How Dangerous is the Mount Marathon Race?

Jeremy Abercrombie ended the 2003 race with multiple injuries

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By Heather Hintze
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Story Created: Jul 11, 2012 at 3:59 PM AKDT

Story Updated: Jul 11, 2012 at 7:11 PM AKDT

ALASKA - One man is missing and another in the hospital with a head injury after this year's Mount Marathon race.

One racer said this isn't the first time a person's been seriously injured during the competition.

The third time Jeremy Abercrombie ran the race, in 2003, he was hit in the head with a rock and knocked unconscious.

He fell 75 feet down the rock face and broke his skull and orbital bone, and ruptured a kidney.

The Seward Chamber of Commerce said it doesn't track injuries from the competition, but said serious injuries aren't very common.

He said he thinks the Seward Chamber of Commerce does enough to warn racers of the dangers of participating in the race.

"Before this year I was the only one I'd heard of having a head injury like that. I didn't surprise me at the same time because it's such a dangerous mountain. The rock face where a couple of people fell this year, I've seen people fall off that before."

The Seward Chamber of Commerce said every first time Mount Marathon runner has to attend a mandatory safety meeting the night before the race, or they don't get their bib and timing chip.

 

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JD said on Wednesday, Jul 11 at 4:54 PM

Of course it is dangerous, that's what makes it such a cool race! When did Alaska turn into a bunch of mollycoddled Sallies?

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TedtheBear said on Thursday, Jul 12 at 9:30 AM

The main attraction to this race is its dangers and chances all runners take to climb it and to come down. I wonder what will happen to a race like Crow Pass Marathon if one of the runners get eaten by a bear? Shoot all the bears?? Alaskans like dangers, do we not?

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Neff said on Thursday, Jul 12 at 9:37 AM

Where are these comments coming from? The article mentions the dangers of the race and that racers are adequately notified of those dangers. There is nothing about changing the race mentioned here.

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WilburKookmeyer said on Thursday, Jul 12 at 4:21 PM

Is KTVA trying to put the clamp down on the race, or just repeating exactly what the race organizers warn participants about? Either way, I can't even believe I'm wasting my time commenting on this...

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Robo said on Thursday, Jul 12 at 5:57 PM

Next, someone will push to asphalt the route and add handrails for the safety of participants....

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