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Crater Lake Marathon
August 10, 2002
Race Report by Bob Dolphin
It is the Centennial Celebration of Crater Lake National Park (1902-2002), but on August 10, 2002, there was no joy at the 27th annual Crater Lake Marathon. All the signs point to the possible demise of this classic event. It is one of the most scenic and difficult marathons in the country....
but the numbers are declining. The three races (marathon, 13.0 miles and 6.7 miles) are known as the Rim Runs, and all had fewer participants than in previous years. For example, there were only 50 marathon finishers compared to 67 last year and 130 in the 1999 marathon. In the current year, t
here was Central Oregon competition from the inaugural Pacific Crest Marathon at Sunriver on June 29th and the third annual Bend Marathon on August 3rd. Bob Freirich, race director for all 27 years, would like to retire, but there is no heir apparent in the Linkville Loopers Running Club at Klam
ath
The race was won by Gunner Rethfeldt, 32, of Portland, OR, and Erfurt, Germany, in an excellent time of 2:57:37 with a 13 minute lead over the next finisher. Gunner is a financial officer in the Adidas Company branch at Portland. Apparently the forest fire smoke and haze did not affect him, but
a hill at 8,000 feet got his attention!
The first woman was Margie Retterrath, 45 of Klamath Falls. She won the women's race with a 3:49:17 and was 11th overall. Stomach distress early in the race almost caused her to drop out. However, with encouragement from other runners, she persevered.....and won!
Mike Dutton, 32, our adopted grandson from Bellingham, WA, had a good run and finished in 12th position with a 3:52:37.
My run went fairly well. The temperature was in the 60's at the start and in the 70's at the finish. It was a calm day with clear and then smoky/hazy skies. As usual at this marathon, I ran/walked the hills in some kind of alternating pattern. I finished in 32nd position of 50 with a 4:46:12,
first 70+ male. By a few minutes, this was my fastest time in three years. I think the Bend Marathon the previous week helped with altitude adaptation.
Lenore and I had the pleasure of a "friend & family" gathering at the marathon. On hand were Mike Dutton and his friend Vanessa from Bellingham. Lenore's older sister Dorothy Kahle came from Eugene, OR, and Dorothy's son Paul and his teenage sons Peter and Robbie were vacationing from Tubingen
, Germany. Paul and his sons ran the 6.7 mile race and finished in the 55-58 minute range. Peter won a fourth place ribbon with a 55:18, and Robbie ran a 57:26 for a fifth place ribbon. Paul was close behind with a 58:08. We enjoyed their company and hope that we will have the opportunity to
get together again at a future Crater Lake Marathon.
Written by Bob Dolphin
Partial Race Results
Marathon
3:52:37 Mike Dutton, Bellingham, WA
4:22:01 Jon Mahoney, Vernon, BC
4:29:45 Richard Ketchum, Kent, WA
4:37:15 Sandy Padgett, Independence, KY
4:46:04 Steven Bouwkamp, Farmington Hills, MI
4:46:06 Jennnifer Bouwkamp, Farmington Hills, MI
4:46:12 Bob Dolphin, Renton/Yakima, WA
4:48:14 Steve Shapiro, Portland, OR
4:50:41 Terry Castles, Portland, OR
5:14:42 Ed Hansen, Stayton, OR
5:17:04 William Knox, Baton Rouge, LA
13.0 Mile Race
3:12:23 Jimmy Smith, Bremerton, WA
6.7 Mile Race
55:18 Peter Kahle, Tubingen, Germany
57:26 Robert Kahle, Tubingen, Germany
58:08 Paul Kahle, Tubingen, Germany
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