diff --git a/src/libnative/io/timer_unix.rs b/src/libnative/io/timer_unix.rs
index 0444604d42a0b..0a38a6ff0be35 100644
--- a/src/libnative/io/timer_unix.rs
+++ b/src/libnative/io/timer_unix.rs
@@ -182,7 +182,7 @@ fn helper(input: libc::c_int, messages: Receiver<Req>) {
                             let t = active.remove(i).unwrap();
                             ack.send(t);
                         }
-                        _ => break
+                        Err(..) => break
                     }
                 }
 
diff --git a/src/libnative/task.rs b/src/libnative/task.rs
index ddfd46ecad9b5..8a82ae55faa37 100644
--- a/src/libnative/task.rs
+++ b/src/libnative/task.rs
@@ -201,19 +201,30 @@ impl rt::Runtime for Ops {
                     Err(task) => { cast::forget(task.wake()); }
                 }
             } else {
-                let mut iter = task.make_selectable(times);
+                let iter = task.make_selectable(times);
                 let guard = (*me).lock.lock();
                 (*me).awoken = false;
-                let success = iter.all(|task| {
-                    match f(task) {
-                        Ok(()) => true,
-                        Err(task) => {
-                            cast::forget(task.wake());
-                            false
+
+                // Apply the given closure to all of the "selectable tasks",
+                // bailing on the first one that produces an error. Note that
+                // care must be taken such that when an error is occurred, we
+                // may not own the task, so we may still have to wait for the
+                // task to become available. In other words, if task.wake()
+                // returns `None`, then someone else has ownership and we must
+                // wait for their signal.
+                match iter.map(f).filter_map(|a| a.err()).next() {
+                    None => {}
+                    Some(task) => {
+                        match task.wake() {
+                            Some(task) => {
+                                cast::forget(task);
+                                (*me).awoken = true;
+                            }
+                            None => {}
                         }
                     }
-                });
-                while success && !(*me).awoken {
+                }
+                while !(*me).awoken {
                     guard.wait();
                 }
             }
diff --git a/src/libstd/io/stdio.rs b/src/libstd/io/stdio.rs
index 33306dba8defe..5f9b1cc57045e 100644
--- a/src/libstd/io/stdio.rs
+++ b/src/libstd/io/stdio.rs
@@ -160,7 +160,7 @@ fn reset_helper(w: ~Writer:Send,
 {
     let mut t = Local::borrow(None::<Task>);
     // Be sure to flush any pending output from the writer
-    match f(t.get(), w) {
+    match f(&mut *t, w) {
         Some(mut w) => {
             drop(t);
             // FIXME: is failing right here?
@@ -230,9 +230,7 @@ fn with_task_stdout(f: |&mut Writer| -> IoResult<()> ) {
             // To protect against this, we do a little dance in which we
             // temporarily take the task, swap the handles, put the task in TLS,
             // and only then drop the previous handle.
-            let mut t = Local::borrow(None::<Task>);
-            let prev = replace(&mut t.get().stdout, my_stdout);
-            drop(t);
+            let prev = replace(&mut Local::borrow(None::<Task>).stdout, my_stdout);
             drop(prev);
             ret
         }
diff --git a/src/libstd/rt/local_heap.rs b/src/libstd/rt/local_heap.rs
index b9d0d82937473..caf0d9028c5da 100644
--- a/src/libstd/rt/local_heap.rs
+++ b/src/libstd/rt/local_heap.rs
@@ -319,8 +319,7 @@ pub unsafe fn local_free(ptr: *u8) {
 }
 
 pub fn live_allocs() -> *mut Box {
-    let mut task = Local::borrow(None::<Task>);
-    task.get().heap.live_allocs
+    Local::borrow(None::<Task>).heap.live_allocs
 }
 
 #[cfg(test)]
diff --git a/src/libstd/rt/local_ptr.rs b/src/libstd/rt/local_ptr.rs
index e3f64f40c0d40..6b61af1d9a2eb 100644
--- a/src/libstd/rt/local_ptr.rs
+++ b/src/libstd/rt/local_ptr.rs
@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@
 #![allow(dead_code)]
 
 use cast;
-use ops::Drop;
+use ops::{Drop, Deref, DerefMut};
 use ptr::RawPtr;
 
 #[cfg(windows)]               // mingw-w32 doesn't like thread_local things
@@ -48,13 +48,15 @@ impl<T> Drop for Borrowed<T> {
     }
 }
 
-impl<T> Borrowed<T> {
-    pub fn get<'a>(&'a mut self) -> &'a mut T {
-        unsafe {
-            let val_ptr: &mut ~T = cast::transmute(&mut self.val);
-            let val_ptr: &'a mut T = *val_ptr;
-            val_ptr
-        }
+impl<T> Deref<T> for Borrowed<T> {
+    fn deref<'a>(&'a self) -> &'a T {
+        unsafe { &*(self.val as *T) }
+    }
+}
+
+impl<T> DerefMut<T> for Borrowed<T> {
+    fn deref_mut<'a>(&'a mut self) -> &'a mut T {
+        unsafe { &mut *(self.val as *mut T) }
     }
 }
 
diff --git a/src/libstd/rt/task.rs b/src/libstd/rt/task.rs
index a112ed77f094f..a3664b45a4178 100644
--- a/src/libstd/rt/task.rs
+++ b/src/libstd/rt/task.rs
@@ -127,8 +127,8 @@ impl Task {
                 #[allow(unused_must_use)]
                 fn close_outputs() {
                     let mut task = Local::borrow(None::<Task>);
-                    let stderr = task.get().stderr.take();
-                    let stdout = task.get().stdout.take();
+                    let stderr = task.stderr.take();
+                    let stdout = task.stdout.take();
                     drop(task);
                     match stdout { Some(mut w) => { w.flush(); }, None => {} }
                     match stderr { Some(mut w) => { w.flush(); }, None => {} }
@@ -159,8 +159,7 @@ impl Task {
                 // be intertwined, and miraculously work for now...
                 let mut task = Local::borrow(None::<Task>);
                 let storage_map = {
-                    let task = task.get();
-                    let LocalStorage(ref mut optmap) = task.storage;
+                    let &LocalStorage(ref mut optmap) = &mut task.storage;
                     optmap.take()
                 };
                 drop(task);
@@ -332,8 +331,7 @@ impl BlockedTask {
     }
 
     /// Converts one blocked task handle to a list of many handles to the same.
-    pub fn make_selectable(self, num_handles: uint) -> Take<BlockedTasks>
-    {
+    pub fn make_selectable(self, num_handles: uint) -> Take<BlockedTasks> {
         let arc = match self {
             Owned(task) => {
                 let flag = unsafe { AtomicUint::new(cast::transmute(task)) };
diff --git a/src/libstd/task.rs b/src/libstd/task.rs
index ed10f6d15cd66..df627809ea029 100644
--- a/src/libstd/task.rs
+++ b/src/libstd/task.rs
@@ -257,8 +257,8 @@ pub fn try<T:Send>(f: proc():Send -> T) -> Result<T, ~Any:Send> {
 pub fn with_task_name<U>(blk: |Option<&str>| -> U) -> U {
     use rt::task::Task;
 
-    let mut task = Local::borrow(None::<Task>);
-    match task.get().name {
+    let task = Local::borrow(None::<Task>);
+    match task.name {
         Some(ref name) => blk(Some(name.as_slice())),
         None => blk(None)
     }
@@ -276,11 +276,8 @@ pub fn deschedule() {
 
 pub fn failing() -> bool {
     //! True if the running task has failed
-
     use rt::task::Task;
-
-    let mut local = Local::borrow(None::<Task>);
-    local.get().unwinder.unwinding()
+    Local::borrow(None::<Task>).unwinder.unwinding()
 }
 
 // The following 8 tests test the following 2^3 combinations:
diff --git a/src/test/run-pass/issue-13494.rs b/src/test/run-pass/issue-13494.rs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000..84da2d814d946
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/test/run-pass/issue-13494.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,56 @@
+// Copyright 2013-2014 The Rust Project Developers. See the COPYRIGHT
+// file at the top-level directory of this distribution and at
+// http://rust-lang.org/COPYRIGHT.
+//
+// Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 <LICENSE-APACHE or
+// http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0> or the MIT license
+// <LICENSE-MIT or http://opensource.org/licenses/MIT>, at your
+// option. This file may not be copied, modified, or distributed
+// except according to those terms.
+
+// This test may not always fail, but it can be flaky if the race it used to
+// expose is still present.
+
+extern crate green;
+extern crate rustuv;
+extern crate native;
+
+#[start]
+fn start(argc: int, argv: **u8) -> int {
+    green::start(argc, argv, rustuv::event_loop, main)
+}
+
+fn helper(rx: Receiver<Sender<()>>) {
+    for tx in rx.iter() {
+        let _ = tx.send_opt(());
+    }
+}
+
+fn test() {
+    let (tx, rx) = channel();
+    spawn(proc() { helper(rx) });
+    let (snd, rcv) = channel();
+    for _ in range(1, 100000) {
+        snd.send(1);
+        let (tx2, rx2) = channel();
+        tx.send(tx2);
+        select! {
+            () = rx2.recv() => (),
+            _ = rcv.recv() => ()
+        }
+    }
+}
+
+fn main() {
+    let (tx, rx) = channel();
+    spawn(proc() {
+        tx.send(test());
+    });
+    rx.recv();
+
+    let (tx, rx) = channel();
+    native::task::spawn(proc() {
+        tx.send(test());
+    });
+    rx.recv();
+}