Dickerson outlasts competition at Tsalteshi Backyard Ultra

Anchorage’s Julianne Dickerson won the fourth Tsalteshi Backyard Ultra on Friday and Saturday in Soldotna with 58.3 miles in 14 hours.

In a backyard ultra, competitors start each hour and must complete a 4.167-mile loop, or what is known in the events as a “yard,” in an hour. The event goes until every runner, except the winner, has bowed out.

Once the winner does one more lap than everybody else, the race is over. That’s why the person finishing second is credited with the “assist.”

Soldotna’s Colleen McNaught got the assist with 13 yards, or 54.2 miles. Carolyn Cunha of Bozeman, Montana, also went 13 yards. McNaught got the assist because she started the 14th lap and Cunha did not.

The competitors had to run through dousing rain Saturday morning in the final hours of the event.

Dickerson, who was raised in Kenai, won the backyard ultra for the first time after going to 17 laps last year to take the assist with Anchorage’s Carrie Setian. Girdwood’s Zach Behney won his second title last year with an event record 18 yards after winning the initial event in 2022.

Setian won in 2023. She did five yards Friday, but that can be excused after Setian finished eighth among women in 3 days, 22 hours and 32 minutes in the Cocodona 250-miler in Arizona in early May.

The first three years of the Tsalteshi Backyard Ultra had seen 15 runners sign up to race each year. This year’s race had 31 starters.

Doug Hogue, organizer of the event, said word of mouth is growing about the event both in town and in the Alaska ultrarunning community.

The winner also gets entrance into the Banana Slug Backyard Ultra in Oregon.

“That’s a silver medal race, so win that and you’re in the national championships,” Hogue said.

Hogue said as people learn about the event, it’s not as fearsome as it sounds. Runners have a full hour to do the 4 miles, which leads to lots of breaks. Hogue said by the fifth lap Friday, one runner had continued on after having a burger without a bun, while another competitor had a beer.

Crew get to sit around the fire and consume great food and drink.

“For a lot of these ultra races, it’s a grueling thing for the crew because they’re traveling along for 250 miles,” Hogue said. “This one, you can still go long, but it’s more relaxed.

“We can take a nap or get some food.”

Hogue said he plans to keep doing the ultra, viewing it as a good summer kickoff event.

The only problem is this time of year, moose are very protective of their calves. That’s why the event was moved from Tsalteshi Trails after the first year.

That also led to a course change the week before the event this year. The race starts in the parking lot of the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex, but the route through Centennial Campground had to be changed due to moose activity.

“We were still able to get some of that scenic section,” Hogue said. “A lot of people have told me they appreciate seeing the Kenai River and going through the woods a little bit.”

Tsalteshi Backyard Ultra

Friday, Saturday in Soldotna

Julianne Dickerson, 14 loops; Carolyn Cunha, Colleen McNaught, 13 loops; Jed McGlasson, Andrew Vigorito, 12 loops; Trevor Davis, Grace Kirkey, Danny Mangione, 10 loops; Kevin Bailey, Bradley Bible, Tony Covarrubias, Rustin Hitchcock, Hollis Swan, 8 loops; Austin Bradford, Kristin Davis, Adam Hadley, Emily Knight, 7 loops; Mike Bergholtz, Cyndi Kramer, Carrie Setian, Sophia Hadassah, Kyle Wagner, 5 loops; Carl Kincaid, Jeff Perschbacher, C.O. Rudstrom, Kathy Trinh, 4 loops; Jayme Jackson, 3 loops; Joseph Dickerson, Becca Satathite, Trent Turner, Sophia Vigorito, Jayme Jackson, 2 loops.