Eddie O’Neill/Daily Mining Gazette Jonathan Kilpela, left, and Moira Hough pose with Clayton Sayen, manager of Copper Country Running Company. Kilpela and Hough were winners at the Running Company’s Swedetown Shuffle on Saturday in Calumet.

By EDDIE O’NEILL

eoneill@mininggazette.com

CALUMET — The second race of this fall’s Copper Country Running Company’s three-part series took place on the trails of Swedetown this past Saturday. Two weeks ago, the series opened on the Michigan Tech Trails with around 30 runners trekking off road for four miles. On Saturday, many of the same runners were back for the Swedetown Shuffle which added another mile (five) and narrowed the “track.”

Jonathan Kilpela came in first overall, and won the men’s division for the second time. A new face for the women, Moira Hough, placed first in her division. Kilpela won with a time of 36:40, and Hough crossed the finish line at the 43:43 mark.

“What makes this race unique is that it is mostly single-track racing,” said race organizer Clayton Sayen. “You are in effect running on mountain bike trails, and that makes it hard to pass people. It is different from the wide-open Tech Trails.”

The 30-something Kilpela liked the challenge. While he has skied and biked at Swedetown before, he noted it had been many years since he ran there.

“With the narrow track, you must be focused on every step and making sure you are not going to trip,” he said. “It keeps you awake and certainly is a cure for boredom.”

It was Hough’s first time on the trails. The New Mexico resident, who is here teaching at Michigan Tech this fall, said it was a beautiful trail.

“I am more of an ultra-distance runner, so this was a different challenge for me,” she said. “It was a fun challenge, and I will certainly be back.”

For their top-place finishes, Kilpela and Hough both received $25 gift certificates to the Running Company’s downtown Houghton store.

This was Paul Weiss’s second race of the series, and he too liked the challenge and variety that the Swedetown Shuffle had to offer. The MTU ROTC instructor said he knows the Tech Trails well, and this was different.

“This one had a lot of tight trails,” he said. “Passing was hard. I must admit that I am coming to enjoy the single-track running options that this community has to offer.”

Weiss and all other interested runners will have one more chance to compete off road this fall. Race three dubbed the Maasto/Churning Rapids Challenge will be a 7.5 mile run at the namesake trails in Hancock. It will take place on Saturday, Sept. 23, at 9 a.m. Sayen noted that there are still plenty of open registration spots for runners. That can be online or at their store located in the 300 block of Shelden Avenue.

“We will be keeping a score for those who participate in all three races, and whoever has the highest point total will be the winner of our CCRC grand prize,” he added. “Prizes will be awarded to the Top-5 male and female racers as well.”