Shalane Frost. Photo by Corrine Leistikow
A surprise snowstorm might stress out a runner who has been targeting the Equinox Marathon all season.
But not Shalane Frost, the nation’s top ultra-distance skier, who embraces snow even when wearing running shoes.
“I had the biggest shit-eating grin when it started snowing,” Frost said by phone on Sunday. “I was like ‘Hooray, it’s wintertime.’ ”
But rain, snow and mud can cause problems, be it slippery terrain that can induce falls or unseasonable temperatures that can throw an unprepared runner off their game.
“I was expecting the conditions to be much worse,” said Frost, 36. “I figured there’d be huge puddles, slick roads, more water. … It wasn’t a fast year, but I wouldn’t call it a slow year, either.”
Conditions may not have been ideal, but Frost was exceptionally fast on Saturday. She led the 61st Equinox Marathon from start to finish, posting the fourth-fastest time in history at 3 hours, 13 minutes and 41 seconds on a notoriously difficult course that includes technical trails, relentless hills and punishing pavement. The time was a personal best at the Equinox by more than nine minutes and produced her first victory in four attempts.
Ester Dome snow cover. Photo by Christie Haupert
Frost’s race strategy included chasing ambitious splits that she carefully calculated for every mile of the course. Her average pace was 7 minutes and 24 seconds per mile.
“I’m super happy with it,” the ultra-competitive Frost said.
Frost cliched sixth overall – tieing the second-highest rank all-time for a woman – by holding off friend and training partner Curtis Henry by five seconds. The pair spent much of the race leap-frogging – Frost was faster on the flats and downhills while Henry was faster on uphills and technical terrain – but they actually did not run much together.
After enduring a stress fracture in 2022, Frost came into this season healthy. While her training volume was modest for an elite runner (45-50 miles per week), she mixed in plenty of intervals and tempo work and raced a ton.
Helping to build her confidence were a pair of marathon wins: she claimed the Juneau Marathon in 2 hours, 58 minutes and the RunFest Marathon in Anchorage on August 18 in a personal best 2:52.
Suddenly Frost has launched herself up the Equinox all-time list and now only trails Anna Dalton (3:07:22), Megan Youngren (3:11:57) and Susanna Rivard (3:13:37). That trio all participated in the 2020 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials and set their Equinox marks in 2021.
“If I don’t find something else that I want to do more, I’ll keep doing (the Equinox),” Frost said.
Frost, a native of Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada, moved to Fairbanks in 2010. Before long, she started making a name for herself by winning ski events like the White Mountains 100, Arrowhead 135 and Drift 100. She also designed the “Nose Hat”, a garment designed to protect the nose and cheeks in extremely cold temperatures.
Frost became the first Fairbanks woman to win the Equinox since 2015. Placing runner-up was another Fairbanksan, Jenna DiFolco. Her time of 3:23:55 was an 8 1/2-minute improvement from her fourth place in 2023.
Tracen Knopp. Photo by Corrine Leistikow
The men’s race saw another first-time winner in Tracen Knopp of Anchorage. The 25-year-old also led from start-to-finish and clocked 2:50:00, the 19th fastest time in race history.
Knopp had raced the Equinox once before, recording an impressive fifth place in 3:02 as a 19-year-old in 2018.
The win was sweet redemption for Knopp, who raced 51 miles at a prestigious 100-kilometer (62 mile) race in Chamonix, France, just three weeks ago only to drop out due to cramps and heat-related issues.
Cody Priest of Anchorage experienced more tough luck in his 10th Equinox. Priest was the pre-race favorite until Knopp decided to enter just days before the race.
Priest nonetheless set a personal best in 2:54:36 and matched Knopp on the final third of the course, but could not overcome the advantage Knopp built in the relatively flat miles early on and during the climb up snowy Ester Dome.
Priest has now broken 3 hours six times at the Equinox and has never run slower than 3:05. That has produced a portfolio of 3 second places, 4 thirds, 1 fourth and 2 fifth places — but as yet no wins.
Meanwhile, the 3-person relay returned for the 31st time after a five-year hiatus. Team TLA (Heather Arneson, Lars Arneson and Kenny Brewer) took top honors in 2:55:33.
In all, the race featured 728 finishers — 384 in the marathon run, 77 in the marathon hike and 267 in the relay.
For full results, click HERE.
