Annual run to Buffalo Thunder expands beyond New Mexico
In eight years, organizers say event now draws half of entries from out of state
Global Running Culture spent the first few years establishing the Santa Fe Thunder Half-Marathon with the community.
Now, the nonprofit organization is trying to brand its signature running event as a global event.
Sunday’s eighth annual half-marathon is looking to hit a milestone — an even split between statewide participants and out-of-state runners. Joseph Karnes, the Global Running Culture’s race director, anticipates about 50 percent of the entries for the half-marathon will come from outside New Mexico.
As of Friday, Karnes said about 1,100 people are entered for either the 13.1-mile half-marathon, the Lightning 5-kilometer run and the 1-mile fitness walk. Registration for the event continues through Saturday online or at the Global Running & Art Festival from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday at Poeh Center. Cost is $65 for the half-marathon, $35 for the 5K run and $30 for the walk.
“We created this race as a destination event, and outside competition continues to increase,” Karnes said. “Three years ago, it was at 30 percent. Now, 50 percent [of the entries] are from out of state. We’re getting national and international attention. It’s been building and building for eight years now.”
As great as that part of the half-marathon’s growth has been, it’s rivaled by the number of top national and international runners opting to compete in the elite division.
Karnes said that 14 of the 18 runners in the top division are elite distance runners, primarily from Kenya and Ethiopia.
The list includes Nelson Oyugi, who is the course record holder with a time of 1 hour, 1 minute that also stands as the state’s best half-marathon time.
Oyugi is one of three former Santa Fe Thunder Marathon champions in the field, along with women’s runners Simegn Abnet Yeshanbel (the defending champion) and 2014 champion Caroline Rotich (the 2015 Boston Marathon champion).
Karnes said getting as many top runners is impressive considering how many competitive marathons are out there.
“This might be the strongest halfmarathon field in the state of New Mexico,” Karnes said. “We are really gratified by that. The way the distance running world works, word of mouth
travels a lot. And having a fast course helps a lot.”
Social media has also had an impact on promoting the event to runners around the world. Karnes said the organization is constantly using its Facebook page, Twitter, and other social media apps to keep people aware of the event.
“It’s turned into a year-round event for us,” Karnes said of the Santa Fe Thunder Marathon. “We keeping in constant communication with coaches and managers. There are a lot of races out there, and some of them have 10 [thousand] to 20 thousand runners.”