An especially muddy trail for 33rd Tofte Trek

And they’re off! The runners take off for the 33rd Tofte Trek 10K Wilderness Run. Jockeying for position at the front are three top finishers—3rd place finisher Wayne Kerr of Duluth in front on the far left. Front and center in the middle, in bib 212 is Guthrie Cunningham of Finland, MN who finished 2nd. And first place finisher Matt Volz of Minneapolis is on the far right, bib 338. Volz vanquished the Tofte Trek in 0:38:24.4, a remarkable pace of 06:10 on the muddy trail.

It didn’t rain during the 33rd annual Tofte Trek 10 Wilderness Walk/Run, but it had rained in the days leading up to the event, ensuring an especially muddy course for the over 200 participants in the traditional 4th of July event. Jan Horak, Tofte Trek founder, welcomed walkers and runners with a promise that the mud would be “hip deep!”

Matt Volz of Minneapolis won the men’s race with a time of 38:24, followed by Guthrie Cunningham of Finland, MN just 29 seconds behind. In third was Adam Swank from Duluth. The top Cook County finisher was Lucas Will of Grand Marais, fresh from his Grandma’s Marathon run a few weeks ago. Will finished the 10K trail run in 0.50:07.

Leslie Semler from Hermantown was the first women runner across the finish line with an excellent time of 47:25. Emily Soley-Johnson from Lake Geneva, WI took second and Jessica Rossing from Duluth was in third place. Lynn Wiitala of Tofte was the first Cook County finisher in at 0:58:56.

Leslie Semler of Hermantown was the first female runner to cross the finish line. She completed the Trek in 0:47:25.5 with a pace of 07:37.

Matt Morris from Beaver Bay, MN took first place in the men’s walk at 1:08:46, a few minutes ahead of local favorites Braidy Powers of Grand Marais at 1:10:32 and Craig Horak of Grand Marais in at 1:19:18. Ellen Anderson from Grand Marais took top honors in the 10K race walk with a time of 1:14:20.

As Jan Horak promised, the trail was exceptionally muddy this year. Perhaps not hip deep, but there was enough mud to satisfy the heartiest Tofte Trekkers!

The top 20 finishers in each category are on the left. See complete results at www.toftetrek.com.

Braidy Powers of Grand Marais once again completed the Tofte Trek as a speed walker. He finished 2nd in the July 4 race with a time of 1:10:32.2.

Annie Lynch, 8, of Grand Marais, was the winner of the kids’ one-mile race. She faced a challenge at the finish from the young man wearing bib No. 625. Annie kicked it in gear and held onto the win.

The first woman walker across the finish line—Ellen Anderson of Grand Marais—sprinted in the final stretch, coming in with a time of 1:14:20.6, a pace of 11.57 per mile.

Walkers