     The 11th annual Platte Valley Companies Monument Marathon is Saturday in Scottsbluff and Gering with over 500 runners and 300 volunteers
.       The marathon, a major fundraiser for the Western Nebraska Community College Foundation, also includes a 13.1-mile half-marathon and a 5 kilometer race.
Foundation spokesman Jennifer Reisig says at least 32 states will be represented in tomorrow’s competitions along with runners from Kenya, Canada, Morocco, and The Netherlands.
Reisig credits the increase in foreign runners in part to title sponsor the Platte Valley Companies increasing its sponsorship, allowing a bigger prize purse and making the trip to the Nebraska Panhandle more attractive to elite runners.
This year’s top male and female marathon runners will win $1,500 plus an additional $500 if they set a new course record. Reising hopes to see the number of runners at all levels continue to grow.
The Monument Marathon route is considered one of the most scenic in the region, taking runners through the 3,000-acre Scotts Bluff National Monument and over gorgeous, rocky landscape that is home to historic stretches of both the Oregon Trail and the Mormon Trail.