REMARKABLE ROOKIE: Palmer teen scores runner-up finish in his first Mount Marathon

PALMER — As Gavin Block made his way down the final stretch of roadway during the boys’ junior race of the 90th Mount Marathon Tuesday in Seward, there was only one runner ahead of him and everyone else was behind.

Block, of Palmer, clocked a time of 29 minutes, 32 seconds, and finished as the runner-up in his class. Not too bad for his first stab at Alaska’s most noted mountain race.

“I’m pretty excited. It was a good race,” Block said by phone Wednesday evening.

Block said he’s waited four years for the shot to compete in a race that draws so much attention that a lottery is needed for competitors to gain entry. Block, 15, an incoming sophomore in high school, is a member of the Colony cross-country running and cross-country skiing squads. He’s competed in a number of other mountain races in Alaska. But the chance to be in Seward on July 4 to compete in the storied race — which features three miles and 3,000 feet of elevation gain for the senior level and half that distance for the junior classes — is a highlight for the young runner.

Block said he’s taken a few practice runs up the mountain, but didn’t know what to expect when competing against other runners.

His primary goal was fairly straight-forward.

“I just had a personal goal to finish the race safely,” Block said.

He also hoped to finish in the top 10.

Block exceeded all expectations. The only runner to finish head of Block was Luke Jager, of Anchorage, who clocked a time of 29:09 to win his third-straight Mount Marathon junior boys title.

Block said, about halfway through the race, he realized how well he was doing.

“Getting out of the trees, right before the turnaround point. I looked ahead and saw Luke. I looked behind, and there was nobody behind I could see,” Block said.

That fueled him, he said.

“Coming back down the mountain off to the road, I kept my place, kept pushing all the way down to the finish,” Block said.

Block said the uphill climb was tough, with wet conditions.

“It was super muddy. You grab on to plants and roots and pull yourself up,” Block said. “Every time you step forward, you slip back a little bit.”

But the toughest part, Block said, was the final stretch.

“The most difficult part for me was going back down the road (to the finish),” Block said. “Realizing there was another half-mile on the road before you get to the finish.”

Block said his legs felt like, “jello,” on the road.

But with the atmosphere and the crowd, the adrenaline kicked in, he said.

Block said he entered the world of mountain running working as a volunteer during the Government Peak Climb, a race hosted by his high school Nordic skiing coach, Colony’s Mark Strabel.

“I really liked it. I kept doing it,” Block said. “It’s about keeping going, even if you are tired. Pushing to the top.”

Block can now add Mount Marathon to a running resume that also features Government Peak Climb, the Robert Spurr Memorial at Bird Ridge, the Matanuska Peak Challenge, the Alyeska Challenge and the Pioneer Ridge Vertical Mile.

The Pioneer Ridge race is Sunday. Block said he has not decided whether he’ll enter the race this year.

“I’m going to wait and see how my legs are feeling,” Block said.

But when it comes to Mount Marathon, he’s hooked.

“I’m excited for next year,” Block said.

Palmer runner 3rd in women’s race

Palmer’s Christy Marvin, a two-time Mount Marathon champion, finished third in the women’s class Tuesday.

Marvin posted a time of 52:22. Marvin, one of Alaska’s top mountain runners in the women’s class, trailed a pair of world-class athletes in the top 3. Soldotna’s Allie Ostrander, a Kenai Central graduate, added to historic list of accomplishments with her first Mount Marathon win. Ostrander, who ran to an NCAA Division I national title in the 3,000-meter steeplechase for Boise State earlier this year, earned her title Tuesday with a time of 49:19. Ostrander, a winner of six Mount Marathon titles in the junior girls’ class, posted the best time by an Alaska runner in the women’s class.

The runner-up, Morgan Arritola, is a former member of the U.S. Olympic cross-country skiing team. Arritola finished with a time of 51:09.

Abby Jahn, a Colony High School product, finished 10th in the women’s class with a time of 59:31.

A current Colony High athlete, Alyson Kopsack, led Valley runners in the junior girls’ class with a seventh-place finish and time of 38:22.

Marvin’s husband, Ben, placed eighth in the men’s race with a time of 48:12.

Scott Patterson of Anchorage won the men’s race with a time of 44:30.

For complete results, see frontiersman.com/sports.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz a sports@frontiersman.com.