Bellingham runners win both the men's and women's marathon

For Charlie Sunderlage of Bellingham, his first marathon was a memorable one. Sunderlage, 29, placed first among 1,430 men Sunday in the 39th Seattle Marathon, completing the 26.2-mile course in 2 hours, 32 minutes, 27 seconds.

Sunderlage was among 10,751 recorded finishers in Sunday's four events — marathon run and walk plus half-marathon run and walk. Combined with Saturday's 5K run and kids' marathon, race officials estimated 16,200 people participated in two days of races, the largest total in Seattle Marathon history.

Two Bellingham residents, Sunderlage and 20-year-old Lauren Breihof, swept top honors in the marathon. Sunderlage hit the tape more than one minute ahead of second-place finisher Jesse Stevick, 27, of Olympia (2:33:33).

Completing the men's top five: Brandon Fellows, 22, of Mercer Island (2:35:19), Spencer Walsh, 26, of Shoreline (2:35:41) and Matias Saari, 39, of Fairbanks, Alaska (2:39:06).

Sunderlage said he and Saari ran together through about mile 15.

"Around mile 16, I gapped him pretty good," he said. "I was just hoping I'd be able to hold it together up the hills and I was able to."

Breihof, a sophomore at Western Washington, last week finished 31st overall at the Division II national cross-country meet in Evansville, Ind., recording an All-American time. She topped a field of 799 women with a time of 2:58:59.

Breihof's closest pursuers were Katrina Tucker, 28, of Vancouver, B.C. (3:01:23), Catrin Jones, 30, of Victoria, B.C. (3:03:28), Nell Stephenson, 35, of Pacific Palisades, Calif. (3:04:21) and Rebecca Gallaher, 35, of Silverdale (3:04:44).

Sunday was just Breihof's second marathon. She finished 12th in last year's Seattle Marathon at 3:18:26.

"It's the only time of the year I can sneak in a marathon between cross country and track," said Breihof, a 10K specialist at WWU. "I really enjoy this distance. For me, cross country, at three or four miles, is tough for me. I just don't have that short speed."

For Bob Dolphin of Renton, his 456th marathon was no less satisfying.

Dolphin, 80, placed 1,410th among male runners with a time of 6:18:51, yet he was happy to receive a plaque for placing first in his age category.

"The plaque is nice," said Dolphin who, according to a list maintained by the 100 Marathon Club of Japan, ranks No. 65 globally among living marathoners for most races run in a lifetime. "I'm just glad I'm able to finish before they close the course."

Dolphin said he enjoyed completing his 18th marathon of 2009. "I saw a lot of friends here today," said Dolphin, who said leg cramps caused him to walk most of the race's final six, hilly miles. "I like [the] challenge. We all have our sport, and running just happens to be mine."

Notes

• Kristi Houk, 25, of Port Orchard won her second straight women's half-marathon in 1:22:03. Tacoma native Alex Crabill won the men's half-marathon in 1:08:56.

• The men's sixth-place finisher, Ian Sharman of Bend, Ore. (2:42:53), crossed the finish line wearing a high-rise pompadour wig and lightweight white jumpsuit. His time allowed him to reclaim, he says, the Guinness world record for the fastest marathon by a runner dressed as Elvis.

"I won't do an impression, though," Sharman, 29, said with a laugh.

Sharman, a London native, had previously held the Elvis-marathoner record but lost it to another runner. Sharman needed to break 2:49 to reclaim the mark. "I'm really happy," said Sharman, who has previously run as Elvis in London and Rome. "The wig makes it a little more difficult; it catches the wind when it picks up," he said.