Another Record-Setting Bemidji Blue Ox Marathon with New Best Women’s Time

Benjamin Drexler of Minneapolis (left) is the winner of the 2024 men’s marathon, while Ellyssa Peterson of Nashwauk set a new women’s marathon record this year. (Credit: Bemidji Blue Ox Marathon)

The annual Bemidji Blue Ox Marathon was this past weekend, where runners from 32 different states and four Canadian provinces participated in numerous runs at various lengths, ranging from a 5K on Friday to the marathon itself on Saturday morning.

Last year’s marathon winner, Bemidji local Jesse Prince, won the men’s 26K lake loop and finished in one hour and 40 minutes, while Dawn Fairchild from Grand Rapids was the women’s top lake loop finisher in two hours and five minutes.

In the men’s marathon, it was Benjamin Drexler of Minneapolis who would take first place in a time of 2:38:22. Last year he finished second to Prince, and this year he was only going to run the lake loop before switching to the marathon just minutes before the race began.

“The weather was perfect and I was going to probably run 23, 24 miles anyway,” explained Drexler. “So when the weather is this good, sometimes you just make the audible to go for it. It’s just like it’s a shock because I did not taper, I’m in the middle of a cycle and it’s a dream. Like, I wanted one of those big axes, you get a huge ax for winning and I’ve had my eye on one for many years, but only one person gets one, so you gotta have a good day. So I’m still in disbelief.”

In the women’s marathon, Ellyssa Peterson of Nashwauk not only finished first, but set a new women’s Blue Ox Marathon record, finishing in 2:54:31. The new time broke Amy Will’s record of two hours and 57 minutes set at last year’s marathon.

“It feels really awesome,” said Peterson. “I’m a cross country coach at Cass Lake-Bena and I just kept thinking about all the kids I coach. And there’s a lot of great basketball players there, and we talk about mamba mentality, so I was kind of just thinking about that while I was running. When it started hurting, I was like, ‘mamba mentality, mamba mentality.’ But it feels really awesome to come out here, and … I had no idea that I was anywhere near the record.”

Benjamin Drexler now owns and axe and the seventh fastest men’s time in the Blue Ox Marathon, and Ellyssa Peterson, apart from setting the new record, is only the second women to run the marathon in under three hours at the Blue Ox. Amy Will was the first to do it last year.