4 July 2011

Olympians Kikin and Holly lead the women.

The spitting rain continued. My pack was recently relocated beneath the cover of a meagre canopy flown to the top of the mountain along with the water and timing equipment necessary for refreshing the runners and clocking their times before they hurled down the shale covered side of Seward Alaska's Mount Marathon. As I passed the American flag wedged between rocks and returned from the useless tent to the natural shelter and warm bodies, I remembered the date was July 4. I lay myself down again beside Aunt Lyn and Katherine. We found that by lying close together in this grassy depression we were hidden from the wind and could maintain a comfortable body temperature. My rain jacket and Stuart's rain pants were enough to keep me dry. This is very different from any 4th of July I've ever had. And as I drifted off to sleep once more, recollections of fireworks, bike rides, splash contests, hot dogs, the Johnsons, the smell of sunblock, the pealing sunburn, and red paper streamers, marched through my memory like the rowdy parade that rode through my neighborhood every year. 
By the time a fellow volunteer yelled "five minutes 'till the men's race starts!" I had forgotten the day and rushed passed the limp flag to the edge of the peak, clutching my camera deep within my pocket away from the cold.
I remembered Independence Day again when, later that night, desperate fireworks strained against the sun's light though the clock told midnight.

The race ran only 1.5 miles before the turn around point and halfway mark at Mount Marathon's peak. However, in 1.5 miles, they experienced a 3,022 foot elevation change.