel Carter Cooper City, FL 02:49:58
2 Michael Watts Islip, NY 02:52:26
3 Alberto Cruz Ortiz Guayama, Puerto Rico 02:55:17
4 Yisroayl Peer Delray Beach, FL 02:57:24
5 Steven Thompson Downingtown, PA 02:57:24
6 Dylan Bushby Blackwood, NJ 02:57:49
7 Carlos Halabe Sunny isles, FL 02:58:25
8 Mark Eidelman Winnetka, IL 03:05:09
9 Matthew Wheeler Charleston, SC 03:09:02
10 Jim Park Buffalo, NY 03:09:13
11 Daniel Hefty Vero Beach, FL 03:11:54
12 Cedric Vincent Lake Worth, FL 03:12:48
13 Drew Navarro Boynton Beach, FL 03:13:59
14 Matthew Weinberg New York, NY 03:14:07
15 Nathan Ashcraft Jupiter, FL 03:15:41
16 Jacob Olsen St Paul, MN 03:15:52
17 Brice Ikouebe Miami, FL 03:15:56
18 Miguel Trujillo Alexandria, VA 03:17:28
19 Bryan Headley Palm Beach, FL 03:18:04
20 Ari Hirsch West Palm Beach, FL 03:18:31
21 Mickey Shulkin San Francisco, CA 03:19:37
22 William Beisswenger Fort Lauderdale, FL 03:20:28
23 Kyle Latz Jupiter, FL 03:20:47
24 Eli Thurston Knoxville, TN 03:22:40
25 Luke Ritter West Palm Beach, FL 03:23:40
Pos Name City Time
1 Joshua Flynn Hobe Sound, FL 01:19:58
2 George Santana North Palm Beach, FL 01:20:41
3 John Reback Jupiter, FL 01:23:48
4 Christopher Bell Starkville, MS 01:23:52
5 Greg Smith Stuart, FL 01:24:59
6 Jude Sandala Palm Beach Gardens, FL 01:25:03
7 Bryan Gutierrez Newington, CT 01:25:40
8 Daniel Rodriguez Fort Lauderdale, FL 01:26:49
9 Tom Howes West Palm Beach, FL 01:26:51
10 Erlend Mosand Svolvaer, Norway 01:26:59
11 Iftach Shimonovitc Delray Beach, FL 01:27:03
12 Marcelo Fiusa Carneiro Boca Raton, FL 01:27:07
13 David Delfino Toronto, Canada 01:27:26
14 Joseph Flynn Hobe Sound, FL 01:28:15
15 Kevin Herman West Palm Beach, FL 01:28:23
16 Giancarlo Ceci Norwalk, CT 01:28:38
17 Caleb Evans Lake Worth, FL 01:29:02
18 Miguel Amesty Fort Lauderdale, FL 01:29:04
19 Joseph Blakeley West Palm Beach, FL 01:29:13
20 Benjamin Gordon Palm Beach, FL 01:29:20
21 Mitchell Clinard West Palm Beach, FL 01:29:27
22 Marc Surgent Boca Raton, FL 01:29:30
23 Attila Kamaras Palm Beach Gardens, FL 01:29:51
24 David Chen Boca Raton, FL 01:29:56
25 Andrew Colone West Palm Beach, FL 01:29:58
Pos Name City Time
1 Angela Carron Milan, MI 03:03:24
2 Beth Reed Lake Mary, FL 03:13:26
3 Nancy Robertshaw Chattanooga, TN 03:22:40
4 Brandi Haller Melbourne, FL 03:30:39
5 Shannon Evanchec Knoxville, TN 03:31:27
6 Arianna Marino Whippany, NJ 03:32:09
7 Amanda Posthuma Coelho Boston, MA 03:34:16
8 Emily Daycock Fort Lauderdale, FL 03:34:43
9 Nix Searcy Louisville, KY 03:34:46
10 Nancy Arcoverde Cavalcanti Spring, TX 03:35:41
11 Cody Rankin Marietta, GA 03:36:05
12 Emily Johnson Jupiter, FL 03:37:20
13 Maria Urso Jupiter, FL 03:38:48
14 Adriana Jaaniorg Pembroke Pines, FL 03:39:40
15 Kerry Houlette Estero, FL 03:41:06
16 Natalie Etherson Estero, FL 03:42:01
17 Bethany Hitchman Langley, Canada 03:43:56
18 Nora El-Abbar West Palm Beach, FL 03:45:19
19 Megan Dreyer Atlanta, GA 03:45:24
20 Katie Leon Ortega Green Bay, WI 03:46:36
21 Haley Johnson Jupiter, FL 03:46:40
22 Jillian Potenza West Palm Beach, FL 03:51:11
23 Lizzy Davis Jupiter, FL 03:51:42
24 Patricia Roldan Port St Lucie, FL 03:54:15
25 Megan Collins Tampa, FL 03:55:17
Pos Name City Time
1 Laena Romond Brookfield, MI 01:24:10
2 Runelda Jackson Belle Glade, FL 01:25:16
3 Stephanie Gerland Jupiter, FL 01:25:46
4 Staci Huelat Wellington, FL 01:31:34
5 Amanda Jones West Palm Beach, FL 01:32:10
6 Jen Rossano Wellington, FL 01:33:30
7 Celia Vaughn Charlottesville, VA 01:34:02
8 Blair Bartosiewicz Palm Beach, FL 01:36:37
9 Nicole Hastaba Palm Beach Gardens, FL 01:38:24
10 Shannon Fox Jupiter, FL 01:38:28
11 Elizabeth Hayne West Palm Beach, FL 01:38:51
12 Natalie Glowacka West Palm Beach, FL 01:39:59
13 Carlyn Russell Palm Beach Gardens 01:40:04
14 Maria Paituvi Jupiter, FL 01:40:27
15 Viktoriia Kolodiazhna Kyiv, Ukraine 01:40:35
16 Katie Mitala Jupiter, FL 01:41:31
17 Jaime Farone Palm Beach Gardens, FL 01:41:47
18 Luisa Hartmann Miami Beach, FL 01:41:48
19 Danielle Mannausa Port St Lucie, FL 01:42:17
20 Mary Clare Peate Alexandria, VA 01:42:21
21 Danielle Hayduk Boynton Beach, FL 01:42:50
22 Florencia Mateos Miami, FL 01:43:05
23 Kristin Parker North Palm Beach, FL 01:43:16
24 Sarah Marie Henry Port St Lucie, FL 01:43:35
25 Rosmary Rodriguez Miramar, FL 01:44:04
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