Erin Letzring wins Beargrease in near photo-finish
Alaska musher beat her ex-husband by just 7 seconds to become the first woman to win the marathon since 1998. 2:31 pm, Feb. 3, 2021 ×
Erin Letzring hugs a lead dog and handler and former Beargrease marathon champion Keith Aili after winning the marathon by 7 seconds. (Steve Kuchera / skuchera@duluthnews.com)
MINERAL CENTER, Minn. In a near-photo finish stolen from the mushing movie Iron Will, Erin Letzring won the 37th John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon Tuesday evening by just 7 seconds over her fellow Alaskan Ryan Redington.
The two battled back and forth for the final leg of the 302-mile race, swapping the lead multiple times before Letzring pulled ahead for the final few hundred feet, emerging out of the dark to a stunned crowd of media and race officials bathed in television floodlights.
She and 2020 champion Ryan Redington were neck-and-neck during the final leg of the race.
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Erin Letzring hugs a lead dog and handler and former Beargrease marathon champion Keith Aili after winning the marathon by 7 seconds on Tuesday evening in Mineral Center. (Steve Kuchera / skuchera@duluthnews.com)
Erin Letzring, of Skagway, Alaska, narrowly defeated 2020 champion Ryan Redington, of Wasilla, Alaska, to win the 37th annual John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon on Tuesday night.
Letzring, who was competing in her first Beargrease and was running nine dogs, arrived shortly after 6 p.m. at the finish, about 6 miles west of Grand Portage in Cook County.
Erin Letzring wins Beargrease in near photo-finish
Alaska musher beat her ex-husband by just 7 seconds to become the first woman to win the marathon since 1998. 7:40 pm, Feb. 2, 2021 ×
Erin Letzring hugs a lead dog and handler and former Beargrease marathon champion Keith Aili after winning the marathon by 7 seconds. (Steve Kuchera / skuchera@duluthnews.com)
MINERAL CENTER In a near-photo finish stolen from the mushing movie Iron Will, Erin Letzring won the 37th John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon Tuesday evening by just 7 seconds over her fellow Alaskan Ryan Redington.
The two battled back and forth for the final leg of the 302-mile race, swapping the lead multiple times before Letzring pulled ahead for the final few hundred feet, emerging out of the dark to a stunned crowd of media and race officials bathed in television floodlights.