CALL OF THE WILD MARATHON
May 23, 2009
The inaugural Call of the Wild Marathon was offered by Marathon Maniac Adrian Call on Saturday, May 23, 2009. I was pleased to run the marathon with 22 others in addition to the three who ran a 50K, 20 participants who did a half marathon and one who ran a 20 Miler.
The race was similar to Adrian’s First Call to Run Marathon on January 1, 2009. My report on that marathon is available on www.marathonmaniacs.com at “Team Dolphin.”
At 6:00 a.m. on May 23rd there were nine of us who took an early start at the Bothell Landing Park from an area that served as the start/finish line, a mid-race aid station and post-race breakfast bar.
Within a minute of the start we crossed an attractive arched footbridge over the Sammamish River to its south bank. As the bridge trail reached the Sammamish River Trail, we turned right and ran north on the paved trail. Initially, we ran in riverside woods going downstream in a westerly direction, and then we crossed a footbridge to the north riverside. As the route became the Burke-Gilman Trail, we ran through a tunnel under a road and then by a golf course and suburban housing on our way to the town of Kenmore.
The trail through Kenmore is an engineering marvel as it keeps trail users segregated from vehicles in a populated area. This is accomplished by two cross-street underpasses and concrete barricades by Bothell Way, a busy six-lane highway.
Soon after leaving Kenmore the trail ran by the small lakeside park, Tracey Owen Station, with a striking view of Lake Washington. Continuing on the Burke-Gilman Trail, we turned back at four miles to give us a total of eight miles by the time we reached Bothell Landing again to log in and replenish our water bottles.
As we left The Landing this time, we turned left onto the Sammamish River Trail and went upstream for less than a mile to a footbridge crossing to the east side of the river. We stayed on this side for the next seven miles to Redmond. Along the way we ran under the I-405 overhead cloverleaf, near the city of Woodinville, the Red Hook Brewery and St. Michelle and Columbia wineries, Sixty Acres Park and the city of Redmond. There we crossed to the west bank trail for a ¼ mile. At Mile 17+ in the race we turned back at the highway 520 elevated bridge. Four street underpasses and several footbridges protected the trail users from vehicular traffic between Bothell and Redmond.
The race went well. There was good weather with clear skies. The temperature was about 50 degrees at the 6:00 a.m. start and 70 degrees at the finish. A cooling, light breeze in the last miles was a welcome relief.
At first, I walked the few hills on the course, then midway into the race I took short walks for respite and finally had to walk the last 10K briskly to the finish.
On the course I appreciated the foresight of the farmers of yesteryear who planted the Lombardy Poplar windbreaks. The shade they cast was a relief on this grassy, open trail.
A covey of Canada Geese was interesting. Apparently, there were four mated pairs that had 20+ goslings of various sizes. They walked between the paved trail on grass by the river bank and ignored the bikers, runners and walkers going by.
The many bikers who passed said nothing, or warned “on your left,” or said something encouraging. The one who said, “Hi, Bob, you’re looking good” surprised me. I had no idea who it was until he came by later and slowed down to visit. It was Paul Emmet, 63, of Redmond, an “Evil Triplet” marathoner. He’s training for STP (Seattle to Portland), the long-distance bicycle tour, 100 mile century races and shorter races. He hopes to get back to marathoning again in the fall of this year and run another Yakima River Canyon Marathon on March 27, 2010.
I finished my marathon at Bothell Landing with a time of 6:07:39. I enjoyed the pancake breakfast and talking to the many runners and volunteers who were still in the area. Jim Boyd, Rich Menzel, Ray Shaw and I (all Marathon Maniacs) compared marathon itineraries to determine when our paths would cross again.
Congratulations to Flo and Bruce Lind for running their first marathon. They were already talking about becoming Marathon Maniacs!!
A treat for me was to run the legs from Redmond to Kenmore. In years past I had run that 13 mile stretch as part of the Falls to Gasworks ultramarathon and the Seattle Marathon course that pre-dated the current course. It was nice to re-visit a course that I ran years ago.
I had a good time, and I’m looking forward to running the First Call to Run Marathon on New Year’s Day 2010. Many thanks to race director Adrian Call, his wife Marty and the volunteers who put on this well-organized marathon, 50K and half marathon.
……………………………………….Written by Bob Dolphin
Edited, Typed and Distributed by Lenore Dolphin
3:31:49 Scott Sebelsky
3:31:55 Ryan McKnight, Marathon Maniac (MM)
3:48:23 Paul David
3:54:15 Bruce Lind, 1st Marathon
4:07:24 Jae Jung, MM
4:10:31 Rob Hester, MM
4:10:31 Patty McKerney
4:25:54 Jeff Loen, MM
4:29:53 Adrian Call, MM
4:36:38 Linda Barton, MM
4:36:38 Valerie Beyer, MM
4:40:33 Flo Lind, 1st Marathon
4:40:33 Marie Zornes, MM
4:42:50 Jim Boyd, MM
4:43:48 Ron Foss
4:46:24 Jill Hudson, MM
4:46:30 Linda Walter, MM
5:03:20 Jessica Bienvenue, MM
5:19:11 Tory Klementsen, MM
5:23:33 Ray Shaw, MM
5:28:48 Mare Pyke, MM
5:46:43 Rich Menzel, MM
6:07:39 Bob Dolphin, MM
4:55:06 Robert Lopez, MM
5:20:33 Dean Kayler, MM
5:47:21 Nancy Nash, 1st Ultra
1:53:11 Janice Cullen
1:53:11 Michelle Cunningham, MM
1:57:49 Chandra Higgins
2:01:43 Karen Williams
2:03:30 Becky Ransom
2:03:46 Heather George
2:13:10 Catrena Sullivan
2:13:13 Chrissie O’Brien
2:13:14 Kris Solem
2:14:11 Tamie Rogers
2:24:20 Robin Loen
2:27:58 Cathy Ochler
2:29:13 Megan Reuther
2:31:19 Sarah Lucas
2:44:34 Gloria Hiroshima
2:54:35 Judd Williams
2:54:40 Shirley Monson
2:54:40 Larry Monson
3:10:40 Peter Storti
3:46:54 Trista Allen
3:57:47 Starria Johnson