Nikiski cross-country coach Anna Widman picked up a runner-up finish at the grueling Resurrection Pass 50-mile race Saturday, breaking the old course record along the way.
Alaska Pacific University coach and two-time Mount Marathon women’s champion Holly Brooks claimed the win in her race debut with a new record time of 7 hours, 46 minutes, 40 seconds, while Widman finished almost 10 minutes behind in 7:56:14. The original course record was held by Julie Udchachon, who ran 7:59:44 in 2004.
Anchorage’s Matias Saari won the men’s 50-miler in 6:21:49, and Seward runner Erik Johnson finished second in 7:36:41.
Laron Thomas took the men’s 100-miler with a time of 19:25:23, and Seward’s Joseph Nyholm was second in 20:31:06. Laura McDonough won the women’s 100-mile race, running a time of 23:27:43 to top runner-up Heather Dean, who ran 26:46:51.
The 50-mile event, which began 6 a.m. Saturday, begins in Cooper Landing and ends in Hope, while the 100-miler, which began 3 p.m. Friday, goes round trip from Hope to Cooper Landing and back.
The trail roughly follows the route used by early gold miners along Turnagain Arm. Brooks, who was visiting the Kenai Peninsula starting with her appearance at Wednesday’s Salmon Run Series 5K at the Tsalteshi Trails, was not deterred as a race rookie.
Saari also debuted with a dazzling time, running a time second only to the 6:10 mark that Geoff Roes posted in 2007.
