What a gorgeous day to run a marathon! Rain was forecast but it never came. This marathon climbs Ester Dome in Fairbanks, Alaska. It's a very tough race up the mountain, across the top, down partway on the other side, back up to the top then down to the start/finish line again. It has interesting features, like "The Tunnel", which is a tunnel of trees, "The Chute", which is straight down the power line, and "The Zipper", which is a zigzag bunch of switchbacks up the steep trail. The fall colors on the entire route were absolutely amazing. I was a little slower than last year. I think I intentionally took my time because the race has a 10 hour time limit, plus last year I had a bad fall. The trail can be very narrow in places, with big loose rocks and tree roots. I really didn't want to have another fall and damage myself like last year. I was slow but arrived in one piece at the finish line! I also stopped often to take photos. It was pretty windy near the top but never uncomfortably cold. Thank goodness for no rain. I did wear my raincoat just in case though. This was marathon number 163 for me. Last year I was first in my division, but this year a 75 year old woman beat me by quite a bit, pushing me to second place. She was really fast! Not much chance of me ever catching her if she continues to run this race. I'm a slowpoke, but I really enjoyed this gorgeous race. It's always one of my favorites. I'm sure I'll be back next year for more.
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