Thousands of people from all across North America hit the pavement this weekend for the 2012 Canadian Derby Edmonton Marathon.
Athletes of all ages took part in race events over the weekend - including a full marathon, a half-marathon, a 10K run/walk, 5k run/walk, and a kids run/walk.
Sunday's marathon runners said the hot weather made it that much more important to stay hydrated.
“I carry a bottle and I start early and often with my fluids,” said Kim Mueller, who was the first female to finish the marathon.
“Every station I stopped and towards the end I was actually walking through the stations to make sure I was getting the fluid in.”
Mueller travelled to compete in the marathon from San Diego.
The runner said it was her first time in Edmonton and she plans on coming back.
“It’s a beautiful course,” Mueller sad.
“I’m from San Diego and I’ve never been up here so I wanted to get a full tour of Edmonton and the river valley was totally gorgeous.”
First place winner Ryan Day from Cache Creek, B.C., said the heat made for a hard day.
“The second half is always tough in this course because the sun is a little more open than the first half and obviously hotter later in the day,” Day said.
“It’s pretty fast because it’s flat but it gets really hot and that makes a big difference in the second half.”
Day participated in last year’s marathon and said he had such a good time he wanted to come out again this time around and he’s happy he placed first.
“I haven’t won too many. I get a lot of seconds and a lot of thirds,” he said.
Organizers said more than 3,000 participants signed up to take part in the two-day event.
This is the 20th year for the Canadian Derby Edmonton Marathon.
