Posts By: Matias Saari

Tomsich rallies for 2nd at Munich Marathon

October 14, 2021

Fairbanks native Tony Tomsich rolled through midway point of the Munich Marathon on October 10 in sixth place, a great showing for an urban international race. He was just getting warmed up. Tomsich followed up a first half in 1 hour, 10 minutes and 51 seconds by crushing the second half in 1:08:39. The surge… Read more »

Wickersham publishes NFL book on Brady, Belichick dynasty

October 12, 2021

Longtime ESPN sports writer and Anchorage native Seth Wickersham has published his first book and it’s already receiving rave reviews. It’s Better to Be Feared: The New England Patriots Dynasty and the Pursuit of Greatness chronicles the Patriots between 2001-19 primarily under the leadership of quarterback Tom Brady and head coach Bill Belichick. “Seth Wickersham… Read more »

Six Alaskans among top 200 at Boston Marathon

October 11, 2021

Alaskans competing at the Boston Marathon have always had to train through the tough winter months in advance of the April event. However, for the first time in its 125-year history, the granddaddy of marathoning was moved to October due to the coronavirus — and this allowed Alaskans to train through a pleasant summer instead… Read more »

Arneson places fifth, Turney ninth at Spartan Championships

October 5, 2021

Anchorage achieved two top-10 finishes recently at the Spartan North American Championships in Olympic Valley, California — a fact made more remarkable in that Lars Arneson was making his obstacle course racing debut. Arneson placed fifth in the 21-kilometer “Beast” event that included 30 obstacles after he impulsively entered the Sept. 24 event on short… Read more »

Indefatigable Youngren breaks Kenai River Marathon record

September 30, 2021

Megan Youngren of Soldotna wasn’t planning to run the 16th Kenai River Marathon, considering it was scheduled just eight days after a hard effort at the Equinox Marathon. But after recovering quickly from the Equinox, Youngren jumped in and shattered the Kenai River Marathon women’s record in 2 hours, 48 minutes and 11 seconds. Christy… Read more »

Women’s Showdown Looms at Equinox Marathon

September 16, 2021

By Matias Saari Alaska Sports Blog Contributor With the strongest women’s field in the 58-year history of the Equinox Marathon, the iconic Fairbanks event is primed for a speedy race. That because a trio of women who competed at the 2020 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials — Anna Dalton of Anchorage, Megan Youngren of Soldotna and… Read more »

Bethel native Updegrove sets South Pole running record

January 17, 2021

Growing up in Bethel helped prepare Craig Updegrove for running farther than anyone has at the geographic South Pole. In a Facebook post on January 16, Updegrove announced that he ran 90 kilometers (55.9 miles) in 13 hours, 24 minutes on Jan. 10. Updegrove placed second in a marathon event at the Amundson-Scott South Pole… Read more »

Cyclocross season sees 245 participants in Anchorage

October 23, 2020

The pandemic didn’t stop the cyclocross season in Anchorage. A race at Kincaid park on October 17 wrapped up the six-race ArcticCross season, which saw 245 participants complete at least one event. Races were held at Kincaid (two), Mirror Lake, Russian Jack, Service High School and Hilltop. The best four results among the six races… Read more »

Tuesday Night Races start September 15 in Virtual Format

September 9, 2020

Despite the pandemic, the Municipality of Anchorage’s wildly popular Tuesday Night Races will proceed with a 52nd season. This year’s five-event series will be conducted in a virtual format beginning Sept. 15 and concluding Oct. 13 and include new locations. The courses will be marked starting at 6 p.m. each Tuesday and remain open until… Read more »

Hooper hikes, paddles, battles nausea to win Wilderness Classic

August 6, 2020

For more than 3 ½ days, Sam Hooper of Denali Park hiked alone on ATV trails, along caribou routes, over tundra and through marshes and swamps. When he wasn’t hiking, he packrafted various creeks and rivers and portaged around rapids when necessary. The former Denali National Park backcountry ranger struggled with nausea most of the… Read more »