Lauren Hagans made her marathon debut at the 2023 Grandma's Marathon, and her first-ever race was certainly one to remember. Hagans beat out two-time defending champion Dakotah Lindwurm to win the women's crown, finishing her debut with a time of 2:25:55.

That time also qualified Hagans for the 2024 US Olympic Trials, which will be held February 3 in Orlando, Fla. Hagans lives and trains in Flagstaff, and she's excited for the opportunity to compete for one of three women's spots in the 2024 Paris Games.

Ally Colton is one of our 2024 Grambassadors, selected from a large group of applicants to share his passion and knowledge of our race weekend.

Colton was in Duluth for the first time for the 2023 Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon, setting a new PR in the process. She's running that race again in June 2024, hoping to again have a successful weekend in northern Minnesota.

One of Colton's passion alongside running is raising money for charity, as she's been an official charity runner in several big races like New York City and Boston. She's found that charity running can not only be your ticket into some of these big races, but it also deepens the connection you have during training and on race day.

On this episode, she shares some of her experiences in choosing the right charity and then advice on how to most effectively raise the money required by the organization/race.

To connect with and/or follow Colton in the buildup to our 2024 Grandma's Marathon weekend, please see below:

Ally Colton
   - Instagram @run.ally.run
   - TikTok @allylouise

Tony Loyd is one of our 2024 Grambassadors, selected from a large group of applicants to share his passion and knowledge of our race weekend.

Loyd began running late in life and, to himself, said he'd never do it again after running his first-ever marathon in 2001. Well, Tony lied to himself and as since on running and on marathoning -- he qualified for his first Boston Marathon in 2005 and has run several other big races, including the 2013 New York City Marathon.

He joins the podcast for a second time, this time to share some end-of-year lessons learned that he hopes will be relatable, and possibly even inspiring, to those prepping for the coming 2024 race weekend in June.

To connect with and/or follow Loyd in the buildup to our 2024 Grandma's Marathon weekend, please see below:

Tony Loyd
   - Instagram @anthonyloyd 
   - Twitter @TonyLoyd

Shawn Jarvis and Jamie Vesel are two of our 2024 Grambassadors, selected from a large group of applicants to share their passion and knowledge of our race weekend.

Both Jarvis and Vesel have previously participated in Grandma's Marathon weekend and several other events, and together they joined the podcast to share their experience and thoughts on the importance of proper nutrition and crosstraining habits in the buildup to race weekend.

To connect with and/or follow these two Grambassadors in the buildup to our 2024 Grandma's Marathon weekend, please see below:

Shawn Jarvis
   - Instagram @spjbear

Jamie Vesel
   - Instagram @jamies.journey.in.life

Essentia Health ATC Cristina Nistler joins the podcast for the first of several installments ahead of the 2024 Grandma's Marathon weekend designed to help keep runners focused on the finish line while avoiding any common injuries and/or medical issues.

As part of her role with Essentia Health, Nistler works part-time throughout the year in the Grandma's Marathon office. She's responsible not only for helping lead the organization of our medical personnel on race weekend, but also to educate and inform our runners ahead of their race in Duluth.

Nistler will be every runner's biggest cheerleader when it comes to race day, but she's also hoping this mini-podcast series, as well as several other initiatives, can help ensure that she won't have to meet many of our runners in the medical tent this June.

Carrie Alajoki and Rachel Barger are two of our 2024 Grambassadors, selected from a large group of applicants to share their passion and knowledge of our race weekend.

Both Alajoki and Barger have participated in a Grandma's Marathon weekend event 10+ times in their running careers, and together they joined the podcast to encourage the "non-traditional" or "back-of-the-pack" participants. 

Running, even marathoning, can be for everyone if it's something you want to do in your life. Alajoki and Barger share their experiences getting into running and now being multiple-time full marathon finishers.

To connect with and/or follow these two Grambassadors in the buildup to our 2024 Grandma's Marathon weekend, please see below:

Carrie Alajoki
   - Instagram @long_run_calybeal
   - Tik Tok @calybeal

Rachel Barger
   - Instagram @rae.barger94
   - Tik Tok @run.rae.run

Laura Bergen began working with Grandma's Marathon in 1999 and, over the past two plus decades, has held a variety of roles within the organization.

She is currently the Registration and Expo Director, meaning she's primarily responsible for overseeing the event's registration processes and organizing the Essentia Health Fitness Expo that's held on race weekend.

In 2021, Bergen was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. After having gone through surgery and several rounds of chemotherapy, that cancer is now in remission. However, she's now developed a form of bile duct cancer, of which her treatment is ongoing.

The medical concerns have changed Bergen's availability to the marathon but not her love of the organization and the community that helps make Grandma's Marathon a success each June.

Maggie Montoya had no idea, as she rounded the final turn to the finish line, that she was about to break one of the more storied records in Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon history.

Just as Duluth native Kara Goucher predicted earlier in the week, Montoya was about to break Goucher’s own event record that she had set during the USA Half Marathon Championships in 2012.

Montoya’s time of 1:09:26 was 20 seconds faster than Goucher, ending the hometown hero’s run at the top of the event’s all-time leaderboard. Making her debut in Duluth, Montoya navigated the racecourse brilliantly in route to breaking her own PR by 40 seconds with a time of 1:09:26.

Montoya kicks off Season 4 of our Gearing Up for Grandma's podcast to talk more about that record-breaking run and also what lies ahead in her running career.

Alison Mariella Désir has developed into one of the nation's leading voices when it comes to inclusivity and diversity, especially within the endurance sports industry.

10 years ago, she founded a group called Harlem Run that has grown into one of the nation's most well-known running clubs. More recently, she published a book titled Running While Black, widely seen as a searing expose of a supposedly egalitarian sport and a call to reimagine the entire running industry.

She will be a featured guest at this year's Grandma's Marathon with several opportunities for the public to meet and hear from her.

FRIDAY, JUNE 16
8:00 a.m. - Morning Shakeout Run - Duluth Running Company
12:00 p.m. - DEI Keynote Speech - Essentia Health Fitness Expo (DECC)
1:00 p.m. - DEI Roundtable - Essentia Health Fitness Expo (DECC)
2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. - Book Signing - Essentia Health Fitness Expo (DECC)

There are only two people to have completed every mile ever run on the Grandma's Marathon racecourse --- John Naslund and Jim Nowak. Together, they're known as "The Iron 2," and both will be back this year trying to complete their 47th trip from Two Harbors to Duluth.

Already, they've each accumulated more than 1,200 miles on the Grandma's Marathon racecourse, and each is a past recipient of the race's 1,000-Miler Award.