On Friday afternoon and into Saturday, triathlete and Cedar resident Andy Belanger plans to run the entire length of M-22 (nearly 120 miles)—from Arcadia in Manistee County, north through Benzie and Leelanau counties, and south along West Grand Traverse Bay and into Traverse City. Belanger is raising money to support the Leelanau Conservancy.
M-22 is a scenic road that hugs the Lake Michigan shoreline, it’s the namesake of a triathlon, it’s an apparel brand, and apparently also a hot commodity for thieves. The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) says it has replaced approximately 90 M-22 road signs in the past three years.
Voted the Best Endurance Event in Northern Michigan by Traverse Magazine, the M-22 Challenge has become the “must do” event for athletes of all calibers. This run-bike-paddle race is hosted in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park. This year’s M-22 Challenge will take place on Saturday, June 13, at 8 a.m.
Maybe it’s true—the third time is a charm. Though my first two M22 Challenges—the first in 2011, my second in ’13—were fantastic experiences, this year’s event proved especially rewarding. Not just because I made it to the podium—a first in my seven years of racing!—but because I felt so strong throughout this 22-mile run-bike-paddle race. Is there anything better than a race where everything just clicks?
Jeff Smoke, 35 of Buchanan, Mich., is not a newcomer to the M-22 Challenge, the podium or paddle triathlons. Smoke kayaked on the 2004 U.S. Olympic team and took first place at the 2011 and 2013 M-22 Challenge. In past years Smoke has dominated the paddle portion of the race and this is where he would win the event. However, in 2014 he picked up his cycling pace, which proved to make the ultimate difference for him, as Denny Paull was only one second off Smoke’s paddle time. Paull, the 2010 and 2012 winner, came into the transition area from the run well ahead of Smoke, but lost valuable time to Smoke on the bike portion of the race. Paull finished second overall.
Imagine 900 kayaks lying side by side in rows on the banks of Little Glen Lake near Glen Arbor. A few yards away, picture 900 bikes hanging in organized racks. Beyond the bikes looms the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore where 900 athletes, ranging from 14-71 years old and hailing from 15 states and countries as far away as Switzerland, will run up the famous “Dune Climb”. You are picturing the sixth annual M-22 Challenge, which features athletes competing in the “Most Beautiful Place in America”.
By Jacob Wheeler Sun editor Next time you have the munchies while driving between Glen Arbor and Leland, or find yourself in need of provisions for the cottage on Little Traverse or Lime Lake, there’s no need to scavenge for mushrooms in the woods. In early October, Neal Kokowicz plans to open Market 22, in […]
With the sun setting on summer, it’s now road construction season. The Michigan Department of Transportation informed the Glen Lake Chamber of Commerce of an M-22 road project scheduled to begin on Monday, Sept. 16. One-way vehicle traffic will commence on M-22 between Oak Street and County Road 675/Crystal View Road. The project is expected to be complete by early October.
From staff reports Michigan’s coastline and habitat diversity have long been a draw to bird watchers and nature enthusiasts. Birders and eco-tourists spend millions each year in the enjoyment of their pursuits. Now, the Sleeping Bear Birding Trail, Michigan’s first birding trail, has been formed to connect exceptional birding areas and promote the area that […]
Graeme and Judy Leask, with daughters Chelsea and Gemma, have resuscitated an old county landmark and gathering place: the Little Traverse Inn. Most recently the restaurant North, and for many years before that the Leelanau Country Inn, this cozy glass-porched B&B and eatery has, as the menu recalls, “an incredible history.”