Ghostly apparitions appear on Pioneer Road

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Terrors of town run amok in Halloween Half Marathon and 5K

Costumed runners start the Halloween Half Marathon and 5K races on North Douglas Highway near Pioneer Road, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026. (Klas Stolpe / Juneau Independent)

By Klas Stolpe

Juneau Independent

The winner of Saturday’s Halloween Half Marathon along North Douglas Highway flew faster than a ghostly apparition, but some say it was the vast field of costumed devilry that frightened the fastest runner from Pioneer Road to Fish Creek Road and back.

“Oh, Halloween means tiger outfits and costumes,” said Jason Norat, 30, who won the half marathon. “And a little bat wing for our dog, and our cat is a black cat, so he doesn’t need a costume.”

Norat finished in one hour and 25 minutes on the out-and-back course.

And the trick was the treat of strong winds that blew costumes aside, livened up the rain and knocked down the turnaround sign for the 5-kilometer race, causing some costumed athletes to run an extra kilometer or two. But the spirit of the race was in the ghoulish good cheer.

When asked what the scariest thing on the course was, Norat said, “Oooo, the wind.”

Norat called his tiger outfit “a tight-fitting costume that masked some of the pain, constrained some of that. I wore it last year for this race so it has a little bit of nostalgia and I think that is what powered me through.”

Emmett Hightower, 16, won the Halloween 5k in 19:10 and Sigrid Eller was the first female, and sixth overall, in 26:02. First female in the Halloween Half Marathon was Kaia Mangaccat in 1:33.24.

Racers were asked what Halloween means to them.

“To be honest, I put all my most colorful clothes on for this,” said Seth Bartusek, 27. “I really appreciated the creativity that people bring to costumes. I think it is fun to see everyone express that. I love niche references, like I saw Old Gregg, which is like a YouTube video. I also saw the Hesco barriers, which is my favorite costume today. It is fun, that creative spirit that the holiday brings.”

A trio of athletes ran the gamut from pickles to mice.

Sarah Zaglifa, costumed as Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Nate Rumsey, costumed as The Pickle Man, run in the Halloween Half Marathon and 5K race on North Douglas Highway near Pioneer Road, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026. (Klas Stolpe / Juneau Independent)

Nate Rumsey, 47, was dressed in a lot of green.

“It is an opportunity for everybody to explore their eccentric side,” he said. “I don’t know, I am Pickle Guy.”

Sarah Zaglifa, 52, said, “Halloween is just a reminder to kind of let loose, tap into your inner child and have fun with your own kids.”

Zaglifa was dressed as Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

“Hero,” she said.

Grace Rumsey, 14, said, “Halloween is about having fun, and I am Minnie Mouse.”

Another family went for a hairdo theme.

“A day of family, fun events and dressing up,” Luke Taintor, 39, said. “I am a 1980s mulleted, ah, the wife dressed me.”

Keegan Jackson, 43, said, “I had to pull like a ’90s Cruella de Vil to try and match my husband and kids. I have the Dalmatian. Tried to tie the whole family together. I always think Halloween is just fun. I love … pumpkins and it is just fun for the kids to get to dress up and have really long mullets that match their real hair.”

Keegan Jackson, dressed as Cruella de Vil runs in the Halloween Half Marathon and 5K race on North Douglas Highway near Pioneer Road, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026. (Klas Stolpe / Juneau Independent)

Calder Taintor, 9, said Halloween means “eating candy.”

“We are just punk bikers,” said Mary Aparezuk, 45. “Halloween just means family and community. Fun. Dressing up.”

Co-biker Alicia Maryott said Halloween was “whimsy, fun, candy.”

Attigan Hood, 17, ransacked his parents’ closet for a stunning ensemble.

“Yeah, my family’s costume bin and we had a couple capes to choose from,” Hood said. “I picked the most tropical one, because, well, Juneau. Then the brightest wig I could find. Halloween is just a fun time. I love to see the creativity in the community come to life and everything that people pull out of their closets.”

Kevin Hood, 57, skipped the family closet for “thrifting.”

“We went to Colorado Thrift Store,” the elder Hood said. “Running is like art. You are signing up for a lot of self-flagellation.”

Katie Janes, costumed in a Barbie and Ken theme, runs in the Halloween Half Marathon and 5K race on North Douglas Highway near Pioneer Road, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026. (Klas Stolpe / Juneau Independent)

The annual best costume award went to a pair of Hesco barriers.

“It was actually my boyfriend’s idea,” Emma Sihler, 26, said. “He is running the half marathon, Ian Novak. We live in the valley, so we thought it was kind of relevant, and funny, and just kind of like different. Halloween is just a fun time to dress up and celebrate fall and that it is getting darker. And have fun with your friends. And it is fun to see kids having fun.”

Ian Novak, 25, ran his Hesco barrier to 14th place in the half marathon in 1:43.40.

“I just thought running as a big bag of sand was kind of funny,” Novak said. “So I thought I would go for it. Halloween means dressing up and having fun. Being creative.”

Ian Novak and Emma Sihler run in their Hesco barrier costumes during the Halloween Half Marathon and 5K on North Douglas Highway near Pioneer Road, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026. (Klas Stolpe / Juneau Independent)

HALLOWEEN HALF MARATHON RESULTS:

First Name	Last Name	Age on 7/1/2026	Gender
Jason	Norat	30	Male	1:25:00
Tim	Mikulski	27	Male	1:28:26
Abe	Kaner	32	Male	1:30:09
Austin	Huang	17	Male	1:31:13
Kaia	Mangacat	16	Female	1:33:24
Niklas	Uschmann	16	Male	1:33:26
Jon	Smith	29	Male	1:35:15
McKenna	Uhing	25	Female	1:39:29
Isabelle	Hanel	26	Female	1:39:30
Hiram	Henry	52	Male	1:39:31
Will	Merritt	21	Male	1:39:39
Andy	Bullick	47	Male	1:41:31
Ian	Novak	25	Male	1:43:40
Abe	Levy	39	Male	1:46:06
Alan	Gordon	42	Male	1:51:34
William	Westgate	27	Male	1:53:26
Anna	Cummings	22	Female	1:54:31
Caroline	McGrath	23	Female	1:54:31
Finn	Kelly	16	Male	1:56:14
Rowan	Hightower	13	Male	1:56:26
Christine	Woll	41	Female	1:56:52
Julia	Gibler	27	Female	1:57:00
Elizabeth	Siddon	48	Female	1:58:00
Roel	Mangacat	48	Male	1:58:18
MaryAnn	Love	44	Female	1:58:46
Steven	Schmitz	65	Male	1:58:47
Ian	Brennan	20	Male	1:59:04
Jacob	Earnshaw	27	Male	1:59:04
Amanda	Moore	24	Female	1:59:04
Hannah	Bailey	30	Female	2:00:00
Emma	Maxtutis	28	Female	2:00:00
Kate	Osborne	27	Female	2:00:00
Kristen	Strom	29	Female	2:00:14
Erin	Carriker	47	Female	2:02:17
Sibine	Auger	17	Female	2:03:21
Kaycee	Parady	17	Female	2:03:21
Ellie	Wall	17	Female	2:03:21
Corinne	Bullick	46	Female	2:05:11
Adele	Fanning	17	Female	2:07:21
Tim	Boehner	44	Male	2:09:00
Mindy	Shaw	45	Female	2:09:01
Melissa	Anderson	50	Female	2:09:43
Suzanne	Morris	42	Female	2:09:43
Myah	Lehman	18	Female	2:10:47
Michelle	Morris	48	Female	2:11:01
Esme	Crossett	28	Female	2:11:34
Heather	Parker	40	Female	2:14:32
Eric	Filardi	41	Male	2:14:41
Doninique	Johnson	36	Male	2:17:00
Melanie	Shrader	18	Female	2:22:19
Caroline	Lawrence	32	Female	2:25:34
Brian	Thomason	35	Male	2:25:34
Megan	Hendrickson	36	Female	2:25:51
Margaret	Katzeek	38	Female	2:26:44
Katie	Rosson	13	Female	2:26:50
Jeannette	Lacey	50	Female	2:26:51
Nayeli	Hood	14	Female	2:26:54
Cianna	Kahl	14	Female	2:26:54
Stephanie	Sauve	39	Female	2:26:55
Jada	Kahl	43	Female	2:27:15
Anderson	Murray	17	Male	2:37:35
Lucy	Wall	15	Female	2:37:35
Johanna	Crossett	56	Female	2:38:00
John	Eldridge	75	Male	2:54:01
Victoria	Freeman	21	Female	3:07:57
Darius	Mina	25	Male	3:07:57
Chloe	Anderson	24	Female	DNS
Eric	Antrim	53	Male	DNS
Zack	Bursell	33	Male	DNS
David	noon	55	Male	DNS
Hannah	Rennicke	34	Female	DNS
Chrissy	Salayon	22	Male	DNS
Callie	Stickel	17	Female	DNS
Jenna	Wiersma	40	Female	DNS

HALLOWEEN 5K RESULTS:

First Name	Last Name	Age on 7/1/2026	Gender
Emmett	Hightower	16	Male	19:10
Tommy	Vrabec	33	Male	20:50
Finn	Taintor	9	Male	21:37
Peter	Flynn	43	Male	22:50
Atagan	Hood	17	Male	24:48:00
Sigrid	Eller	16	Female	26:02:00
Sunna	Schane	16	Female	26:02:00
Kyra	Lussier	25	Female	26:13:00
Katelyn	Schultz	26	Female	26:39:00
Grace	Rumsey	14	Female	26:42:00
Robie	Janes	30	Male	26:59:00
Calder	Taintor	7	Male	27:07:00
Luke	Taintor	39	Male	27:08:00
Christy	Gentemann	37	Female	27:11:00
Jonathan	Perry	42	Male	28:11:00
Emily	Ferry	47	Female	28:27:00
Nate	Rumsey	47	Male	29:37:00
Sarah	Zaglifa	52	Female	29:37:00
Seth	Bartusek	27	Male	29:56:00
Noah	Anstett	24	Male	30:35:00
Katie	Janes	30	Female	30:59:00
Mae	Peterson	2	Female	31:05:00
Finn	Peterson	4	Male	31:05:00
Randy	Peterson	40	Male	31:05:00
April	Renendez	42	Female	31:05:00
Katy	Ritter	47	Female	31:43:00
Annette	Jarosz	27	Female	31:52:00
Jenna	Schlener	32	Female	31:52:00
Marley	Kott	24	Male	31:57:00
Therese	Pokorney	27	Female	31:57:00
Grace	Fluharty	25	Female	31:58:00
Tristan	Gibbs	19	Male	32:28:00
Haven	Marban	19	Female	32:28:00
Terra	Parker	43	Female	32:29:00
Addi	Johnson	8	Female	32:35:00
Kristin	McTague	55	Female	32:37:00
Isla	Taintor	8	Female	33:00:00
Rowan	Taintor	13	Male	33:00:00
Emma	Sihler	26	Female	33:14:00
Courtney	Beringer	29	Female	33:54:00
Moira	Meek	31	Female	33:54:00
Lynne	McNamara	23	Female	34:09:00
Corban	Stearns	22	Male	34:25:00
Mikyala	Neal	21	Female	34:26:00
Harper	Gunn	29	Female	34:30:00
Yvonne	Krumery	30	Female	34:30:00
Claire	Larson	25	Female	34:30:00
Keegan	Jackson	43	Female	34:43:00
Sara	Stekoll	46	Female	34:52:00
Katelyn	Rennicke	37	Female	34:53:00
Hannah	Rennicke	34	Female	34:53:00
Isla	Stekoll	11	Female	35:09:00
Stephanie	DuBois	35	Female	35:12:00
Mari	Kanagy	24	Female	35:36:00
Chloe	Anderson	24	Female	35:37:00
tAdirenne	Sypeck	30	Female	36:05:00
Chelsea	Copley	37	Female	36:06:00
Shirin	Raschid Farrokhi	25	Female	36:06:00
Rick	Sypeck	65	Male	36:07:00
JAKE	STONE	25	Male	36:08:00
Ranger	Filardi	7	Female	37:03:00
Alex	Vrabec	35	Female	37:12:00
Selina	Finley	36	Female	37:28:00
Hannah	Schlosstein	36	Female	37:28:00
Sydney	Richer	25	Female	41:22:00
Maddie	Sullivan	10	Female	41:34:00
Guy	Crockroft	66	Male	43:47:00
Mary	Aparezuk	45	Female	43:49:00
Alicia	Maryott	38	Female	44:40:00
Jeff	Gnass	80	Male	45:12:00
Linda	Kruger	75	Female	45:39:00
Will	Hicks	57	Male	45:41:00
River	Humphries	10	Male	45:41:00
Kim	Hall	60	Female	48:18:00
Kevin	Hood	57	Male	50:52:00
Betsey	Johnson	9	Female	58:06:00
Christine	Chandler	46	Female	59:16:00
Kristen	Albert	54	Female	DNS
Martha	Brown	36	Female	DNS
Meaghan	Gorman	28	Female	DNS
Rowan	Hightower	13	Male	DNS
Nathan	Jamsa	30	Male	DNS
Autumn	Noggle	50	Female	DNS
Elliott	Peters	12	Male	DNS
Michelle	Peters	33	Female	DNS
Sharon	Purslow	31	Female	DNS
Rielly	Walsh	28	Female	DNS