Mount Marathon: Alaska's Great Footrace

By Millie Spezialy

Beer, bets, and bravado were behind the beginning of America's third oldest footrace in 1909. Stories vary about the original bet, but the one common thread was that the challenge was to run up and down a 2,992-foot mountain in Seward, Alaska, in under one hour. The total race is only a little over three miles, but it is a daunting effort that takes runners up some 60-degree slopes of snow and rocks. The first racers did not beat the one hour mark, but the course record set in 1981 still stands at 43 minutes, 23 seconds. Mount Marathon offers a fun history of this frontier race from the legend that started it all to interviews with many of those who have taken the challenge since that first running one hundred years ago. Historic and contemporary photos illustrate the book. Book jacket.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0882407716
• ISBN13: 9780882407715
• Release Date: June 2009
• Publisher: Alaska Northwest Books
• Length: 113 Pages
• Weight: 0.33 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.5" x 0.5" x 5.3"