Event picks up the pace with record number of runners

Marathon runners round the Chi Omega fountain on the Kansas University campus in the Lynn Electric Kansas Marathon on Sunday. More than 1,500 runners competed in various races that ran through southwest Lawrence and the KU campus.

Complete Kansas Marathon results

Check out the complete results from Sunday’s Lynn Electric Kansas Marathon.

The couple that runs together stays together.

Well, it’s working for Kit and Sarah Harris of Baldwin City.

Kit finished the half marathon Sunday morning and went back for his wife, who was taking on her second full marathon.

“He did come back and ran the last couple miles with me,” Sarah said. “That was nice of him.”

The Lynn Electric Kansas Marathon hosted more runners than ever this year with its 5K, half marathon and full marathon races. More than 1,600 people took part in the events.

And 100 kids finished the 26.2 miles they’ve been working on since November as part of the One Mile At A Time Marathon Club. After having run 25 miles, one at a time over the last six months, students in grades kindergarten through six completed their last 1.2 miles Sunday morning.

“It was inspirational for everyone to see,” said Chris Wiltfong, perishables manager at Hy-Vee, one of the run’s sponsors. “Those last 100 yards, they’re going for it. It was cool.”

A map of the Kansas Marathon half marathon route.

A map of the full marathon route used in the 2010 Lynn Electric Kansas Marathon.

Athletes who felt run down after the race could take advantage of a free session with someone who could get them back on their feet.

“Cramps and inflammation come with it,” said Joseph Hugunin of Sport and Spine Chiropractic. “They just hit a terrible wall. What we do is actually go and try and find where the cramps are.”

Hugunin and a few others put over 100 runners’ bodies back into working order for free after the race.

Despite the pain, some runners thrive on the grueling intensity of a marathon.

“(We’re) considering running the San Francisco Marathon the day before our anniversary this summer in July,” Kit Harris said. “Together.”

The races benefit the Health Care Access Clinic, which serves uninsured and low-income patients in Douglas County.