When Kikkan Randall won Mount Marathon for the first time on Monday, her mom Deborah was there to celebrate. Deborah is a past Mount Marathon Champion herself. And she was probably the only person collecting condolences over Kikkan’s win. That’s because she’s held her own mount marathon victory over Kikkan’s head through the years.
Deborah says she didn’t have high expectations for her daughter before yesterday’s race, because Kikkan has been so focused on ski racing this year. But she was absolutely thrilled when she won.
Winning the race runs in the family. Deborah’s sister Betsy Haines won three Mount Marathon’s in a row in the late 70’s and early 80’s. Deborah’s own win came before Kikkan was born.
And as for whether she was a little bit sad to see Kikkan take away the one sports endeavor she could brag about besting her daughter in? Not a chance.
Deborah says she is very happy being a spectator these days.
Annie Feidt is the Managing Editor for Alaska's Energy Desk, a collaboration between Alaska Public Media in Anchorage, KTOO Public Media in Juneau and KUCB in Unalaska. Her reporting has taken her searching for polar bears on the Chukchi Sea ice, out to remote checkpoints on the Iditarod Trail, and up on the Eklutna Glacier with scientists studying its retreat. Her stories have been heard nationally on NPR and Marketplace.
Annie’s career in radio journalism began in 1998 at Minnesota Public Radio, where she produced the regional edition of All Things Considered. She moved to Anchorage in 2004 with her husband, intending to stay in the 49th state just a few years. She has no plans to leave anytime soon.
afeidt (at) alaskapublic (dot) org | 907.550.8443 | About Annie
