Vandals send marathon runners down wrong trail

As if Whitefish’s grueling Two Bear marathon isn’t challenging enough, the lead runners of Sunday’s race were taken on an unexpected three-mile detour.

Vandals reportedly moved route markers and blocked the proper trail the night before the race, sending a pack of runners down a dead-end path. About 1.5 miles down the wrong trail near the north end of Whitefish Lake, lead runner and eventual overall winner Zach Miller, 36, knew something was askew.

“I got to a Y that wasn’t marked and thought it was odd,” Miller said. “Then I got out into a clearcut with downed trees and bulldozer tracks. I was jumping over trees and going through it, and when I got to the other side, there wasn’t a trail.”

Miller then turned around and collected the top group of runners who were also headed the wrong way.

“When we got back to the trail it was obvious which was the right way to go,” Miller said.

Vandals had blocked the proper turn with caution tape and moved all of the painted route markers.

“It’s a little deflating, running three extra miles and getting sent off into no-mans land,” Miller said.

Still, the lead pack re-grouped, re-focused and set off for the final half of the race.

“What are you going to do?” Miller said about getting over the mental hurdle of running three extra miles. “You just move on.”

Which he did.

The Bozeman-based ultra runner, who typically runs 50 or 100 mile races, led the Two Bear from the start and finished with a 3:22:42, which included the extra three miles. He called the race a “speed work” traning session as he prepares for the upcoming JFK 50-miler in Maryland.

“This race was a lot of fun,” he said. “It’s a beautiful course. It’s fun to get out and do a little short race like this.”

Rae Vanspoore, 36, of Billings, also went down the wrong trail for about a mile, but managed to recover and finish with the top time among women racers at 4:01:49.

“You just keep at it,” she said about overcoming the wrong turn. “It’s a beautiful course and you come out not to win something, but it’s the experience of it that’s important.”

The Two Bear was just Vanspoore’s second marathon.

“I started to feel real bad the last mile, but that’s good,” she said. “You want to finish feeling like you gave it your all.”

Jonathan Ferree, 32, was the top Whitefish runner, finishing seventh overall with a 3:41:37. Paul Okerberg, of Whitefish, 54, was ninth with a 3:50:57.

Among women, Becky Middleton, 35, was the top Whitefish runner, finishing 12th with a 4:29:15.

The half marathon was won by Myers Reece, 28, of Kalispell with a 1:26:27, just ahead of Whitefish’s Richard Menicke, 51, who took second with a 1:26:40.

Andi Camp, 38, won on the womens side with a 1:30:13.