Mud, mud and more mud greeted entrants of the Eugene Curnow Trail Marathon held July 13, 2013 over a rugged woodland course running from Spirit Mountain Ski Area to Carlton, Minnesota.
Two local men, Scott Bergstrom and Mark Falk, tested their endurance and stamina on the course formerly known as the Half-Voyageur Trail Marathon.
“I finished in just under 6 hours, about 45 minutes slower than the last time I ran it,” said Bergstrom.
The first runner across the line was 27-year-old Jacob Wartman who won the race in 4 hours and 2 minutes.
For Falk, it was a tough day. The two Cook County residents ran together for about 17 miles but then, Bergstrom said, “Mark had to take care of himself. He had to walk a little bit. I started out slow and felt good the last 8 miles so I took off. Mark finished about 15 minutes behind me but he finished.
“It was a tough day out there. It was pretty treacherous with all of the mud and the course was changed. We had to run some on asphalt and that was the toughest part of the race for me. I’m not used to running on the road. It was about a mile and half but it was hard on my feet. It was great when we got back to the trails,” said Bergstrom.
Cook County High School graduate Harry Sloan, age 64, now a Superior, Wisconsin resident who at one time would have been a strong threat to win this race, also ran and finished in 7 hours and 37 minutes.
All in all 148 runners finished the very tough 26-mile, 385-yard marathon, and for Bergstrom and Falk and several other Cook County trail runners, they are pointing to several other ultra marathons held in late summer and the fall.
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