More Than 100 Runners Tackle Girdwood-Eagle River Wilderness Race

By Soren Wuerth

TNews Editor

Around 108 runners stampeded off a bridge Saturday's rainy morning on their way to Eagle River, 22.6 miles away.

Confronting them was a three-mile, 2,000-foot climb to the top of Crow Pass, a 10-mile descent through an overgrown trail to eventually cross thigh or waist-high Eagle River, then another nearly 10-mile slog to the Eagle River Nature Center.

Prior to the start, runners had received a warning: it's going to be a cold one. A steady drizzle made the 50-degree morning feel downright chilly.

And with a capacity for 150 racers, only 108 bibs were picked up. 

This year the 41st-annual race is going to be a little "longer and slower", Race Director Matias Saari said as he packed up gear below a tent at the start.

Later he sent a text:  "two come from behind wins".

Crossing the finish line three hours and 33 minutes later, Allan Spangler had a five minute lead over 18-year-old Zan Griffis. Spangler "caught and passed" Griffis with three miles to go, Saari said, and Christy Marvin "chased down" Shauna Severson to be the first woman to cross the tape. The two took 8th and 9th overall.

A new trail section adds nearly a half mile to the run. The time limit for completion was increased to seven hours.

Read the entire story at the link below;

https://www.turnagainnews.org/articles/one-your-mark-get-set-crow

By Soren Wuerth

TNews Editor

Tucked in a tent guarded by three enormous cottonwood trees, 11-year-old Hazel Kavaganis tallied her day's fortunes.

"I sold half my stock, a bunch of people signed up on my website, that I'm still working on, and, what else?" she said, clicking long, colorful fingernails. 

One a table beside her lay sets of 10 hand-painted Gel X Nails. Months before the Forest Fair, Hazel began to craft a product line for a booth she calls "Talk to the Hand". 

She ended up making 33 kits, some painted like bumblebees, others green and black aliens, others jade, others crimson, some pink. 

The nails are hot sellers. Names and email addresses crowd a clipboard resting nearby.

"This is her deal," said her father, Bill, a masseuse at the Alyeska Nordic Spa, who sat nearby. "But she gets her entrepreneurial skills from her mom."

And each year, there's been something different for the young entrepreneur. Last year, it was embroidery and magnets.

"Everybody thought it was cross-stitching. But it was embroidery," said Hazel, who wants to go to college for cosmetology and hopes to open a salon someday.

Hazel operates one of several "Kid & Teen" booths at the Fair, a vending reservation that gives younger people the opportunity to "take on the entrepreneurial skills to vend and create unique products," according to the Fair's website. Kids 12 and under receive free booth space while teens will have to pony up $150 for a space.

There are 32 kids booths. Last year's event had "an overwhelming number of applicants", the website reported. Only hand-crafted items are allowed to be sold.

"We are so grateful to the Forest Fair for making space available for kids," Bill said, looking on. 

By Soren Wuerth

TNews Editor

Tara Starlight was putting the final touches on her booth "Starlight Coffee" when a volunteer approached. "Do you want some coffee?" she asked. "This one's on the house."

She was ready to go Thursday afternoon with a beverage menu of coffee, cold brew, mocktails and a special concoction called "Raspberry Danish":  cold brew with a cream cheese soft top. 

Starlight is in her second year as a vendor and took an opportunity to move her stand to a new location near the ballfield fence. "I can see the main stage from here," she said, smiling. Last year she said she sold at least 1,000 cold drinks alone. 

Her crew is her family. "The teenagers are sleeping in the back of the van," said Starlight, who works for the Fairbanks Climate Action Coalition. 

Meanwhile, across a cluttered path, the Talkeetna Spinach Bread crew was busy assembling its stand. The widely popular food booth began more than two decades ago, said owner Ross Benischek. He nodded toward his son Finn, 22. "During our first year, my wife was pregnant with him," Benischek said.

Since lines are long for the crispy, garlicky, cheese-topped bread, Forest Fair volunteers moved the youth performance stage closer to the bread stand's queue, said Terri Adkins, the event's vice president. Youth performances run 11 a.m. through 5 p.m. on Saturday.

And while a couple new food booths have cropped up—like "Papaya Tree", which sells Southeast Asian street food—a main attraction may be the Fair's revamped wine garden. 

Read the entire story and more pictures of the Forest Fair at the link below:

https://www.turnagainnews.org/articles/forest-fair-in-its-51st-year-launches-this-weekend