2016 WHITEFISH POINT MARATHON

PARADISE, Michigan   The 4th annual Whitefish Point Marathon was held on Saturday, June 11, 2016. At seven A.M the field of 70 runners started their 26.2 mile journey at Sawmill Creek Park on the Whitefish Point Road. From there, the course runs north on the Whitefish Point Road with an out and back on Vermilion Road, then continuing on Whitefish Point Road to the turnaround at the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum, then back along the Whitefish Point Road, making a loop along North Superior Drive and returning to Paradise along Whitefish Point Road and continuing along M-123 to the finish at the Whitefish Township Community Center. The cool weather and overcast skies, along with a pleasant breeze were accompanied by high humidity. At Whitefish Point the fog off Lake Superior enveloped the scene.  

According to Nikki Craig, Registration Coordinator, several records for the event were set including the number of finishers which was 68. Setting a new course record for the men was Simon Reidsma, 22, of Wyoming, MI with a time of two hours, 39 minutes, and 44 seconds. The runner up Jake Gillette, 30, Goshen, IN finished in 2:44:34, and third Evan Griffith, 23, Calumet, MI 2:51:28 also broke the previous course record. Winning the women’s division was Amy Frauhammer, 21, of Saline, MI posting a course record time of 3:10:51.

The Whitefish Point Marathon course is certified by USA Track & Field and those runners meeting or exceeding the Boston Marathon qualifying time (BQ)  are entitled to register for entry into the next Boston Marathon which will be held on April 17, 2017. A total of 16 marathon finishers accomplished this goal which represented 23% of this year’s finishers.

This year there were finishers from 14 different States with most of the field hailing from Michigan. The other States represented were Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Wisconsin. J. Dewar, 53, of Gloucester, Ontario finished in 3:57:43 becoming the first international finisher in the event’s history.

Three Countries:  Canada, USA, Japan

Hajime Nishi, 67, of Chuokitainzai, Japan finishing in 6:38:42 became the first Asian finisher. This was Hajime Nishi 686th international marathon run.  Tim Mutterer, 56, Kaukauna, WI sang the National Anthem prior to the start and posted a 6:22:45. Rob Bannan of Paradise recited an Irish Blessing before honorary starter, Ruth Holthuis of Paradise set the field in motion.

Race Director, Bill Sved reported that all finishers received a Lake Superior stone medallion with the Whitefish Point Marathon logo. and overall and age group winners were presented with a Lake Superior stone, each with a different scene representative of the area, hand painted by Sherri McLellen of Paradise. Those winners of each category were as follows:

Female

Overall 6 Amy Frauhammer, 21, Saline, MI 3:10:51
29 & Under 13 Madelyn Cox, 26, Grandville,MI 3:34:54
30-39 11 Leah Stormont, 31, Louisville, KY 3:30:13
40-49 33 Jill Richard, 45, Garden, MI 4:08:35
50-59 19 Karen Nelson, 51, Gwinn, MI 3:51:17

 

Male

Overall 1 Simon Reidsma, 22, Wyoming, MI 2:39:44
29 & Under 3 Evan Griffith, 23, Calumet, MI 2:51:28
30-39 2 Jake Gillette, 30, Goshen, IN 2:44:34
40-49 7 Charles Fritz, 41, Dewitt, MI 3:12:36
50-59 5 Clark Reed, 50, Ligonier, IN 3:05:32
60 & Over 29 Bill Pyle, 65, Marquette, MI 4:03:06

Complete results and more information can be found at the Whitefish Point Marathon website at www.WhitefishPointMarathon.org.

The Whitefish Point Marathon is an event hosted by the Paradise Area Chamber of Commerce and had additional sponsors from Paradise, Newberry, and Sault Ste. Marie. The major goals in hosting this event were to provide a quality marathon race to attract visitors to the area and create more awareness of the Eastern Upper Peninsula and all that it has to offer. All the volunteers who provided support for this event along with the sponsors and the services provided by the Whitefish Township Office, EMS, and Fire Department were essential to the success of this race. A huge THANK YOU to all those that helped support the marathon.

Submitted by
 Nikki Craig, Registration Coordinator, 906-492-3266
 Bill Sved, Race Director, 906-361-5059