Above: Sheriff Mark Falk and his wife, Sue, relax at the end of the Moose Mountain Marathon, a 26.2-mile run on the Superior Hiking Trail (SHT) ,part of the fall Superior Trail Race event. The 26.2-mile race started at 8:00 a.m. on the SHT trailhead off of Cramer Road in Schroeder and finished at Caribou Highlands in Lutsen. Left: Cook County ham radio operators—members of the Boundary Waters Amateur Radio Club—kept track of close to 300 runners for the over 36 hours of the race. Volunteer Dave Palmer W0PRW of Grand Marais at the radio.
The conditions were hot and muggy. The trails were rutted, rocky and hilly. With some smoke from the Ely fire hanging low in the air, the three Superior Trail Races held last Saturday and Sunday on the Superior Hiking Trail were about perfect for people comforted by the thrill of pushing themselves to exhaustion—and in at least one case, beyond. Cook County Ambulance was called to administer fluids to one severely dehydrated runner and another with an injured knee.
No local runner competed in the Superior 100-mile trail run and only local, Scott Bergstrom, attempted the 50-mile race. Bergstrom was forced to withdraw after completing 31 miles because of severe cramping. Those two races, along with the Moose Mountain Marathon, were held on September 9 – 10.
John Horns, 49, of Edina, placed first in the 100-mile race with a time of 24 hours 13 minutes and 53 seconds. His pace for the 100-mile run was 14:33. Sheryl Wheeler, 48, of Rhinebeck, New York placed first for the women in 27 hours 19 minutes and 17 seconds.
The 100-mile race began at Gooseberry Falls and finished near Caribou Highlands Lodge in Lutsen.
Steve English, 44, of St. Paul won the men’s division of the 50-mile trail race in 9:52:50. Christi Nowak, 23, of Duluth placed second overall with a fine time of 10:03:54.
Dusty Olson, 38, Duluth, won the Moose Mountain Marathon in 3:42:05, averaging 8:29 per mile on the rugged course. While a fine runner in his own right, Olson has gained some national acclaim for pacing Proctor native Scott Jurich (now living in Colorado) on some of his record-setting ultra marathons over the last half dozen years.
Jonathan Rova, 38, of Grand Marais was the top area finisher with a time of 4:59:20, averaging 11:26 per mile. Rova placed 11th overall.
Derek Smith of Grand Marais, 24, placed 26th with a time of 5:34:25, averaging 12:46 per mile.
Debra Bennett of Grand Marais, 52, was 31st overall with a time of 5:36:58, an average of 12:52 per mile. Mark Falk of Grand Marais, 45, placed 38th with a time of 5:45:23, a 13:08 mile pace. Brian Bennett, 56 (the husband of Deb Bennett), placed 110th with a time of 7:24:36, averaging 16:59 per mile. Not bad for having almost no cartilage in his knees.
Cook County ham radio operators—members of the Boundary Waters Amateur Radio Club—kept track of close to 300 runners for the over 36 hours of the race.
For complete race results, visit fall.superiortrailrace.com/
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