On her way to a record-tying fifth Little Rock Marathon victory, Tia Stone took a moment to follow a motherly instinct.
Stone, 42, of Searcy, was first overall among women with a winning time of 3:01:41.4 in the Little Rock Marathon on Sunday. It was her fifth win in the last six runnings of the 26-mile, 385-yard race.
Stone's 15-year-old son Rocky Stone raced in the Little Rock Half Marathon and, by coincidence, ran beside his mother for nearly a mile in the first hour of their respective races.
"He had six or seven miles to go in his race," Tia Stone said. "I was like, I'm not going to tell him to push it. I wanted him to run his race."
Then she considered a matter of nutrition.
"I just told him to make sure to have a [energy] gel," Stone said as Rocky, her oldest of two sons stood beside her near the finish line. "[The mom] in me came out a little bit, but I tried to minimize it."
Christina Addison, 33, of Burlington, Kan., finished second among women in 3:05:54.0. Jenny Wilkes, 38, of Little Rock, was third in 3:15:43.3.
Joe Hoch, 39, of Stoughton, Wisc., was more than five minutes behind the leader and in fourth place through the first half of the race, but charged through the final miles to win in 2:49:18.6.
Nathan Kary, 38, of Plymouth, Minn., was second among men in 2:51:55.7. Shane Poland, 37, of Vilonia, finished third in 2:52:58.0.
Hoch said he did not believe a win was likely until late, but unexpected results were part of his Little Rock Marathon experience from the start.
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Hoch and two running mates from Wisconsin flew out of Chicago, but complications caused his flight to divert to Tulsa. With no convenient flights available from Tulsa to Little Rock, he and his friends decided to rent a car. There were, however, no cars ready for them. As a consequence, the three rented a U-Haul truck for the four-hour drive.
Stone was the Little Rock Marathon winner in 2016-18 and 2020. Her latest win tied her with Leah Thorvilson of Little Rock, whose five victories came from 2009-12 and in 2014. Mark Chepses won the men's race four consecutive times from 2011-14.
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Stone, an administrator at Harding University, took the early lead, on a course altered to include an extended stretch in North Little Rock near the start because of road construction on Interstate 30. She appeared comfortable and confident as she ran east through the half marathon, in 1:29:28, on Daisy Bates Boulevard, near Little Rock Central High School. Addison was second through the first half, which she passed in 1:30:35.
With her experience, Stone knew the Little Rock Marathon's second half has challenged racers most with two long ascents, notably a nearly mile-long climb on Kavanaugh Boulevard out of Stifft Station through Hillcrest, past Mount Saint Mary High School to an uncomfortably steep descent on Lookout Road. Still, when Stone turned to look back, she occasionally caught sight of a bright pink singlet.
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"I got through those hills, and then I saw the second female," Stone said. "I thought, she's pretty close, and I was struggling a little bit there. The hills really took it out of me."
It was too early to know, but from Addison's perspective, Stone looked out of reach.
"I could tell she was getting away from me, but I was thinking she might come back to me," Addison said. "You never know."
In the men's race, Hoch said he trailed by so much through the first half of the race that he began to relax.
"When I heard I was five minutes back, it actually made me run freer," Hoch said. "I was like, 'OK. I'm not catching them.' I didn't think I was going to catch them, so I said, 'OK. I can just run my own race.' ''
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From early in the race through approximately 21 miles, Craig Halverson, 41 of Omaha, Neb., led. He ran the half in 1:17:46, on pace for a 2:35 finish. His lead was over three minutes, but he faltered late to finish 14th overall in 3:11:42.9.
"At about Mile 21, I could see the leaders, and I knew I was in fourth or fifth," Hoch said. "Then I picked off a couple of runners, and I thought I had a chance."
Kary, who has completed a marathon in 21 states, passed Halverson to take the lead with about 5 miles left.
Kary said he was unaware of the hilly sections late in the race and that he should have conserved energy early.
"It was a lot hillier than I expected," Kary said. "Those hills around Miles 17 and 18 were real tough."
Poland passed Halverson after Kary and was followed by Hoch, who said he felt strong and was confident enough to recognize his chance to win.
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"At about Mile 20 or 21, I could tell I had a shot," he said.
Hoch maintained a steady pace and gradually gained on the two new leaders. He passed Kary and then Poland. Kary said he could tell Poland had started to struggle with a hamstring ailment.
"[Poland] pulled a hammy or something at Mile 24, or otherwise he would've beat me," Kary said. "He was a lot stronger than I was."
"I ran into some trouble," Poland said. "I did cramp up a little. I shouldn't have been going as fast as I did early on."
Hoch also considered Poland a possible winner until late.
"He just looks like a guy in really good shape," Hoch said. "I could see him for most of the race."
Hoch appeared strong through the finish. He said the race was his 25th career marathon, and that he had heard about the enormous medal that long earmarked the Little Rock Marathon.
"I always wanted to do it for the medal," Hoch said.
Stone extended her advantage through the second half of the race and pulled away to win by more than five minutes.
Rocky Stone -- who finished the half marathon in 1:30:52.9 -- waited past the finish line with his sisters Abbi and Anna Stone, 17 and 13, respectively, his brother Ashton Stone, 10, and his father John Stone, all frequent witnesses of Tia Stone's marathon success.
Moments after she finished, Stone beamed as she stood with her husband and children.
"I'm definitely pleased with how this all this turned out," she said. "I'm really glad they all came out to cheer for me."
Gallery: 2021 Little Rock Marathon
