Lyndon Ellefson lived an adventurous life ending tragically in mid stride as he fell through a glacier crevasse near Cervinia, Italy, 1998.  He was there as a member of the original, international Fila Skyrunners Team and was on a high-altitude training run in preparation for the Skyrunning Marathon.

Known as a fearless Alpine marathoner, Lyndon always approached life with a high sense of humor, tempered with passion for running.

Lyndon was a pioneer in mountain running and was instrumental in starting the U.S. men’s mountain running program.

His high school classmate at Barron HS, Tom Koser said Ellefson “was hilarious, (with) a great sense of humor.  He was a lot of fun to be with, he had a smile and a joke for all, and, during our junior and senior years, he was the leader of the pack to organize and do things.”

His legacy lives on in two mountain races, the Lyndon Ellefson Memorial Half Marathon and 5K (Barron, CO) and the annual Vail Athletic Club Vail Mountain Winter Uphill Race and Hike.

At the time of his passing, Lyndon was a Vail, Colorado gondola manager and is survived by his wife Tashina and his sons Sylvan and Kjell.