Michael Erko thought he'd won the lottery. He hadn't. But he was a winner, which landed him a January trip to a small town about 400 miles northeast of the Twin Cities.
The Blaine resident, a 33-year veteran of Canadian Pacific Railway, was picked by his employer to take part in the Olympic torch relay, in large part because of his record of volunteer work in Blaine.
So on Sunday, Erko was in Nipigon, Ontario, carrying the torch 300 meters toward Vancouver, British Columbia, site of next month's winter Olympics.
As one of 12,000 Olympic Torchbearers participating in the 27,900-mile journey across Canada and back, Erko said he was extremely surprised when he learned about his trek.
"I consider myself pretty lucky, one in a thousand. That's my lottery for my lifetime," he said last week.
He also was surprised to learn later that he wasn't chosen in a random lottery, but rather for his volunteer work. "I thought it was a lottery! I honestly didn't know," he said.
Erko, 52, said he signed up in an online lottery system, from which about 20 Canadian Pacific employees across the country were picked to take part in the relay.
"Michael Erko was one of 1,500 applicants," said Mike Lovecchio, a spokesman for Canadian Pacific. "As a volunteer firefighter he was really involved in the community, so this is a guy who really upholds our value in being extremely involved in the community, and that was exactly the kind of person we were looking for," Lo Vecchio said. Canadian Pacific is the official rail freight services provider to this year's Winter Olympic and Paralympics games.
Starting at the northernmost point of Lake Superior, Erko was to run 300 meters from Railway Street to 1st Street at around 4:17 p.m. Sunday. He wore an official Olympic uniform, complete with reflective Olympic logo on his back and iconic Canadian red mittens on his hands.
An avid athlete as well as former firefighter, Erko practiced for the event by cross-country skiing and indoor rowing, although he said the 300 meters shouldn't pose too much of a threat. "It's getting my mindset ready for the cold weather," he said.
Erko said he would be wearing various types of Armour All and wool clothing to keep warm. But he wasn't trading in his tennis shoes for mukluks.
Erko said his position in the relay holds particular significance as his family has roots in Canada. Both his grandparents and parents were born there. "The vast amount of our relatives are from Canada," he said. His mother, Olga Erko, was traveling to her home country to cheer on along with several other family members.
"It's the biggest stage in the world," said Canadian Pacific's Lo Vecchio. "It's a tremendous thrill. We're thrilled to have him represent us."
Kathryn Nelson is a Twin Cities freelance writer.
Photo by Jeff Wheeler, Star Tribune