If my dad had fallen in one of those chutes and a snow bridge had collapsed over him, the infrared helicopters wouldnt have been able to find him. I have spent a lot of time on the mountain; I know my route very clearly. I think thats fascinating people. The men's and women's courses are a grueling 1.5-mile climb up, and back down, Alaska's majestic and treacherous Mount Marathon. McClatchy-Tribune Information Services Oct. 15 --The widow of dead Seward Mount Marathon runner Michael LeMaitre and the Seward Chamber of Commerce have settled a lawsuit over his 2012. When you get to the top, most racers go around. Lt. Smith checked with the control tower to determine known traffic in the area and was informed that there was none. Douglas A. MutschlerSince this finding, more and more retired anonymous military men have come forward, conveniently refusing to speak to anyone but famed ufologist Linda Moulton Howe, telling her the secret story of some guarded black pyramid. What did they tell you nine years later about this? My phone number -. Unfortunately, it was not to be! MOVING FORWARDThe community of Seward was hit hard. The search area covered over 32,000 square miles which are about the size of South Carolina. Port Chatham - Also known as Portlock, this eerie small village on the Kenai Peninsula was home to so many Bigfoot sightings that the entire population eventually fled due to an overwhelming amount of fear. I know its fascinating to me, the overwhelming scale and power of the wilderness and how close we live to it and how close we all tried that line. July 9, 2021 by Casey Grove, Alaska Public Media. March 8 - leaves Dracut, MA . 1. After troopers stopped their search, family continued. When the sun rises on May 10, it doesnt set for nearly three months. In 1915, the race up Mount Marathonthe peak was soon named for the punishing runbecame an annual July 4 event. 638. The crew reported seeing flashing lights following their plane and air traffic controllers also witnessed something unidentifiable on their radar that was reported as close as 5 miles from the plane. Where he went after that remains anyone's guess. It includes the following events: Girls, Boys, Women, Men, Golden Men, and Golden Women. And now, if you do Mount Marathon, you have to attest publicly, you have to sign something like in a public room full of other racers that says that you have been up and down the whole course. LeMaitres disappearance changed the way the race operates. Many other Alaskans wonder as well. He literally vanished off the mountain. Many people believe that they can tap into their higher selves when at these vortexes. A vast desert of isolation and beauty. But after the settlement, the chamber's press release highlighted the fact no body was found and that Peggy moved to have Michael declared dead shortly after the search ended. They later went on to capture this creature, cage it and feed it. Alaska Public Media 2023. Even after the official search was called off in mid-July, volunteers continued to search the mountain, including LeMaire's daughter Mary Anne, saying "Seward has so much meaning to my dad,so here he is, looking out. Peggy still wrestles with her husband's disappearance. One of the racers injured in 2012 has fully recovered. It consumed the energy of the town. Moose outnumber bears nearly three to one in Alaska, wounding around five to 10 people in the state annually. Various famous places, such as Stonehenge, Easter Island, and the Pyramids in Egypt are also all said to lie on vortexes, and indeed it is claimed by some to be the reason these monuments were erected in the first place. I have a friend from Seward. It was rainy, it was foggy, and he just never came down the mountain. Theriault Boots: I think its the same intrigue that makes people going missing in Alaska so fascinating for some people, because its just the vastness of the wilderness. It is widely believed he eventually reached the turnaround rock, which is well short of the summit of Mount Marathon. None was found. Another story in this area is about a tall Bigfoot creature that actually ended up carrying a three-year-old back to her home after she wandered off into the woods without anyone noticing her. ANCHORAGE, Alaska - A rookie's disappearance during a popular extreme race on Alaska's rugged Mount Marathon has led to significant new rules in the event. To Lt. Smith and crew it appeared as two orange lights rotating about a common center, like two jet aircraft making slow rolls in tight formation. It had a wide speed range. Large Alien Base - In his 1997 book Remote Viewers, Jim Schnabel told the story of the U.S. Intelligence communitys involvement in the controversial issue of psychic spying that largely began in the early-to-mid 1970s. But the race, which has been run as an organized event since 1915, is a beast, with a 3,022-foot vertical gain and loss over icy and treacherous mountain terrain, where runners pick their own way upand downthe average 38-degree slope. Update the categories youd like to receive notifications about. Its just on the minds of everybody. He was officially declared dead in August 2012 after a presumptive death hearing. . Peggy originally asked for $5 million in a settlement but both parties agreed to a $20,000 payout. Alaska has more coastline than the rest of the United States combined (more than 34,000 miles). Unbelievably Bizarre Disappearance Near Mt. The next morning, July 5, the 210th Rescue Squadron of the Alaska Air National Guard, which specializes in searching for crashed pilots and missing hikers, arrived with its HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopter for another infrared scan. What is going on in this remote, unexplored wilderness that causes so many people to disappear without a trace? This year, it had rained the night before, so it made the race really slick and muddy for the juniors. The average age is 41. The Mount Marathon Race in Seward took place Wednesday, after a year off due to the pandemic, without reports of any major trouble. Walsh asked LeMaitre for his bib number and he replied Five-four-eight, and as he descended back towards the town he texted race officials: Bib number 548 would be home in about an hour and a half. It rained the night before the 2012 race and the trail was slick and muddy. Fink: We expect changes after this year, but you need to strike a balance. 2. Flying weather was extremely good and he was coming into the Bethel Airport with a DC-3.. Weve never had anything this severe. The race officials had already packed up by around 6 p.m., when my dad was still headed up. There is not an active search for him currently, McDaniel said. You don't have to pay to file your taxes. The Top 50 Percent of Age Group Rule will be implemented. The chutes had snow bridges on them that have been collapsing all summer. Rookies must attest to having scouted the mountain ahead of time. So hes been legally dead for almost nine years now. 65-year-old Michael LeMaitre was competing in the Mount Marathon race in Seward, Alaska, which is south of the city of Anchorage. Vanished: Heidi Broussard (33) and Margot Carey (2wks). On July 4, 2012, an Anchorage man named Michael LeMaitre went missing as he competed in Mount Marathon, the grueling Seward footrace typically held on the Fourth of July each year. That's more than the grizzly bear and black bear attacks combined [source: Smith]. His disappearance was especially striking because he had been participating in an event that each year draws tens of thousands of spectators to Seward, and hundreds of runners onto the mountain itself. All rights reserved. And then also, Michael LeMaitre had not been up and down the course ever before he raced. We spoke separately to Karol Fink, a Mount Marathon organizer and 19-year race veteran who ran this year, and to MaryAnne LeMaitre, whose father has yet to be found. Michaels daughter, MaryAnne said My dadhe has always had an adventurous spirit: He did the Iditaski several times; he had a lot of exciting adventures on the water. (Photo by Luke Rosier). The following transcript was lightly edited for clarity. In it's own way it is a wonder of the world! Missing kayakers at Beaver Lake Toggle header content. People choose their own route on the mountain, and you cant babysit everyone. A world-renowned endurance athlete who went missing in California's Yosemite National Park has been found dead. Since all the snow hadnt melted out from the creek bed, there were some snow bridges that you had to cross that were really creepy. Redirecting to /1920136/disappearance-mount-marathon/ (308) Some continue to search. Its not like climbingthere is no rating system for this. Grove:What do you think this story tells people about Alaska or about what happened to this guy? Statistically, Alaska has more annual missing person reports than anywhere else in the country; twice the national average. The mountain is so close to townyou can hear the announcer all the way up. Lace-up your running shoes for an annual event taking the city of Bentonville by storm. If Bigfoot is as confrontational as people in Alaska claim it to be, its a possibility that this creature is perhaps the reason why some people go missing especially in the wilderness if they come face to face with it. So that I think is discouraging of people who are going to be taking four or five, six hours much longer to complete the race. Join Outside+ to get Outside magazine, access to exclusive content, 1,000s of training plans, and more. Download the app. Titled Unidentified Phenomena in Vicinity of Kodiak, Alaska, it concerns a report of sightings of unidentified airborne objects, by various naval personnel, on 22 and 23 January 1950., The author of the report noted: at 220240W January Lt. Smith, USN, patrol plane commander of P2V3 No. It does get a bit grim. He's on Mount Marathon somewhere.". 25 2023 Comment Edit. Going off in the wrong direction, falling off, landslides, bear activitythere are so many things that could have happened and just nothing to go on. In 2007, they performed 42 missions related to overdue hikers, 85 related to overdue boaters and 100 related to overdue snow machine operators who were temporarily missing [source: Alaska Governor's Office]. "We have settled our case because we have no body,'' her statement said. It later died and the story was documented in a letter from the cage-keeper. To Morgan and Carver, it appeared as a reddish-orange ball of fire about one foot in diameter, traveling at a high rate of speed. Instead, they concluded that it was Nomes fault all along. Alaska has more inland water than any other state (20,171 square miles), About 5 percent of Alaska is covered by the 1,000-plus glaciers. Peggy had asked for $5 million when she went to court in July of last year, claiming the negligence of race officials played a role in Michael's disappearance on the mountain. The other, Anchorage's Matt Kenney, continues on a long road to fully recover as he battles back from a traumatic brain injury. MaryAnne LeMaitre: My dadhe has always had an adventurous spirit: He did the Iditaski several times; he had a lot of exciting adventures on the water. Usually by the time of race day, the water hasnt dried up, so you have to know what youre doing because its very steep and you can fall off. In 1956, about 50 miles southwest of Ketchikan a man that was out fishing reported seeing an 8-foot-tall creature that was around 400 pounds and walked on two feet like an ape. "However,'' Peggy's statement said, "(Mount Marathon) is thoroughly lacking in safety standards and protocol when compared to other adventure races around the country. StrangeOutdoors.com has the weirdest, most puzzling, and disturbing mysteries from around the world. The energetic octogenarian flew to Hawaii in . For ten minutes, Barco and Causer, along with the pilot, Captain Paulson, watched stunned as the mysterious object twisted and turned in the Alaskan sky. I think there was a healthy debate about how is this race unsafe, and they added some pretty sound safety measures, it sounds like. At about 200 feet from the summit, one of the race officials heading down says he saw my dad, and he was still headed up. Mount Marathon NA IPA by 49th State Brewing Company is a Non-Alcoholic Beer - IPA which has a rating of 3.6 out of 5, with 20 ratings and reviews on Untappd. [He] clearly observed the object at this time.. Photography Joel Krahn. If my dad had fallen in one of those chutes and a snow bridge had collapsed over him, the infrared helicopters wouldnt have been able to find him. UFO -In 1986, a Japanese plane was flying from Iceland to Anchorage when it came across three UFOs. "As we found out as the case proceeded, it is very difficult to go to trial without a body and prove the Chamber of Commerce was responsible for his death. from. It was especially rainy, foggy and slick that day. Thats the reality of it. The Israel Police is asking for the public's help in their search for the missing Menashe Oren, 50 years old from Ramat Gan. A month after a journey spanning half the globe and ending in Tanzania atop Mount Kilimanjaro, 68-year-old Anne Koehler, 40-year-old Lindsey Palmer and her 12-year-old son Nolan Palmer are still . The disappearance of House Majority Leader Hale Boggs and Representative Nick Begich. An intense search lasted for 39 days - including 400 aircraft, an SR-71, dozens of boats including 12 from the Coast Guard. There was an extensive search, his bereaved family also continued to search. Theres a rule that if youre much slower than most of the runners, you have to make it halfway up in one hour, or youll be disqualified. The race changed as a result of the disappearance. Adventures By Leah. There are no sweepers that follow the Red Lantern, the last runner down the mountain, to ensure every person has gotten off the mountain. The Mount Marathon is on Monday July 4, 2022. According to Douglas A Mutschler, geologists had used the detonation to undertake a seismographic study of the earths crust, only to find a pyramid structure larger than Cheops underground, somewhere west of Mt. No trace. Reach him at cgrove@alaskapublic.org. They have no race director to make a decision to call off a race due to unsafe conditions. I think that vastness and the proximity of that vastness to town and to thousands of people and spectators, that you could be gone without a trace while there are hundreds of runners and thousands of spectators, like a mile less than a mile away from you, is just a reminder for Alaskans of that very thin line we live in between our little patches of town and kind of infinite wilderness and the dangers of that. There are numerous reports of Bigfoot sightings throughout the entire state. LeMaitre was declared legally dead in October 2012 after a court proceeding known as a presumed death trial. Michael was said to be adventurous and believed he had 'won the lottery' by getting entry into the Mount Marathon race. My dad was in last place. Her husband of 43 years, Michael LeMaitre, was last seen on July 4, about 200 feet from the top of Mount Marathon in Seward, south of Anchorage. LeMaitre: I was told it was overcast. The hike will require you to take on a steep terrain, but you can easily complete it in less than two hours. Theres no designated trailyou just pick the best line. Thats when Anchorage resident Michael LeMaitre went missing while running the race, never to be seen again. "About Mike's vision,'' Peggy said in her statement. By ToI Staff 17 March 2023, 9:59 amUpdated at 4:09 pm. Matthew Kenney and Penny Assman both fell over the same section of trail, known as the waterfall.. When MaryAnne did not hear from her father after the race started on July 4, she knew something was wrong. Though the above are all good places to start a story about risk and passion, the best time to start is on Independence Day, 1969, when a 22-year-old Patricia Schultz is passing Adams on 4th Street, only a block away from finishing the one and only race she would ever run. [1] At around 5.45 pm on the day of the race, Tom Walsh, a race steward, saw Michael ascending to the turnaround point with about 200 feet to go. In 2014, Michaels family settled a lawsuit with the Seward Chamber of Commerce. Frame Material: Plastic; Batteries Required: Yes; Overall: 11.1'' W x 6.61'' H; Good quality. And finally, I decided that I needed to go on the mountain by myself, because thats how he did the race. The family was left angry about what some family members believed were inadequate safety standards for the 49th state's oldest annual running event. People have to promise theyve been up the mountain before. The mens race was also foggy, but the trail had dried some. per adult (price varies by group size) Entrance Ticket Nausicaa, the biggest aquarium in Europe. From 1997 to 2017 there were 4 fatal black bear attacks in Alaska out of 24 in North America. The object he sighted was some five or ten miles from the airport before his arrival and [he] stated that the path did not go directly across the airport. StrangeOutdoors.com. Chamber officials clearly believe there was little more they could have done to prevent the tragedy. Fairbanks, a city thats geographically planted just right of center in the states otherwise unpopulated wilderness, recorded two high temperatures of 88F earlier this month. At the time of these encounters, the USS Tilbrook was anchored in the vicinity of buoy 19 in the nearby main ship channel. If my dad had fallen in one of those chutes and a snow bridge had collapsed over him, the infrared helicopters wouldnt have been able to find him., Michael was declared dead in August 2012 after a presumptive death hearing. $302.38. What happened? Race organisers take no responsibility for Michaels disappearance: Missing mom & baby- Gabriella Harkness Located, Bizarre Stories from the Alaska Triangle Successscan, Bizarre Stories from the Alaska Triangle Mid American News, Lawrence Anderson killed his neighbor Andrea Blankenship, cooked her heart and tried to serve it to his family, Lindsay Clancy strangled her three children with exercise bands, The Missing, Murdered and Reunited of Runaway Train, Social Scammers - Liver King and Maddie Russo, The mysterious vanishing of Nicola Bulley. I hope with the foliage being goneit had been super thick when I was therethat we can start looking again. You see, Alaska is known to have one of the highest ratio of alcohol-free municipalities in America, but Nome loves to party, which is the very reason why so many people flocked to the city in the first place. GO! Starting in downtown Seward, racers run a half-mile to the bottom of Mount Marathon, then scrabble about 2,900 vertical feet straight up cliffs and mud and shale before getting to Race Point, an artificial summit point. In 2019, Tyler Andrews clocked the fastest-known running time on the 40-mile Salkanty rail through the Andes. James and Michelle Butler: The Senseless Murder of 21-Year-Navy Veteran and Wife. A team of hikers will sweep the mountain after the competition to look for potential laggards. All rights reserved. director@mountmarathon.com While injuries are common and expected, LeMaitre's case was unprecedented. The Mount Marathon Race in Seward took place Wednesday, after a year off due to the pandemic, without reports of any major trouble. In 2007, for instance, 2,833 people were reported missing, and when compared to the states comparatively low population of around 670,000 at the time, that equates to about 4 in every 1,000 people; a staggering amount. Then you pop out back out and have to decide whether to take the junior trail, the cliffs, or the waterfall, which is 20 feet out, 70 feet down. Alaska has been the focal point of many Television series, movies, and documentaries that recount the lives of the individuals that live, work and survive there. The average speed uphill is 2 mph. When it sets on November 18, Barrow residents do not see the sun again for nearly two months. Bentonville Half Marathon News / 3 days ago. [Sign up for Alaska Public Medias daily newsletter to get our top stories delivered to your inbox.]. I would say you should run this a dozen times before youre ready to compete in it. It also has the highest number of missing people who are never found. The Civil Air Service also assists with search and rescue missions, and Alaska's branch received the most state funding and saved the most lives in 2006 out of all other state branches [source: Civil Air Service]. And that question has not been answered. No clothing has been spotted and no human remains have been discovered . Every weekday, you'll get fresh, community-driven stories that catch you up with our independent local news. 2. A cadaver dog was sent into the area and friends paid for and analyzed high-resolution photographs of the mountain. The Army ended up conducting the largest military search and rescue mission at that time and found nothing. Subsequently the object seemed to be opening the range, the official report reads, and Smith attempted to close the range. I chose to come down the cliffs in a crabwalk its so steephand, hand, foot, foot. MaryAnne walked the mountain for weeks, looking for her dad. Michelle Theriault Boots:During that race, it was terrible weather. During the court case, Chamber officials obtained access to the LaMaitres financial records in an effort to prove that Michael had staged his own disappearance and that he was alive. Iraq war veteran and Blackhawk pilot Penny Assman slid over a cliff, lacerating her liver and breaking several ribs; an Alaskan runner named Matthew Kenney fell at the same spot and suffered broken legs and brain damage. We have a safety meeting ahead of time that you have to attend. Participants who dont make it a halfway-point within one hour are disqualified, and race sweepers now follow the last runner to the top of the mountain and back down, said race director Matias Saari. The missing woman was found. Listen to the podcast to find out about the hosts thoughts on the various theories HERE. Although the roundtrip race distance of Marathon Mountain is only between 3.1 and 3.5 miles, depending on the route, runners must navigate steep slopes that average 34 degrees, slippery streams, jutting tree roots and narrow paths with thick brush.