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SALT LAKE CITY -- Thousands of runners took on mile after mile of downtown pavement Saturday for the Salt Lake City Marathon.
The race kicked off at 7 a.m. and was over by 9:30 a.m. for at least one runner. Jonathan Ndambuki of Kenya finished in first place with a time of 2 hours, 25 minutes and 56 seconds.
Once he broke through the ribbon, he offered some advice for fellow runners.
"Just stay strong and finish strong," he said.
Some of the runners weren't just going for good times -- they were also going for style. People in costumes kept pace with runners in more traditional apparel.
Many runners set personal goals -- beating a previous time or even just finishing their first 26.2-mile race. For one father-son duo, it was completing a half marathon together.
"He's trained faithfully for the last three months, doing all his long runs," said the father.
At 15 years old, Aaron Papst was the youngest runner to tackle the marathon. We tried to keep up with him as he set out to beat his goal of finishing in under four hours.
"It's just my idea of fun I guess," he said.
Papst got his start when his school's cross country team was a couple of kids short. He says he was kind of forced into it.
"Turns out, I liked it," he said.
Last year, he announced to his mother that at 14, he was ready to run his first marathon.
"He told me he was going to and I was so skeptical," said Linda Papst. "I thought, yeah right. He'll get up for a few days and drop out."
It was tough, but he stuck with it - finishing in just over five hours. This year his goal was to shave an entire hour off that time.
With the help of his Five for Five Fingers shoes -- they're like gloves for your feet -- Papst met that goal.
"I feel so good," he said. "I feel so good right now."
Linda Papst says she's in awe of her son's self-motivation and dedication. She wasn't alone.
Friends and family members packed the finish line at the Gateway -- shouting encouragement to all the passing runners.
Along with the marathon and half marathon, people could participate in a 5K, a bike tour and a kids' 1K.
Email: sdallof@ksl.com
