Erica Weitz travels to Napa Valley for victory
From napavalleymarathon.org
On a cool morning punctuated by sun, intermittent rain, and brief hail, Erica Weitz, 28, a physical education teacher at Wekiva High School in Apopka, claimed the Napa Valley Marathon women’s title last weekend.
In the women’s race, eventual winner Weitz and 50-year-old Corina Canitz (Brookfield, Wis.) shared the lead until 16 miles where Weitz ventured to the front and gradually extended her lead to a 2:48:48 winning performance.
“It was probably the roughest race I’ve ever had at the end,” she said. “I felt pretty awesome the first 15 miles, and then I felt good from 15 to 20, and then it started to get kind of hard, like 21. I tried to take it one mile at a time. With two miles to go, I heard the second woman was 400 meters behind me.”
Corina Canitz of Brookfield, Wisconsin was the second overall women’s finisher and was 11th overall in a time of 2:49:28.
“I know I can do better by kicking a little earlier than some people,” said Weitz. “I was thinking about time at the beginning. I thought maybe I can get a (personal record). And then it was like, I just want to win. It’s really exciting. I love breaking the tape.”
All proceeds from the Napa Valley Marathon (a non-profit organization) are donated to local charities in the Napa Valley.
Full race results for the Kaiser Permanente Napa Valley Marathon will be available on the event’s website at www.napavalleymarathon.org.
