Ex-UM Miler Wins Walt Disney World Marathon

Jan. 14, 2008

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. –

A special from the Miami Herald, as written by Susan Miller Degnan.

With about four minutes to go in the Walt Disney World Marathon on Sunday, former University of Miami miler Melanie Peters said she began calculating whether she could finish the 26.2-mile race in under the 2 hours, 47 minutes needed to qualify for the U.S. Olympic women’s marathon trials.

As fate would have it, Peters — known as Melanie Schultz when she raced for UM and graduated in May 2006 — missed the cutoff by 32 seconds.

She didn’t care. Her 2:47:32 victory in only her second marathon was so unexpected that savoring that achievement with her mother, sister and grandmother was enough on this overcast, humid day.

”I still think I’m a better miler,” said Peters, 24, studying for her master’s and doctoral degrees in marine science at the University of South Florida. “I just get the first one done and say, `All right, 25 more to go.’

“I told everyone, `If I was a betting woman, I’d put [my] money on Sonja. She’s going to run a killer race. That girl is talented.”

Sonja Friend-Uhl, a wife and mother who owns a personal training and pilates studio in Wellington, had a great day nonetheless, finishing second in 2:49:27. Friend-Uhl, 36, dedicated the race to her younger brother, Erik, who died in an automobile accident in November. She won the Marathon of the Palm Beaches last month in 2:59:22 in her 26.2-mile debut.

”It was a good memory the last time we [the family, including Erik] were here together, so this was a great experience for me today,” said Friend-Uhl, who has known Peters for years and helped her train at Miami. “I kept trying to chop away at her lead, but my legs were just tired. She was strong and wasn’t backing off and I couldn’t make up enough ground.”