Runners get colorful in Malta

Malta Trails hosted its first Color Run, named the Malta Trails Color Fun Run last Saturday and with it over 150 participants got smacked, showered, squirted and crop dusted with red, blue, orange and green cornstarch as they took on runs of five miles, three miles and one mile.

"Malta Trails is raising money for Malta Parks and Recreation so that we can get equipment and get things started with our city lease," Natalie Judd of Malta Trails told the PCN. "We have runners and walkers."

The group used to host an annual Coffee Run but to involve the whole family, the organization switched it up.

"We thought it would be more fun," Judd said. "It brings a lot of interest, especially with the kids. They love it so we figured we would give it a shot and see how we do."

The event wasn't timed, but the first runner to cross the line was Nathan Crossland, a Cascade native, who has been living in Malta since 2013.

He was involved in wrestling and did pole vault in track in his high school years. He also ran.

"I kind of got out of it and then got back into it a little while ago," Crossland said. "I've been trying to keep it up. It feels good to me. I like running."

Crossland doesn't typically run competitively.

"I just like doing fun runs like this," he said noting that he used to participate in the Ice Breaker in Great Falls.

"This is actually the first competitive run that I've done in five years," Crossland said.

He timed his mile run at around six minutes not too long ago.

Crossland enjoyed the event.

"I thought it was really well organized," he said. "It was so much fun, people spraying you with (corn starch). I got a face full once and I was spitting out blue forever and I couldn't breathe that well."

He shared his thoughts about approaching the first station.

"I'm like ok, finally at the half mile mark," Crossland said. "Then they sprayed me and I saw how great it was and how much fun this really was. I'm just looking forward to next year if they do it again."

Fallon Handley took second in the race.

"It was a lot of fun," Handley said. "It was a little warm towards the end but the color stations definitely made it really interesting."

Handley, a former standout M-ette in track and field and current middle school coach typically competes in these types of events, though typically out of town.

"It's nice that we've had some local ones, so there's a lot less traveling," Handley said. "It's a fun thing to do on a Saturday afternoon."

Handley did not keep time at the event, though she wishes she did.

"I haven't done a 5k since high school," she said.

If she put a number on her typical time, it would likely be eight minutes per mile.

Even after running her first event, Handley was already ready for another event.

"It's fun because this weekend they have the one mile for kids so I get to run that with my niece," Handley said. "I got to work on my three mile and now I get to run a fun one with her."

Her longest run was a 26.4 mile marathon, in which she had a time of three hours, forty-five minutes.

The next finisher was Parker Mortenson who is one of Handley's student athletes.

"It was also pretty fun because some of the runners running with me are in middle school track," Handley said. "They probably liked seeing their coach have to run for a change instead of just them."