Team CBS4 Takes The Challenge Of Running A Half Marathon
AURORA, Colo. (CBS4) - The Rock 'n' Roll Denver Half Marathon is coming up in October, but now is the time to start training for it. Several CBS4 employees are taking the challenge, and for some of them this will be their first half marathon.
Karen Morfitt, Mark Haas, Kelly Werthmann, and Britt Moreno will be training and running the race. They've joined a running club, Runner's Edge of the Rockies, to get some expert advice and help stay motivated during training.
LINK: Runner's Edge of the Rockies
Before the sun came up on a hot Saturday morning, Morfitt and Haas showed up in Aurora to their first training run with Runner's Edge of the Rockies.
"I like running, but it's kind of a chore right now," Morfitt said.
"I've always found that if I don't have a race coming up I don't run very often," Haas explained.
RUN WITH CBS4: Track Team CBS4
Coaches David Manthey and Joel Hamilton set up fully supported, group training runs on Saturday mornings. They've also provided each of the CBS4 runners with a daily training plan that will prepare them for their half-marathon.
"As long as you have the time to carve out, and you set a goal and you stick with it, anyone can do it. Anyone," Manthey told CBS4.
Morfitt ran about five miles for her first training run, this will be her first half-marathon.
"I think… my goal would be, over all, long term, just to survive," she said with a laugh.
Haas is a more seasoned runner with a couple of marathons and several half-marathons already under his belt.
"I really just like wearing head bands on television," he joked about the sweat band he was wearing for the run.
While Morfitt and Haas are available to run on Saturday mornings, Kelly Werthmann will be on set at CBS4, anchoring the CBS4 Morning News.
She'll have to do a lot of her training on her own, and she'll rely on Runner's Edge of the Rockies mid-week speed sessions for support. This is also her first half-marathon.
"I really hope to learn more about running and achieve something for myself, but then also with my team," Werthmann told CBS4.
For Britt Moreno, this is not only her first half-marathon, but her first ever race.
"This is something I never thought I could do, but I always wanted to do," she said.
Moreno got a little one-on-one time with coaches Manthey and Hamilton, and looks forward to the support and expertise they can provide. Each of the CBS4 runners are looking forward to the training process.
"I also think it's going to create some motivation," Moreno said.
"I think I want to learn how to better pace myself," Werthmann said.
"It would be fun to kind of improve my times and a new personal record," Haas said.
"I think it's going to be really fun just to see the progression over time," Morfitt said.
Libby Smith is a Special Projects Producer at CBS4. If you have a story you'd like to tell CBS4 about, call 303-863-TIPS (8477) or visit the News Tips section.
