In 1930 Jakobsson returned to the USA. Among other reasons, he wanted to again enter the Fort Klamath-Crater Lake race. He won that year and received a considerable sum of money. Like Nordeen had in 1929, Jakobsson was allowed to keep the trophy for a year.
Both Jakobsson and Nordeen entered the race in 1931, each having the chance to keep the trophy for good. The spectators arrived in great numbers and the betting was much higher than in previous years. Jakobsson led by a few minutes during the first part of the run. He avoided food stations, preferring instead to use the supplies in his own pockets.
“Right before a long, hard, upward grade there was, however, a food station where a person offered me a steaming mug of bouillon. I could not resist the temptation and drank the tasty broth. I knew that most of the people had placed their bets on me but apparently not this ‘heathen.’ After a few minutes I vomited violently, so all the food I had eaten before I started came up. Additionally, my tongue swelled and I had a hard time breathing. At this point I had to let one skier after another pass me. “
This resulted in a message delivered to Fort Klamath that said Jakobsson had broken down, but he never did give up. After Jakobsson was given a mug of creamy milk, he felt better and in pure anger started chasing after his competitors. He managed to pass all of them except Nordeen, who finished with a new record time of 5 hours and 57 minutes.
“Now I had lost the treasure and, on top of it, that evening I got beat up by some angry men who had bet on me and lost their money.”
In reference to the trophy being turned over to the Swedish Ski Museum in 1979, Jakobsson mentioned that Nordeen had never been quite content with owning the Klamath Cup since he knew the circumstances of his victory in 1931. Before Nordeen donated the trophy to the Swedish Ski Association in 1961 he supposedly exchanged letters with Jakobsson to get his opinion, though this has not been confirmed. In a letter written by Nordeen to Lia Jonsson in 1961, he told her that, due to his age, he would not be able to be present at any of the competitions in Vasterbotten. Nordeen, therefore, would like to see Manfred Jakobsson represent him at the competitions, since “M.J. was a tough skier to deal with.”
The Klamath Cup has been kept at the Swedish Ski Museum in Umeå since 1979. From 1980 onward it has been the prize in the six mile long Kalvträsk competition. Since that time, the following Swedish skiers have had a turn winning it: Sven-Åke Lundback (Bergnäset), Anders Bodin (Åsarna), Stig Jonsson (Rundvik), Hans Persson (Åsarna), Bengt Hassis (Orsa), Erik Hansson (Gillberga), Tom Lindström (Hägglunds), Ulf Karlsson (Infjärden), Fredrik Lundberg (Skellefteå), and Sven-Erik Danielsson (Dala-Järna). Only two skiers have won it twice: Stellan Granlund (Skellefteå) and Örjan Blomquist (Lidingö).
Notes
1 The trophy was manufactured by Wallace Brothers of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
2 In addition to the trophy won by Nordeen, there are two additional cups. Pete Hedburg won races held in 1933 and 1935, while Charles Lindberg received one for his solo flight over the Atlantic. The latter is in the possession of the Smithsonian Institution.
3 The town, which has never been incorporated, boasted no more than 200 residents at that time.
