Dexter Woman Runs the Antarctic Ice Marathon

This month has been an eventful one for Dexter’s Lynn Bergren. She’s literally been running around the world.

On Dec. 13, Bergren successfully completed the Antarctic Ice Marathon, making her one of two 70 year old women to set the record for the oldest females to run the Ice Marathon, and then four days later she flew over to Chile and ran the Strait of Magellan Marathon in Punta Arenas.  

Her achievement in Antarctica was a unique one she shares with fellow marathoner Domitilia dos Santos of Portugal. Wanting to learn more about her experience at the Ice Marathon, the Sun Times News finally caught up with Bergren after her South American run.

She said she’s wanted to run in the Ice Marathon ever since reading about it in 2016, in an article in a flight magazine. Bergren ran her first marathon in 2011 at the age of 56, and has run over 20 since. She has run all of the Abbott World Majors except for Boston which she hopes to run in 2027.

The conditions in Antarctica were -18° C with strong winds and drifting snow, she said. By the third loop of the 10.55 km course, she said you could not see the trail on at least two of the legs.

“Just the small blue flanges, marking the inside perimeter of the course blowing stiffly in the wind,” she said. “One runner ended up with frostbite on a finger.”

Bergren was one of 84 runners running in this event. She said they camped in two person tents with cots and double sleeping bags in Union Glacier. They arrived the day prior to the marathon, she said, and were held two days extra after due to bad weather conditions for their flight.

She said, “It was an amazing experience!”

Now with these two marathons (the Ice Marathon and the one in Chile), she has completed a marathon in all seven continents. She’s not done though, this coming April she’s headed back to Chile to run the Patagonia Marathon with her niece.

Good Luck Lynn!

Photo 1: Lynn Bergren running in challenging conditions. Photo courtesy of Lynn Bergren

Photo 2: Bergren at the Ice Marathon. Photo courtesy of Lynn Bergren

Photo 3:The tents that Bergren and other participants stayed in while at the Ice Marathon. Photo courtesy of Lynn Bergren

Photo 4: Bergren has completed marathons all around the world. Photo courtesy of Lynn Bergren