The combination of breathtaking scenery and challenging elevation changes in the Steamboat Marathon makes it a marquee stop for any marathon runner in the country. 

The 43rd annual marathon took place Sunday morning, beginning in Hahn’s Peak Village and taking participants 26.219 miles from Routt County Road 129 to U.S. Highway 40 — finishing through a line of cheering fans down Lincoln Avenue. 

This year, it was Calvin Lehn and Ellyn Atkinson who cemented themselves as Steamboat Marathon winners in the men’s and women’s divisions, respectively, among 262 total entrants. 

Lehn, a 30-year-old Boulder resident, found it powerful to push through the mental challenges of the race. He crossed the finish line in 2 hours, 38.42 minutes, an average mile pace of 6:03.

Lehn was excited to take a soak in the Strawberry Hot Springs following the race. 

“I am very grateful to be out here with people I love and experience the strong community vibes here; it’s really powerful,” Lehn said. “Nothing but love, baby. I’m happy and it feels good to go to a dark place and make it out on the other side, and to work together with other runners out there is also fun. I just love running and that’s why I’m here.” 

Lehn worked with a pack of runners early in the race, but stuck with the marathon’s second-place finisher, Brian Lozer, the longest. 

“We had a group for the first 5k, and then the next six or seven miles (Calvin and I) were working together a lot,” Lozer said. “I probably pushed a little bit too hard there even though it was relatively chill. On the downhills, it is easy to go way too fast and too hard and that catches up to you real quick.” 

Lozer said his goal entering the race was to finish between 2:50 and 2:55, but he managed a time of 2:44.56. Like Lehn, Lozer also made the trip from Boulder, and said he takes every opportunity he can to visit Steamboat Springs. It was Atkinson’s idea for the pair to run the Steamboat Marathon in hopes of qualifying for the Boston Marathon in 2025. 

Atkinson, the female race winner, was not totally sure what to expect from the Steamboat Marathon. She currently resides in New York City and was somewhat concerned about running at a much higher elevation. She just wanted to stay injury-free and get a quick enough time to beat the Boston Marathon qualifier with plenty of wiggle room. She managed to do both, completing her marathon in 3:15.12 and beating the Boston qualifying threshold by nearly 15 minutes. 

“Today was about running my own race and not getting caught up in going out too fast,” Atkinson said. “In a marathon, as you could imagine, that could be pretty detrimental to you at the end. It wasn’t easy by any means; the last 10k is always so tough. I am really proud of how I stayed consistent through the whole thing and didn’t get too taken out by the hills and kept a steady pace.” 

Following the race, all three runners commented on how incredible the running community in Steamboat Springs is. They were awestruck that a town of just over 13,000 had so many participants and fans cheering each other on. 

Steamboat resident Caroline Bache, a runner in the half marathon, was a prime example of that. 

“My favorite part of the run was in the final stretch when all my friends were there to cheer me on,” Bache said. “When I finished, all my other friends who participated in the race were also there and we celebrated together. It’s a great community.”