The following transcript was lightly edited for clarity. She maintained a 4.0 Grade Point Average at the school. No additional information is available. LeMaitre: People in Seward took care of me. Theriault Boots: I think its the same intrigue that makes people going missing in Alaska so fascinating for some people, because its just the vastness of the wilderness. Then you drop into a creek bed. So that I think is discouraging of people who are going to be taking four or five, six hours much longer to complete the race. Missing From Alaska's Mount Marathon - Trail Runner Magazine What happened this yearit was quite devastating for the community. Its dangerous, so youre not only competing against other people on the mountain, but youre competing to get across the finish line healthy and safe. LeMaitres story attracted widespread media attention, becoming one of the most well-known in a grimly extensive list of Alaskans whove disappeared into wilderness landscapes without a trace. NYC Marathon: Bundled up and waiting - Pavement Pieces Photo by Carol Grisswold. The key point here is that during the race, they typically have race officials at the top of the mountain and all along the course. It rained the night before the 2012 race and the trail was slick and muddy. An Alaska Air National Guard Pave Hawk helicopter participates in the search Thursday, July 5, 2012, for Michael LeMaitre on Mount Marathon. Let us know in the form at the bottom of the story. LeMaitres disappearance changed the way the race operates. The junior race, for runners ages 7 to 17, had already taken placethe kids went only halfway up the broad, triangular mountain that . When the competitive men come down from the top of the mountain to the bottom, theyre descending over 3,000 feet in about five minutes. I think that vastness and the proximity of that vastness to town and to thousands of people and spectators, that you could be gone without a trace while there are hundreds of runners and thousands of spectators, like a mile less than a mile away from you, is just a reminder for Alaskans of that very thin line we live in between our little patches of town and kind of infinite wilderness and the dangers of that. Jenna Hutchins (born March 25, 2004), is a high school and "Under 20" record-breaking American long distance runner from Johnson City, Tennessee. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. The discovery of human remains near Seward has sparked speculation that the body of Michael LeMaitre, possibly the state's most famous missing person, has been found, but that appears unlikely. He literally vanished off the mountain. But what happened in the 2012 Mount Marathon Race really stands out in Alaska lore. Every Mount Marathon rookie is required to watch a graphic safety video the night before the race. Correction: The photo caption on this story has been updated to correct the year Michael LeMaitre went missing to 2012. Im still very curious to have someone go out there and checkhis body could be there. Queen Bee Montana Marathon - new name - Same Fast Courses! It has been sent to the State Medical Examiner's Office for further examination. Despite extensive searches, his body has never been recovered, and the details of his death remain a mystery. Reach him at cgrove@alaskapublic.org. MT MARATHON VOICEOVER - YouTube Then you pop out back out and have to decide whether to take the junior trail, the cliffs, or the waterfall, which is 20 feet out, 70 feet down. Its a bad idea to come down that way, but people do it. Michael LeMaitre could have taken just a few wrong turns, and then very quickly was in the thousands and thousands of impenetrable, mountainous wilderness in the Kenai mountains. And that question has not been answered. You know, a lot of people kept saying, you need some sort of closure. Whenever I asked for help, someone always said yes. This year, the weather was good enough to fly in aid station water by helicopter, but you cant always bank on it. A cadaver dog was sent into the area and friends paid for and analyzed high-resolution photographs of the mountain. An old kayak missing from the yard at Miller's Landing, a resort at the end of the road, led to speculation she might have paddled off into Resurrection Bay, but she could just as easily headed down the trail to Tonsina Creek. Youve heard of Tough Mudder and the Spartan Race, but every Fourth of July, the town of Seward, Alaska, hosts a competition that rivals both. [8] The Troopers announced that they identified the remains of Ronald Oquilluk using DNA from his sister. For the first few minutes, its a very steep grade up a rock facequite technical. The race changed as a result of the disappearance. Its not uncommon for racers to be injured, running to the top of 3,022-foot Mount Marathon and back down again. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Thanks for contacting us. The second wave of the race which included LeMaitre started at 3.15 pm. After troopers stopped their search, family continued. While he was still heading up the mountain, the officials at checkpoints along the way were packing up. Michael LeMaitre, a 66-year-old rookie Mount Marathon racer, was last seen about 200 feet from the top of the mountain and has been missing ever since. montanawomensrun . LeMaitre: The parts that were most dangerous, he had already gone up them. When you get to the top, most racers go around. Youre using hands and feet. This was an extreme event and he was last seen on July 4, 2012 about 200 feet from the top of Mount Marathon, a 3022 feet high peak. The chutes had snow bridges on them that have been collapsing all summer. Trailing behind the other runners, LeMaitre was last seen near the summit by a race official. The most puzzling casualty, however, was 66-year-old Anchorage resident Michael LeMaitre, who vanished without a trace on his way up the mountain and is believed to be the first fatality in the races history.
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