Christy Marvin
Christy Marvin is tougher than trigonometry and as reliable as sunrise.
Those qualities, along with surpassing talent, delivered her third Mount Marathon women’s title on a rainy, windswept Tuesday in Seward.
In the 95th running of the Super Bowl of Alaska mountain running, Marvin overcame a 40-second deficit atop the 3,022-foot citadel of suffering, chased down fellow Palmer resident Meg Inokuma and crossed the finish line downtown in 52 minutes, 52 seconds.
Inokuma finished runner-up 15 seconds back in 53:07 and Denali Strabel, who grew up in Seward and lives in Palmer, wrapped the Palmer podium sweep with her third-place finish in 54:21.
Give it up for masters-age racers – Marvin is 42, Inokuma is 43.
Marvin earned her first championship since 2016. She also won in 2013. In her 10 times racing Mount Marathon, Marvin has never finished lower than third – three wins, two runner-up finishes and five third-place finishes.
And she can always be counted on to finish between 51 minutes and 54 minutes – she’s done that in all 10 of her Mount Marathons.
Running down the final blocks to the finish, Marvin drew on her track and cross country background, working her arms hard to keep Inokuma at bay.
“I’ve done it 10 years now and conditions were worse today than I have ever done them before,’’ Marvin told livestream announcer Holly Brooks, a two-time champ. “It was definitely one of those days where you’re just like, ‘OK, God, all in your plan.’ I just really tried to throw my heart and soul into it.’’
Sophie Wright, Denali Strabel, Meg Inokuma, Klaire Rhoades join champion Christy Marvin for a post-race picture. Photo courtesy Mount Marathon Race
Marvin’s 15-second victory was among the closest races in Mount Marathon history. In 2014, Brooks held off Marvin by just two seconds, 52:49 to 52:51. And in 2021, Seward’s Hannah Lafleur topped Ruby Lindquist of Moose Pass by 14 seconds.
Marvin’s six-year gap between victories is the longest since Patti Foldager, Denali’s bad-ass mom, went eight years between her victories in 1985 and 1993.
Marvin greeted Inokuma in the finish chute, where they exchanged a double high-five and a hug. Marvin patted Inokuma on the back and then they shared a fist bump. They’re competitors, yes, but also comrades.
“That’s what I love about Mount Marathon and mountain-running culture,’’ Marvin said.
Denali Strabel raced in memory of her twin sister, Rubye, who died earlier this year. The crowds that lined the street downtown showered Strabel with support, as they typically do Seward athletes.
“The crowd made me feel like I was winning,’’ said Strabel, 33.
As has become the standard, Strabel unleashed a blistering downhill. Her time of 12:50 for the descent was the fastest in the field, 17 seconds quicker than Marvin’s downhill.
Patti Foldager, 65, and Anchorage’s Ellyn Brown, 70 – Strabel called them “my heroes” – both finished their 40th Mount Marathon.
Klaire Rhodes, 26, the former Anchorage resident who is a grad student in Reno, Nev., these days, and is an emerging trail- and mountain-running star, finished fourth in 54:52. Sophie Wright, 21, of Palmer took fifth in 57:49 to give Palmer runners four of the top five places.