37 compete in annual Kachemak Bay Mountain Classic

Twenty-seven runners and 10 hikers completed this year’s annual Kachemak Bay Mountain Classic race Saturday. The annual event raises money for Friends of Kachemak Bay State Parks and awareness of “trails lost to overgrowth.”

The 9.2-mile race was the fifth year the Friends hosted it at Grace Ridge Trail, with an elevation gain of 3,200 feet and a trailhead only accessible by boat.

A press release from the event states that the goal of the race series is to feature different Kachemak Bay State Parks trails every three to four years, as “they are reclaimed from the constantly growing wilderness.”

The Friends wrote that many trails in the park have been lost to brush over the years, due to a lack of funding through the state for trail maintenance.

The first race was held in 2018 on Grace Ridge. In 2022 and 2023, the race was held at Sadie Knob, before returning to Grace Ridge in 2024.

“The trail is in better condition than ever before thanks to the hard work of many volunteers this summer hauling power tools up steep slopes to cut back the ever-encroaching new growth, and the transportation of local water taxis, lodges, and volunteer captains,” the Friends wrote in an Aug. 4 press release. “Friends would like to have their sight on the next trail. There are 84 miles of trails in KBSP that were created with Exxon oil spill money years ago, but only about 25 miles of those trails are currently accessible. The goal is to get more miles of existing trails open and to stay open.”

This year’s race winners were Shelby Dykstra from Kasilof — setting a new women’s course record at 1 hour, 59 minutes and 26 seconds — and Jacob Davis from Homer, who took first place for the men at 1:43:43.

2025 Kachemak Bay

Mountain Classic

9.2 miles

Women’s overall

1. Shelby Dykstra, 1:59:26.4; 2. Britni Siekaniec, 2:10:31.5; 3. Rachel Whitmore, 2:12:45.1; 4. KC Kent, 2:13:45.1; 5. Kyla Dammann, 2:20:07.9; 6. Claire Benton, 2:30:28; 7. Katie Miller, 2:46:04.7; 8. Lorna Martinez, 2:47:11.9; 9. Jessica Austin, 2:48:18.3; 10. Abigail Clapp, 2:53:56.6; 11. Danielle Laufer, 2:56:53.2; 12. Yvonne Leutwyler, 2:57:38.7; 13. Mikayla Avila, 2:59:45.4; 14. Lindsey Baird, 3:08:16.

Men’s overall

1. Jacob Davis, 1:43:43; 2. Denver Waclawski, 1:45:14.1; 3. Ben Miller, 1:53:12.8; 4. Alec Mclaughlin, 1:54:28.6; 5. Matthew Byrd, 1:58:31.8; 6. Jake Koffman, 2:05:04.7; 7. Jesse Hunter, 2:11:34.0; 8. Davey Baird, 2:18:58.1; 9. Charlie Abel, 2:25:01.9; 10. Zach Pettit, 2:26:15.6; 11. Maxwell Smith, 2:33:55.3; 12. Casey Siekaniec, 2:51:04.7; 13. Jon Erickson, 3:12:55.2.