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SALT LAKE CITY — After starting running as a hobby and a way to get in shape, three Utah sisters have now qualified to run in the 2015 Boston Marathon.
Murray resident Kylie Hunt Beckstead said she grew up playing soccer, and after high school, she began running as a new hobby. After her older sister, Heather Hunt Jones, ran the Top of Utah Marathon in 2007, Beckstead decided to recruit their oldest sister, Stacey Hunt Facer, so they could run a marathon as well.
Beckstead and Facer ran the Top of Utah Marathon in 2011 and Beckstead decided the three of them should set a goal to run the Boston Marathon together.
“I was just like, ‘Guys, I’ve always wanted to do Boston,’ Beckstead said. “And we’re not far away from the qualifying time.”
Beckstead ran the Ogden Marathon and then she and Jones ran the Utah Valley Marathon together on June 14, 2014. The qualifying time for the age group of both sisters was 3 hours 35 minutes, and they both finished in time and later received their approved applications to run the 119th Boston Marathon.
“We are not really that big of runners,” Beckstead said. “It kind of took us all by surprise that we all qualified.”
Facer said she had just had a baby so she wasn’t ready to train and run the Utah Valley Marathon when her sisters did. But when she found out that they had both qualified, she said she knew she needed to as well.
“I thought, ‘Oh my gosh, well now I’ve got to try,’ ” Facer said. “I didn’t know that I could actually qualify. I actually had to take 45 minutes off my original time in order to qualify. And I kept telling them, ‘I don't know if I can do this’ And they were like, ‘No, you can do this, you can do this.’ ”
Facer ran the Big Cottonwood Canyon Marathon on Sept. 14, 2014. The qualifying time for her age group was 3 hours 40 minutes, and she finished in 3 hours 28 minutes. She said her biggest motivation was being able to run the Boston Marathon with her two sisters.
“I was really excited,” she said. “I was excited and so honored that I’m able to run in this marathon. It’s such an honor to be able to do something so big.”
Although the sisters said they don’t really consider themselves “runners,” they all agree that they get their running ability from their mother.
“Running is kind of in our blood,” Jones said. “(Our mom) got us into it and then she kind of dropped away from it and now she’s a cyclist. She was a strong runner too. My goodness, she was amazing. … Even to this day, she can outride us on a bike. She can outski us.”
The sisters currently run between 30 to 50 miles each week to train for the upcoming Boston Marathon on April 20. Facer and Jones each have three children, and all the sisters said they are very grateful for their family’s support.
“We are very grateful for the support that we have had from our family, whether it has been riding bikes next to us, cheering us on at the finish, or even staying home and watching the kids,” Beckstead said. “Training for a marathon takes a lot of time and sacrifices, and we wouldn't be where we are today without the support of our family.”
Jones said the best part is being able to accomplish it all with her sisters.
“I’m really more excited that I’m going to be able to do it with my sisters,” she said. “Doing something like that with your sisters is more rewarding than anything. … I wouldn’t go to Boston without them.”
The 2015 Boston Marathon has been limited to 30,000 runners, according to its website.
