POCATELLO — Pocatello resident Morgan Allred had never run more than 18 miles at a time when she signed up for the Wipro San Francisco Marathon. So, she was understandably daunted by the largely-uphill course that covered 26.2 miles. 

“I was nervous I would not finish,” she said adding, that she knew people were going to ask her about the marathon since it was the first she had ever run. 

She kept that uncomfortable conversation in her mind for motivation as she ran the hilly course on July 29th, and that, combined with the months of training she put in before the event, the expenses she paid to get there, and the support of her friends and family was enough to see her through. 

The 20-year-old not only ran the entire course, but she did it within 4 hours, 55 minutes and 16 seconds; just shy of the 5-hour limit she gave herself. 

“I have a problem with walking and it’s hard to keep the same pace,” she said, adding that she had to force herself to go faster during the last part of the course even while she worried about overexerting herself to the point that she couldn’t finish. 

She said she wasted a lot of energy in the beginning trying to weave in between the other runners, but her adrenaline and the energy of those running around her kept her moving forward. And even though the course was difficult, she never hit that infamous wall. 

“Everyone talks about hitting the wall when they can’t run anymore. I never experienced that,” she said, adding that she thinks the months she spent running and cross training while preparing for the marathon really paid off. And the fact that San Francisco is closer to sea level might have helped. “People say it’s easier to run in San Francisco.”  

Still, Allred had never run that far before, and she said it was exhilarating to cross the finish line after going eight miles past her previous record. 

“(The best part) was crossing the finish line. I’ve never been so happy,” she said. “I felt so accomplished.”

Allred, who works as a bartender at the Texas Roadhouse in Pocatello, is now sharing her first-marathon story without shame, and she may even run another in the future she said — despite the difficulty. 

“After you cross the finish line you forget,” she said.