NorthShore Inline Marathon blog

Adam Miller, 26, of Independence, Mo., finished in 1 hour, 5 minutes, 15.9 seconds, eight-thousandths of a second ahead of 21-year-old Julian Aparicio of Colombia.

8:35 a.m. -- Winning time around 1 hours, 5 minutes, 15 seconds. The entire lead group of 13 or 14 just flew across the line right next to the William A. Irvin.

8:34 a.m. -- Off the freeway and approaching the DECC at a high rate of speed. Wow.

8:31 a.m. -- Some random kid is wheeling down here. He looks about 12 years old -- possibly a half-marathoner. That race began 45 minutes before this one.

8:30 a.m. -- We're in the tunnels. The leaders are hootin' and hollerin' to make their voices echo. They, like me, are easily amused.

8:28 a.m. -- I don't think the interstate is kind to the racers' wheels. Broken up into segments, the road must provide a bumpy ride for the couple 13, 14 (copyright Dan Cole) racers in the lead group.

8:26 a.m. -- The part I can't wait for is to get on Interstate 35. I've never been in the back of a truck on the freeway. I'm a simple man. Easily amused.

8:25 a.m. -- We pass Glensheen mansion as the leaders prepare to encounter Lemon Drop Hill 56 minutes in.

8:22 a.m. -- Some guys on motorcycles are telling us to speed up. They appear to be affiliated with the race.

There also appears to be a guy (not in the race) skating on the shoulder. He was just passed by the leaders. Picture a kid walking for the first time while Usain Bolt sprints past the child.

8:19 a.m. -- There's a few fans here and there but not near the gathering seen during a Grandma's Marathon weekend. We're near 50th Avenue East on London Road at the 50-minute mark.

8:16 a.m. -- We're in Duluth.

8:15 a.m. -- Forty-five minutes in and we're not far from Duluth. Should be there in another minute or two.

8:10 a.m. -- The leaders rolled through an area that appeared to be under construction earlier this week. There was a noticeable amount of dirt on the road -- just enough to make the light road brown. I wonder if that will have any negative effects on the racers' wheels.

8:07 a.m. -- About four or five racers have continued to swap lead positions during the first 38-plus minutes with the rest of the group following close behind.

8:04 a.m. -- The view of the lake no longer is covered by trees. The racers approach the first water station at the 35-minute mark next to Lakeview Castle.

8 a.m. -- Thirty minutes in and about 14 bladers (Do people call them bladers?) are lined up drafting off one another.

7:56 a.m. -- The slight breeze felt in the back of the truck makes me think I made a mistake shaving my beard yesterday.

7:51 a.m. -- The lead racer (I was there was something to identify him. There are numbers, but they are too small to read from this distance. Not that that would matter -- I haven't seen a program with names and numbers.)was passed and is now running third. About 10 yards behind him is a group of about 12 racers.

7:49 a.m. -- Nineteen minutes in and one racer has broken away from the group and actually passed us for a little bit. He's about 50 yards in front of the next-closest competitor.

7:45 a.m. -- Interesting observation No. 1: Two foxes peered out at the lead pack (of racers) from a ditch on the lake side of the road. They appeared to have a "what the heck is going on?" expression.

7:43 a.m. -- I hope this truck speeds up a bit. For a minute there I thought I'd be able to high-five the first-place racer.

Thirteen minutes in and we've crossed the bridge over Knife River.

7:41 a.m. -- The top female racers appear to be about 60 yards behind the lead group of male competitors.

7:37 a.m. -- There's a smattering of spectators along the early portion of the course.

7:34 a.m. -- Four-plus minutes in and the lead pack just went over a hill on Scenic Highway 61. The weather is a bit cool, 57 degrees -- typical fall temp -- but I'm sure the racers are working up a sweat.

7:30 a.m. -- We're under way and this is no Grandma's Marathon (as far as the speed of the timing truck goes). I'm sitting in the truck bed next to the clock, and we're cruising. A pack of about 20 elite racers got the early start ahead of the rest of the group.

7:27 a.m. -- Welcome to outside Two Harbors for the start of the NorthShore Inline Marathon. I'll be following the leaders during the race. Feel free to e-mail me at jbellamy@duluthnews.com throughout the race.

Thank you to NorthShore Inline Marathon executive director Chuck Carlberg and driver John Docter.