Nelson, 37, a stay-at-home mom of five, traversed the 26.2-mile course in a women’s record time of 2:38:28 during the 25th running of the race with the finish line at historic 25th Street and Grant Avenue on Saturday.

She smashed the previous mark of 2:42:40, set by Sariah Long in 2017, by more than 4 minutes.

“I knew the course record was 2:42 and thought, maybe … tried to keep it conservative in the beginning, then the second half in the canyon push it as much as I could,” Nelson said.

This was Nelson’s second Ogden Marathon run, the other coming in 2023 when she ran a time around 2:51, so Saturday was a huge step up from there.

BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner

“I get up really early — 4:30 or 5 in the morning — to get my runs in before my kids wake up,” Nelson, an Alpine resident, said. “Working with a coach helps; then, consistency. I had a baby a year ago and wanted to prove to myself that I could do a marathon a year after her, and I accomplished it.”

In a coincidental play of numbers, where Nelson’s two marathons have been in 2023 and 2026, her bib number happened to be 2326.

First in the women’s class, Nelson finished seventh overall at a pace of 6:02 per mile.

Jennifer Smith, 48, ran second for the women at 2:52:21 (27th overall) and Leslie Smith, 44, was third at 2:53:57 (35th).

On the men’s side, Ben Berlin of Orem had a compelling numbers storyline involving family and friends, as he ran in his first-ever marathon on his 26th birthday.

BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner

“Once I found out it was on the 16th of May, I had to do it. It was one of those bucket list items and it just so happened that Ogden lined up well,” Berlin said. “It’s my birthday today, and also my older brother’s birthday. I have him, a younger brother, my dad and a couple of cousins running as well.”

Berlin ran a 2:25:35 race (5:33 per mile), besting Braden Perry, 33, by a mere 22 seconds (2:25:57). Tyler Lyon, 32, placed third at 2:27:01.

“In the canyon, it got close between me and a guy in a blue tank … got nervous and had to dig in a lot. He pushed me. The goal was 2:30, so I’m really happy to do that; pretty exciting for me,” Berlin, a Utah State economics major, said. “A collegiate friend who took second here last year gave me some good pointers of where to push it and be more aggressive.

“I did most of the work in the first half, then tried to close it out downhill in the second half,” Berlin said.

Berlin’s father is from Ogden and has deep roots in the Weber County community, he said.

“My fourth great-grandfather and third great-grandfather helped settle Huntsville. As I ran by there, I thought about them,” Berlin said. “My wife has been supportive since my family started training for this race last November.”

As if he needed any more inspiration, Berlin had yet another reason to bring home the gold.

“I have a good high school friend, whose wife gave birth to their second child 10 weeks early … crazy experience for him and his family,” Berlin said. “I kind of wanted to dedicate the race to him and his family.”

The women’s half marathon saw a repeat winner from last year in Sarah Warren, 30, of Centerville, with a time of 1:18:45 (6:00 per mile).

“I’m defending my title; my brother and I both actually won the men’s and women’s half marathon last year, which is kind of cool because we grew up in Utah and went to Ogden High,” Warren said. “I reached out to my old high school coach and she’s thrown me some workouts … that’s helpful too.”

Warren finished eighth overall, despite getting a slow start to her running season, and clocked a time that trailed a year ago.

“I wasn’t sure if I would (run this year); I didn’t know what kind of shape I’d be in,” Warren said. “I got a little bit later start on building up volume but I guess there was no one else here that was running as fast as last year.”

Saturday was beautiful, a mostly overcast morning with temperatures in the 60s at the finish line.

“It was less stressful to not worry about the weather. I tried to go out in a similar way to last year, by feel,” Warren said. “At the beginning, I kind of generally know what the threshold pace feels like; I try not to push too hard and coast down the hills. I led the women from the beginning, but there were some men back and forth that I had my eye on, so that helped.”

Jocelyn Todd, 33, was second in the women’s half marathon with a time of 1:21:17 (17th overall) and Jackie Hoffman, 33, placed third at 1:22:28 (21st).

With a name as long as the race itself, Kyle Neuenschwander, 24, of St. George, took home the men’s prize in the half marathon with a time of 1:09:18 (5:17 per mile) in his first try at Ogden.

“I’ve heard good things; I’ve heard it was gorgeous. I had a friend who did the marathon last time and said I had to come back for the (25th) anniversary. It was awesome; lived up to the hype,” Neuenschwander said. “My goal is somewhere around 1:05, so this is mid-to beginning of my build. I couldn’t have asked for a better time this early on.”

Neuenschwander gave a nice travel log as he described his race.

“I knew I needed to start smooth on the rolling hills in the beginning. The scenery kept me distracted, but then I had a guy to go with until mile 8 or 9. We ran a great race together, then on the trail, I surged ahead and tried to finish fast,” Neuenschwander said. “The lake at the start, then the trail in later miles, and a beautiful finish. So fun to have a big support group out there. Perfect temperature, no wind. It was awesome.”

After Ogden, Neuenschwander has bigger aspirations and goals.

“Trying to qualify for the Olympic trials in 2028. Want to get the volume up in practice and races. No better course to do it so far,” Neuenschwander said. “I’ve qualified for Boston; definitely a long ways to go, but on my way.”

Porter Reddish, 31, finished second at 1:10:12 and Colby Hamson, 26, was third, posting 1:12:31.

This year, the Ogden Marathon weekend activities included more than 7,000 runners in all the events, including a 5K, 8.2-mile race, and the full and half marathons under the umbrella of the GOAL (Get Out and Live) Foundation.

MEN’S FULL TOP 10

1. Benjamin Berlin, 26, 2:23:35

2. Braden Perry, 33, 2:25:57

3. Tyler Lyon, 32, 2:27:01

4. Jace Nye, 41, 2:29:43

5. Truett Hanes, 29, 2:33:16

6. Austin Spradling, 27, 2:35:30

7. John Mezger, 32, 2:39.21

8. Isaac Berlin, 23, 2:39:43

9. Jason Holt, 39, 2:39:48

10. Kody Gould, 32, 2:39:58

WOMEN’S FULL TOP 10

1. Paige Nelson, 37, 2:38:28

2. Jennifer Smith, 48, 2:52:21

3. Leslie Smith, 44, 2:53:57

4. Laurie Garner, 25, 2:56:58

5. Sharmila Ahmed, 32, 2:57:08

6. Caitlyn Reilley, 33, 3:00:12

7. Maria Guy, 30, 3:01:35

8. Maria Cammarota, 20, 3:03:40

9. Clara Diepenbrock, 20, 3:05:13

10. Katie Conrad, 40, 3:05:36

MEN’S HALF TOP 10

1. Kyle Neuenschwander, 24, 1:09:18

2. Porter Reddish, 31, 1:10:12

3. Colby Hamson, 26, 1:12:31

4. Pedro Lozano, 43, 1:13:11

5. Jake Lee, 27, 1:14:43

6. Blake Bennion, 29, 1:16:33

7. Joshua Nocolaides, 21, 1:18:45

8. Bevan Watson, 23, 1:18:46

9. Scott Murphy, 25, 1:18:48

10. Jedediah Rogers, 47, 1:18:55

WOMEN’S HALF TOP 10

1. Sarah Warren, 30, 1:18:45

2. Jocelyn Todd, 33, 1:21:17

3. Jackie Hoffman, 33, 1:22:28

4. Nicky Wayment, 19, 1:22:29

5. Sadie Cotton, 25, 1:26:18

6. Anna Shepherd, 32, 1:27:53

7. Sara Phillips, 29, 1:28:07

8. Laurel Henderson, 45, 1:28:40

9. Shelise Wiliams, 36, 1:29:06

10. Brenley Mason, 23, 1:29:41

MEN’S 8.2-MILE TOP 5

1. Kyle Brenchley, 26, 48:56

2. Ellison Ma, 34, 50:48

3. Eli Ropp, 17, 53:57

4. Mason Smith, 18, 55:06

5. Marcus Campbell, 38, 55:50

WOMEN’S 8.2-MILE TOP 5

1. Elise Mueller, 24, 51:28

2. Faith Sills, 18, 1:00:34

3. Emily Rohletter, 36, 1:02:33

4. Laura Justensen, 34, 1:03:25

5. Lonni Koger, 40, 1:04:48

MEN’S 5K TOP 5

1. David Mora, 34, 19:33

2. Matthew Murray, 22, 19:58

3. Abraham Vidinhar, 25, 21:41

4. Matthew Straube-Hickman, 16, 21:29

5. Kyden Sanders, 11, 22:13

WOMEN’S 5K TOP 5

1. Sallie Cooke, 26, 20:51

2. Mykaela Adams, 27, 22:09

3. Sheri Atkinson, 42, 24:03

4. Kate Sainsbury, 23, 26:00

5. Berkeley Hamaker, 22, 26:03

MARATHON RELAY TOP 3

1. Scrambled Legs and Achin, 3:03:57

2. Wayfinders, 3:36:59

3. Winnepocamoremguitch, 3:41:30

Bob Judson has covered sporting events for the Standard-Examiner for the past 51 years.