We all slept soundly beneath the cross of the Lutheran Church, despite the fireworks at midnight over the small boat harbor. We were excited to see what this race up Mt. Marathon was all about. The rough dirt trail up the mountain was evident and told to be steep and in places unforgiving. We remembered that in the 2012 race, an older runner was lost and never found! As we sipped our steaming morning coffee, race participants were evident on the street. It appeared as though some had slept in their cars. Seward became lively as the start time for the youth race approached.
Getting an understanding of the course.
The town of Seward took on a festive air with great smells everywhere. We took time to sample a few tasty treats and of course do some people watching.
Sorry to focus on Bill and Judy eating, as we all did our part. I particularly enjoyed my spicy reindeer sausage.
First of the young runners.
A budding star.
Despite the rain and cool temperatures, not unusual for this seaside town, the crowd and the runners brought joy on this July 4th. It certainly is a very special event. I tried to capture some of this in pictures. Surely a post of xtra tuff wearers will have to follow at a later time.
xtra tuffs
Trying to locate runners on the trail. We could see them start and finish, but in between was a challenge. Just a few colorful dots on the side of the mountain.
The course