Whitefish Marathon sees new course records, smiling faces

JULIE ENGLER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 2 months, 2 weeks AGO

Particiipants enjoyed ideal weather for running at the Whitefish Marathon races on Saturday, May 16. (Julie Engler/Whitefish PIlot)

Kevin Kaltschmidt of Whitefish celebrates as he crosses the finish line on Saturday. (Julie Engler/Whitefish Pilot)

Runner Mandalynn Scheffler of Granite Falls, Washington, gets a big hug after the Whitefish Marathon. (Julie Engler/Whitefish Pilot)

A couple of happy runners in the Whitefish Marathon on Saturday. (Julie Engler/Whitefish Pilot)

Emily Fortin of Boston, Massachusetts, and Julia Fortin of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, enjoy running down Dillon Road during the Whitefish Marathon on Saturday. (Julie Engler/Whitefish Pilot)

Nicole Smith and Natasha Bartson from Calgary and Amanda Watt from Whitefish were all smiles at the finish of the Whitefish Marathon on Saturday. (Julie Engler/Whitefish Pilot)

Liberty Schwartz of Hamilton, Montana, celebrates as she finishes the marathon on Saturday. (Julie Engler/Whitefish Pilot)

Dave Bauer and his grandson, Jim, cheer for the runners on Monegan Road during the Whitefish Marathon on Saturday. (Julie Engler/Whitefish Pilot)

Amy Barbree from Alpharetta, Georgia, crosses the finish line of the half marathon on Saturday. (Julie Engler/Whitefish Pilot)

Dustyn Baethke of Kalispell gets a hug after the Whitefish Marathon on Saturday. (Julie Engler/Whitefish Pilot)

Suzette Dalimata of West Glacier finishes the half marathon alongside a friend. (Julie Engler/Whitefish Pilot)

Happy finishers at the end of the Whitefish Marathon races on Saturday, May 16. (Julie Engler/Whitefish PIlot)

Jordan Pratt of Boise, Idaho, gets a celebratory hug after he completed the Whitefish Marathon on Saturday. (Julie Engler/Whitefish Pilot)

Matt and Erin Weger from Whitefish competed in the half marathon on Saturday. (Julie Engler/Whitefish Pilot)

Jann Kinnard encouraged and directed racers at the corner of Dillon Road and Monegan Road during the marathon on Saturday. (Julie Engler/Whitefish Pilot)

Runners travel along Dillon Road during the Whitefish Marathon on Saturday. (Julie Engler/Whitefish Pilot)

Tanner Landolt from Nashville, Tennessee, seems to fly across the finish of the Whitefish Marathon. (Julie Engler/Whitefish Pilot)

Over 1,600 runners took part in the 2026 Whitefish Marathon, a road race that includes a 5K and a half marathon.

Philip Henry from Gillette, Wyoming, won the marathon with a time of 2:47:14. Paul Paschal and Andy Pritchard from Whitefish rounded out the top three spots. Scarlet Kaplan from Whitefish was the fastest female finisher with a new course record time of 3:03:05. Taylaur Coccoli from Helena and Elizabeth Fleming from Columbia Falls finished in the top three.

In the half marathon, Maxwell Scott earned the top spot with a time of 1:08:01, a course record. Collin Buck from Kalispell finished second and Micah Drew of Whitefish finished third. Elizabeth Wasserman of Columbia Falls crushed the course with a time of 1:18:53, a new course record. Rounding out the top three women were Katie Holman of Missoula and Tiffany Christensen of Bozeman.

Whitefish’s Porter Shehan was the top male finisher in the 5K race with a time of 17:24, while two Canadians, Denver Jensen of Lethbridge, Alberta, and Edward Choi of Calgary, finished second and third. Women represented the Flathead Valley in the 5K, with Aryn Farrell of Kalispell winning the race, Amanda Belleville of Whitefish taking second and Elviera Nakonechny of Columbia Falls finishing third.