The elite individual winners from last year are back and looking to repeat as champions in the 47th edition of the SELCO Pole Pedal Paddle on Saturday.

Bend’s Andy Krueger and Grace Perkins appear to be the favorites once again in the multisport race from Mt. Bachelor to Bend that crowns Central Oregon’s king and queen of endurance sports.

“They are certainly favored because they are the returning champions,” said race director Marieka Greene.

The PPP stages include an alpine ski down the intermediate Leeway run at Mt. Bachelor, a 3.7-mile nordic ski, a 20-mile bike ride from Bachelor to Bend, a 5.2-mile run along the Deschutes River, a 1.5-mile paddle on the river and the finishing sprint of .41 miles.

The first elite racers are expected to finish at about 11 a.m. at Riverbend Park in Bend’s Old Mill District.

The vast majority of participants compete as teams, with a different team member racing each stage, but individuals race with a chance to master the region’s signature outdoor sports all in one event.

Bend’s Krueger the men’s favorite, but Greene is back

Krueger, a professional triathlete, won last year for the first time in one hour, 44 minutes, 29 seconds, ahead of second-place Mike Condon, of Bend. It was just Krueger’s second time competing in the PPP after finishing second in 2023.

Last year, Krueger, 25, did not have to contend with seven-time winner Marshall Greene and four-time winner Jesse Thomas, who were both out with injuries.

While Thomas, 45, is still nursing a neck injury that kept him out last year, Greene, 43, is planning to race once again. He ran the Boston Marathon last month and finished in 2:49:22.

“He was fully training for that and met his goal,” said Marieka Greene, who is also Marshall’s wife. “He’ll be in the mix, too. I doubt he has a chance to beat Andy because Andy will be SO fast on the bike.

“He’s also a professional triathlete and 20 years younger. If it was Andy’s first year, maybe Marshall would have a chance. But he’s experienced and he’s a pro triathlete. His bike to run is going to be real strong.”

Krueger basically won the race during the bike stage last year.

“I didn’t do skiing growing up like some of the other guys did, so when I got on the bike I knew I wasn’t in the lead, but I made my goal to get to the front of the race by the halfway mark,” Krueger said after last year’s PPP. ““I think it took me a little over halfway … but once I got there, I knew I was putting distance between me and the other guys.”

Bend’s Perkins the favorite in the women’s race

Perkins won last year’s PPP women’s race in her third attempt in 2:09:48. A former collegiate runner, Perkins will be up against Susie Rivard, of White Salmon, Wash., who won the Portland Marathon in 2015 and competed in the 2020 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials.

Last year, Perkins said she knew she had the race won by the time she hopped in her kayak.

“Once I got to the kayak, I kind of knew I had it in the bag so I just tried to make sure nothing went wrong and I didn’t fall out,” Perkins said after last year’s race.

Perkins, 25, is a lifelong Bend resident and Bend High graduate who ran cross-country and track for the University of Portland. She finished fourth in 2023 and third in 2022.

A wet and snowy PPP?

Saturday’s National Weather Service forecast for Bend is for high temperatures in the upper 50s with an 80% chance of rain. At Bachelor, the forecast is for highs in the mid-30s with a 100% chance of snow showers.

“It could be a little winter mix on the mountain for sure,” Marieka Greene said. “Just don’t happen the night before PPP please. We just don’t want snow on Century Drive. That’s always a concern, for sure.”

For more information on the Pole Pedal Paddle, visit pppbend.com.

For complete coverage of Saturday’s races, visit bendbulletin.com.