text: A woman who ended up getting lost while running a marathon in Raleigh, North Carolina and ended up having to hitch a ride with the cops to get back on course, still won her race some nine minutes ahead of her closest competitor. Heidi Bretscher's troubles began around mile 17 of the Rock N' Roll Raleigh Marathon that took place earlier this month. The 28-year-old runner was so far ahead of the pack it wasn't clear to her which way she was meant to go. Wrong way: Heidi Bretscher, 28, said she was on pace to beat her personal record when she, and the two cyclists who were accompanying her, missed an unmarked turn . Retracing her steps: At mile 19, Bretscher was leading the women's race by about 30 minutes. She found a police officer who gave her a ride back to mile 17 . Somehow, she ended up running entirely off the planned route and around a lake that wasn't even on the course. Despite her unscheduled detour, Ms. Bretscher's was brought back on track by a couple of helpful cops who drove her in their patrol cars back to the point in the race where things became muddled. After working out her timings and distances she still managed to cross the line well ahead of her closest rival. 'I'm a little frustrated,' she told ABC 11 following her victory. 'I ran three miles off course because I didn't know which way to run in the race.' 'Usually when you cross the finish line, you're really excited. I wasn't excited,' she said. 'I was just really nervous that I was going to get in trouble because I didn't stay on course.' No sign: The route changed from the 2014 race leaving several turns unmarked allowing runners to get lost . Off course: Before the mishap, Bretscher said she was on pace to run her best time ever . On form: Race officials said as soon as they learned of Bretscher's confusion, the course was fixed and crew members were alerted . The organizers had hoped that things would be different this time around after changing the course from last year to help ease the traffic and impact on local residents. Competitor Group Inc., the main company responsible for organizing the Rock N' Roll marathons, said that they worked with the city of Raleigh but hadn't realized the confusion it would cause. 'It's just an embarrassing situation on behalf of everyone involved with Rock N' Roll and something that we're working to fix for next year,' Competitor Group's Dan Cruz said. At mile 19, Bretscher was leading the women's race by about 30 minutes. She came unstuck when she arrived near at a split near Lake Johnson. Not knowing whether to turn left or right, she ended up choosing incorrectly. 'I saw Mile 18 while I was on the trail. However, I never saw Mile 19 and eventually it became clear that we were off track,' she said. Course officials didn't seem to have a clear idea over what she should do either. It wasn't until she approached a traffic cop when she was able to find a clear solution who helped get her back on track. But even then things didn't improve because the police officer dropped her back at mile 17 where her problem first began. A second police officer agreed to whisk her to mile 22, just four miles from the finish line. Winner! Despite her detour, Bretscher managed to be the first woman and third runner overall to finish the race with a time of 3:06:59, nearly 10 minutes ahead of the next woman to cross the finish line . Returning runner: Competitor Group Inc. said that Bretscher was the only runner affected by the course, and as a silver lining, they're offering her a second shot at one of their other marathons, free of charge . The whole incident left Ms. Bretscher feeling frustrated because she had been on pace to run her best time ever. 'One of the hardest things for me, actually, was when I was in the car with the second police officer. I heard the male runner winning the race, and I knew I should have been really close to the finish line at that point,' she said. 'So that was really discouraging for me, but I was still so determined to win.' After crossing the finish line her win came under scrutiny but it was calculated that even with the ride from cops, after analyzing her times, she still came in some nine minutes ahead of her closest rival. Bretscher managed to be the first woman and third runner overall to finish the race with a time of 3:06:59. Competitor Group Inc. say Bretscher was the only runner affected by the new course design and have agreed to allow her entry to another of the marathons they run, free of charge. Ms. Bretscher says despite the error which cause her a great deal of frustration at the time, she will likely be back at the race next year under the presumption that course officials will have learned from their mistakes and that everything will far more smoothly.
target: Heidi Bretscher, 28, was running the marathon in Raleigh, North Carolina .
  At a point where the course splits, she ran in the wrong direction .
  A couple of helpful traffic cops brought her back on course for her to win first place .