Ahead of Saturday’s race, the GOAL Foundation — which has produced the marathon since 2006 — is honoring Scothern as this year’s inductee into the Ogden Marathon Hall of Fame.

“I was shocked,” Scothern told the Standard-Examiner about learning of his induction. “That’s not something I ever thought would happen; it just wasn’t even really in my mind. So, when they called me and let me know that I’d been nominated and chosen this year, I was incredibly honored.”

Scothern has been involved with the GOAL Foundation since 2004, serving in a variety of roles within the organization and for the marathon. He served on the GOAL Foundation Board of Directors, including as board chair, and helped develop numerous events, such as Mountain to Metro, Hurt in the Dirt, XTERRA and his personal favorite, El Doce, a 12-hour mountain bike race previously held at Powder Mountain Resort that he hopes to see return.

“It was friends who had gotten involved (with the foundation) and, I guess, for better or worse, I thought that I might enjoy doing that, too, and be somebody who would show up and work, because that’s what it took in those early days — just showing up and being willing to work your butt off,” Scothern said.

One of those friends was former Ogden Mayor Mike Caldwell, once a start line coordinator with the marathon who relinquished the role when he was elected. Eventually, it was Scothern who picked up the proverbial baton and entrenched himself as a race-day staple. Helping to organize and run the marathon wasn’t easy, though, particularly in the aforementioned early days.

Scothern recalls that during the second or third year that the foundation had been running the event, the fledgling organization’s board members — none of whom were full-time staffers — discovered on the night before the race that the water stations hadn’t been set up.

“We had a bunch of volunteers lined up to come help do that job, but they just no-showed for whatever reason,” Scothern said. “So, about six or eight of us just split up and were like, ‘OK, we’ve got to go drop water on the course,’ and we were able to get it done. I dropped the water at the start line at about two o’clock in the morning, and had to be back there at 4:30 to meet volunteers.”

Unfortunately, the work didn’t end there, as every portable toilet on the course had been tipped over in the meantime; some even ended up in the canal near Eden Park.

“Somebody had gone through and tipped over every single one,” Scothern said. “Fortunately, they stood up really quick, and they were all fresh. So, they only had just a tiny bit of chemical in the bottom of them that didn’t spill out. We were able to send guys down the course and get it all buttoned up, and runners never had a clue.”

As the foundation grew, it refined its processes, making the marathon production feel less monumental. The event has grown in scope along the way, too, drawing as many as 10,000 participants and becoming a driver for economic impact to the Ogden area. Meanwhile, Scothern and his wife, Jenny, made Ogden their home.

“I grew up in Davis County and got involved with GOAL but still lived in Davis County,” Scothern said. “After a few years of that, I told my wife, ‘Geez, it feels like we live in Ogden, but we sleep in Layton. We need to move to Ogden.’ So, we moved to Ogden in 2010 and have been there ever since.”

In the end, though, Scothern didn’t get involved with GOAL and the Ogden Marathon to find a new home or to be praised for his efforts; it was all about giving back to the community — even as he built his career in construction, development and commercial real estate — and promoting a healthy lifestyle, in keeping with the foundation’s “Get out and live” credo.

“None of us were doing this for any kind of recognition, or to build a resume, or anything like that,” Scothern said. “It was just truly just love of the community, and wanting to do something good for the community and the people in it. When you’re recognized for that, it feels a little weird sometimes. You know, that was never a motivation or even a thought that crossed my mind. But it is a tremendous honor, and I’m really, really excited about it.”