Top runner blazes new course record in Whitefish Trail race
KELSEY EVANS | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 5 months, 3 weeks AGO
Sam Avery wins the women's 50K with a time of 4:49. Seth Anderson Photo.
Nick Cornell wins the mens 50K race at the Whitefish Trail Blaze with a time of 4:02. A new course record. Seth Anderson Photo.
Jessica Claypool turns the corner under the East Rim Chair during the Whitefish 50K Trail Blazer Race. Seth Anderson Photo.
Jessica Claypool turns the corner under the East Rim Chair during the Whitefish 50K Trail Blazer Race. Seth Anderson Photo.
Participants in the 10k, 5k and family fun run round the final corner at Whitefish Trail Blazer's Sunday races. (Kelsey Evans/Whitefish Pilot)
Eight-year-old W. Seguine charges to the finish of the family fun run at the Whitefish Trail Blazer. (Kelsey Evans/Whitefish Pilot)
The Sarnoskis participate in the Whitefish Trail Blazer family fun run on Sunday, Oct. 5. (Kelsey Evans/Whitefish Pilot)
Elizabeth Wasserman places first in the half marathon distance of the Whitefish Trail Blazer.
A record number of participants took on the Whitefish Legacy Partner’s Trail Blazer 50k on Saturday.
The skies threatened to storm as more than 170 runners lined up at the village at Whitefish Mountain Resort to begin the 31-mile course with 6,300 feet of elevation, but it was mostly a tease, at least until about 3 p.m., when heavy rain finally fell.
Nick Cornell of Missoula blazed to the finish, setting a new course record in 4:02.02, while Whitefish’s own Sam Avery represented as the first female finisher, taking ninth overall in 4:49.50.
Podium status also went to second-place Micah Drew of Whitefish, followed by Andrew Newell of Bozeman, Hayes Pateidl of Butte, and Eric Holdhusen of Kalispell, all of whom ran faster than the first-place finisher from 2024.
Following Avery on the women’s podium was Erika Flowers of Bozeman, Ellie Hull of Bozeman, Olivia Skillings of Whitefish, and Jill Miller of Missoula.
During Sunday’s races in the Beaver Lakes area, Elizabeth Wasserman of Columbia Falls ran a 1:44.51 to finish first in the half-marathon out of 143 men and women.
Porter Shehan, a 14-year-old from Whitefish, finished first out of 47 runners in the 5k-plus. A runner from Libby, 9-year-old Steven Delarasa, finished first out of 104 people in the 10k+, and Kalispell teen siblings Nolan and Lauren Bissen were not far behind.
The 1.4-mile family fun-run was a blast for 50 participants, who ranged in age from three to 72.
For full results see runsignup.com/Race/MT/Whitefish/WhitefishTrailBlazer.
Nick Cornell wins the mens 50K race at the Whitefish Trail Blaze with a time of 4:02. A new course record. Seth Anderson Photo.
Jessica Claypool turns the corner under the East Rim Chair during the Whitefish 50K Trail Blazer Race. Seth Anderson Photo.
Participants in the 10k, 5k and family fun run round the final corner at Whitefish Trail Blazer's Sunday races. (Kelsey Evans/Whitefish Pilot)
Eight-year-old W. Seguine charges to the finish of the family fun run at the Whitefish Trail Blazer. (Kelsey Evans/Whitefish Pilot)
The Sarnoskis participate in the Whitefish Trail Blazer family fun run on Sunday, Oct. 5. (Kelsey Evans/Whitefish Pilot)
Elizabeth Wasserman places first in the half marathon distance of the Whitefish Trail Blazer.ARTICLES BY KELSEY EVANS
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