My wife Marie, daughter Louise, and I left Rochester, MN on Friday morning around 8am. I told Marie on Thursday that she could sleep in and I promised to not be in a rush to get up to Duluth Friday morning; we can just leave whenever we are all ready. I knew a part of her didn’t believe me, and frankly I am not sure I believed myself. Well… of course that didn’t happen. I love Duluth and the north shore and was up at 6am chomping at the bit to head up there. I finally woke her up at 7am and we all got ready and were out the door within an hour.
We arrived in Duluth around 11:30am and met her brother and
family at Duluth Grill for lunch. Whenever I am in Duluth I try to eat at
Duluth Grill as I love the unique menu choices and also the fact that they use
a variety of local ingredients. My brother-in-law lives in Duluth so we
always have a place to stay when racing up there which is a nice perk we truly
appreciate. After lunch we all just headed back to their place to relax
before heading to packet pick-up at 5pm. My brother-in-law was doing the
half marathon so around 5pm we both went down to Bayfront to pick up our race
packets. After we returned we grilled some dinner and relaxed before
bed.
I slept fairly well that night. I woke up at 4am to eat
breakfast and get ready before the 6am start. I ate my normal pre-race
breakfast which consists of bulletproof coffee (coffee, butter and MCT oil), 2
servings of Generation Ucan and a Pocketfuel. This breakfast is higher in
fat and lower in sugar to give me plenty of energy without putting my blood
sugar on a rollercoaster ride before the race even begins. I put on my
race attire; I knew it would be chilly at the beginning but would warm up
during the day to around 50 degrees so I didn’t change much with my normal race
clothing except added a thin long sleeve I could roll the sleeves up on.
I get very hot when I run so I knew I would be warm instantly so I planned
accordingly. I ran in my Pearl Izumi Ultra splits shorts, compression top
with a thin Under Armour long sleeve, Injinji socks, Montrail Fluidflex and
Altra Torin 1.5s (more on that later) and Petzl Myo headlamp.
Marie and I got to Bayfront around 5:45 just in time to hear
race director Andy Holak go over a few last minutes updates and reminders.
I said goodbye to Marie. Usually she goes to every crew accessible aid station
but with Louise it’s been a bit of a struggle so I knew I wouldn’t see her
until the turnaround at Chambers Grove. Before I knew it I was standing
on the starting line with 45 other headlamps waiting to get their long day
started. When the race began Hegge, Storkamp and company were
out front in a group of about 8 runners. I knew I would not be running with
those guys so I settled in a little bit behind them as we crossed I-35 and
began to ascend up to Enger tower. Having run this race in the past, I
knew the climb up to Enger tower would go by quickly as it was very early in
the race. The section from Enger tower to the Spirt Mtn aid station went
by rapidly. I got into a good rhythm and ran with some other runners up
to the Highland Getchell aid station. During the first hour of the race I
continuously went over my fueling plan and pacing plan in my head. In a
long Ultra I like to fuel myself with nutrition that will not spike my blood
sugar and keep my energy even. My go-to nutrition is Generation Ucan
(superstarch), Justin’s Nut Butter and Saltstick. I usually rely on these foods
until late in the race when I switch to Coca Cola, the liquid gold of racing.
My pacing plan this race has evolved from my past ultra race experiences.
Since I am relatively new to the ultra-running scene; finishing one hundo and a
handful of 50k, 50 mile and 100k races, I know I can finish the distance.
My goal this race was to actually “race” and not just finish. In the past
I was always concerned if I pushed a bit too hard in the beginning I wouldn't
have the legs towards the end. My past experiences provided me with the
confidence I could run a bit faster in the beginning of the race and still be
running at a decent clip in the later miles. Of course this means I would
most likely be in my pain cave towards the end but personally that’s what keeps
me coming back to ultras. How much pain can my body and mind overcome?
After Highland I was running alone which is how I like it on
single-track as I can just settle into the pace I want to run and zone out not
thinking of my surroundings. From Highland to Spirit aid station I began
to regret my shoe choice of the Montrail Fluidflex. I love this shoe, but I was
coming to find out it’s a great shoe on every trail except the rock and root
infested technical Superior Hiking Trail. I have run on this trail many
of times but never in the Fluidflex. The flexibility of the shoe was not
a good fit for the technicality of the course; my foot was constantly moving
around in my shoe as the upper is very thin mesh which didn’t hold my foot in
place. I wasn’t developing any hot spots but knew eventually blisters
would arise and wanted to be proactive. Good thing just past Spirit Mtn is the
Magney Snively aid station and I knew I could switch into a more beefy shoe,
the Altra Torin 1.5.
Coming up to Spirit Mtn I knew to pay attention to the course
markings since I got lost last year and ended up climbing the ski hill to the
half marathon start and asking Andy where the hell I should go. This year
went a lot smoother but I still had to stop a couple times to make sure I was
on the right trail. I topped my water off at the Spirit Mtn aid station
and I was off to Magney Snively. This section is only 2 miles but it’s
very technical so 2 miles takes longer than expected. Coming into Magney
Snively I knew I needed to change my shoes, I quickly swapped them out and I
was on my way to the Munger aid station. The section between Magney and
Munger crosses over Ely’s Peak which is a beautiful peak with great views all
around. On the way out the climb up to Ely’s is pretty gradual and then you
descend down into Munger aid station. For the majority of this section I
ran with John Maas, a very experienced ultrarunner. I knew he was trying to
finish up his Gnarly Bandit which is an incredible feat. I have never
really talked with John before but I ran with him for a while and picked his brains
about all the races he has done. I figured I might as well learn
something from a runner with way more experience than me. When he stopped
to relieve himself I continued down Ely's Peak to Munger aid station.
From Munger to the turnaround is where I experienced my first
bad patch of the day. The trail is not technically technical but is
constantly up and down. I never felt like I could get into a good rhythm
running. I was becoming annoyed as it felt like I was constantly climbing
for the first 5 miles. I finally reached the Grand Portage aid station
where they pointed me in the direction of the power lines. Having run
Voyageur 50 mile before, I knew exactly what I was in for. These power lines
are exposed to the sun and have very short steep climbs and descents. I
just put my head down and started climbing up the first one. When I got
to the top I ran into the leader Jake Hegge who looked like he was just out for
a nice stroll. With a smile on his face he said “Wasn’t expecting those
today!” Knowing that he has won Voyageur before it was nice to share a laugh
with him. I continued down the first hill and up and down the second one
when I was pleasantly surprised we only had to climb two of the power lines
hills. This really got me back into a more positive mood plus I knew
coming up to the turnaround I would see my daughter and wife. The next
couple miles to the turnaround were runnable mountain bike trails. A this
is the section where the other runners in front of me were already on their
return trip, I began to count how many were in front of me and descending into
the turnaround at Chambers Grove I knew I was somewhere between 8-9th place. Before the race I told my
wife I thought top 10 was doable so I was happy to know I was currently sitting
in the top 10.
At the turnaround it was uplifting to see Marie and Louise.
Although it would have been nice to stay a bit longer and chat I knew I need to
get going as I could hear other runners coming down into the aid stations and I
didn’t want them any closer than they already were. I climbed the
mountain bike trail back up and then from there I told myself I needed to get a
bigger lead on the others behind me so I just put my head down and before long
I was at the power lines again. Got over those again without much problem
and was on my way back to Munger. I found out why the earlier time
through this section was so difficult for me. I believe the return trip
was more of a net downhill through this section so that was reassuring to know
the earlier time I wasn’t just being a baby. Another thing keeping me in
a great mood was the fact I knew that when I got to Munger I would be picking up
my running buddy Chris. His wife ran the Half Marathon earlier in
the day and he wanted to get some SHT miles in after and asked if he could pace
me to the finish. I have never run with a pacer for anything under 100
miles so I was interested to see how it would affect my outcome. I got to
Munger and realized he was not there; no big deal I was a bit earlier than
expected. I told the aid station workers to tell him to meet me at Magney
Snively. During the return trip, you have to climb up Ely’s Peak.
With 40 miles on my legs I thought it was going to be very challenging but
surprisingly I was able to climb up with relative ease. When I was almost
to the top I heard someone call out “Harke!” and I turned around and down the
peak I saw Chris hauling ass to catch up with me. I just continued at my
regular pace and figured he would catch up to me eventually. I knew I had to
continue if I wanted to hold on to a top 10 place. He finally caught me
just after I crested Ely’s peak and was continuing towards Magney. We ran
at a pretty good clip all the way to the Spirit Mtn aid station. I
remember telling Chris I was running a bit scared as I am not sure how far
behind me the next runner was. We both agreed we needed to just continue
to run at a comfortably hard pace and things should work out.
From Spirit Mtn to Highland Getchell is where I experienced my
next rough spot. Again I felt like I was constantly climbing and could never
get into a good running rhythm. I was doing a bit of complaining and
asked Chris if I was being annoying or a baby. He told me “No, but if you keep
it up, I might have to tell you to HTFU (Harden the F$%& Up).” I took
that as a yes, I was being a baby, and just needed to get my mind right and
grind. That is exactly what I did. One of my most memorable moments
in this section is when we crossed under I-35 and crossed Cody St. taking a
left to get back onto the trail. The road leading back to the trail was
at a slight incline which at this point in the race is just annoying more than
anything. Chris looks over to me and said “Dude this is douche grade.” I have
never heard that term before; he went on to tell me "douche grade" is
when you are running something not steep enough to hike but sucks to run.
I like that term and will most likely co-sign that in the future. We
finally made it to Highland Getchell aid station where I was surprised to see
my wife, sister-in-law and kids all there. That gave me the final boost
of energy I needed to get me to the finish. There was still no one in
sight behind me and I knew the majority of trail to the finish was runnable. If
I could just keep chugging along I would hold my position. We finally
made it to Enger Tower which we could see for about 10 miles prior. I looked at
my watch and saw approximately 12:52 and knew I would only have 8 minutes to
break 13 hours. I told Chris I didn’t think we would be able to break 13
hours, but oh well. He turned to me and said “Let’s just keep on running
and see where the chips fall.” So that is what we did. I was
running pretty hard down the quad busting descent from Enger Tower and before
long we were crossing I-35 and heading towards the finish. I thanked
Chris for running with me; it was such a pleasure to share the final 20 miles
with him. I crossed the line in 13:01:42. I didn’t break 13 hours but it
didn’t matter. I was top 10 and finally put together a complete race I
was proud of.
Sitting here today reflecting on the race last Saturday I cannot
help thinking about how fortunate I am to be able to run on a such a beautiful
trail with such cool people. Everyone is out there for their own reasons,
but I believe all trail runners share the love for the outdoors, the beautiful
landscapes you experience, and the solitude you feel while out on the
trail.
Overall I am satisfied with my performance, I can definitely see that with every ultra I complete I gain more and more confidence and experience to use come next race day. I am looking forward to decreasing the running miles a bit over the winter and get a bit more cross country skiing and snowshoeing in. I will however try my best to maintain my current run fitness so I can hit the ground running in spring with the ultimate goal of revenge at Superior 100.
I need to thank my wife Marie for being so supportive while do these long races. It helps so much to have her at my races as it gives me something to hold onto when the going gets tough. I need to thank Chris for keeping me company during the later miles and taking my mind off the pain I was in. I also need to thank my brother-in-law Matt and his wife Sakura for always being willing to let us know stay at their place when I race on the north shore. Marie and I are so very appreciative of their hospitality. Also need to thank the Race Directors for putting on such a cool event and the wonderful volunteers who make this even possible. I hope to make it back next year.
Overall I am satisfied with my performance, I can definitely see that with every ultra I complete I gain more and more confidence and experience to use come next race day. I am looking forward to decreasing the running miles a bit over the winter and get a bit more cross country skiing and snowshoeing in. I will however try my best to maintain my current run fitness so I can hit the ground running in spring with the ultimate goal of revenge at Superior 100.
I need to thank my wife Marie for being so supportive while do these long races. It helps so much to have her at my races as it gives me something to hold onto when the going gets tough. I need to thank Chris for keeping me company during the later miles and taking my mind off the pain I was in. I also need to thank my brother-in-law Matt and his wife Sakura for always being willing to let us know stay at their place when I race on the north shore. Marie and I are so very appreciative of their hospitality. Also need to thank the Race Directors for putting on such a cool event and the wonderful volunteers who make this even possible. I hope to make it back next year.
Stats:
Finish Time: 13:01:42
Place: 8/49
Race Distance: 58.49 (I believe this is short due to losing signal on the mtn bike trails)
Elevation Gain: 11,280 ft
Gear:
Headlamp – Petzl Myo
Shoes – Montrail Fluidflex; Altra Torin 1.5
Top – Salomon Exo Motion, Under Armour long sleeve
Shorts – Under Armour compression shorts, Pearl Izumi Ultra split short
Socks – Injinji Midweight trail
Hat: Land Between the Lakes race hat
Nurtition:
Generation Ucan
Justin's Nut Butter
Hammer Peanut Butter gel
Coca Cola
Saltstick
5 hour Energy
