Tarr finishes 20th LeGrizz ultramarathon

Friends and family sure are nice. Especially when you're gutting out a 50-mile running race.

Columbia Falls' Mark Tarr had plenty of support Oct. 8 when he finished his 20th LeGrizz ultramarathon along the Hungry Horse Reservoir, running the 50-mile course in 8:10:33 and taking 18th place. For his effort, he received the Chief 10 Bears Lifetime Achievement Award, given to runners who finish 20 races and show exemplary character.

"It's been something I've been wanting to get done," he said the day after the race. "It's a relief."

Over his career, Tarr has won the race 13 times and holds the course record 5:34.38 set in 1996, but his 20th finish proved elusive. He finished the race last year, but he dropped out of several earlier races, once for an injury and once for hypothermia.

This year, friends and family came out in full force to help him across the line. Bob Feeney, of Medicine Hat, Alberta, who has also finished 20 LeGrizz races, ran with Tarr for several miles at about the 30-mile mark.

"He ran with me in the grind part of the race," Tarr said. "It helped a lot."

The Feeneys were glad to do it.

"We wanted to make sure we came down for (Mark's 20th)," Bob's wife, Sue Feeney, said.

In the final six miles of the race, Tarr was joined by his son Aric, and they crossed the line together.

"It made the miles pass easier," Mark said. "I was feeling pretty good. It made things more enjoyable."

Tarr also had his wife Yvonne and daughter Allison cheering him on along the course. This year's course was more grueling than most.

Because of road construction on the west side of the reservoir, runners ran on the east side road, cut over at Lion Lake, ran to the dam and then doubled back to the finish line.

Tarr wasn't the only Columbia Falls runner to finish. Scott Gaiser, the assistant principal at Columbia Falls High School, took ninth with a time of 7:27:43. Gaiser also competes in Iron Man triathlons. Jeff Metsky, of Columbia Falls, also completed the race, taking 51st with a time of 10:19:38.

This was the 30th year of the race sponsored by the Cheetah Herders Athletic Club, of Seeley Lake. Seventy-four runners completed the event. Thirty-nine of the starters had never run 50 miles before. All of them finished.

For more information, visit online at www.cheetahherders.com.