Snow and the Ice Age

As normal, in the weeks following my last race of the year in September I look for the next big race. While doing so I came across a couple of races very different than anything I have done before. The Tuscobia Winter Ultra and Arrowhead 135 are ultra marathons in northern Wisconsin and northern Minnesota respectively. They are held in December and January. So they are run on snow and temperatures are often below zero. Tuscobia has 35, 75, and 150 mile options while Arrowhead is 135 miles. After reading many race reports from these races they had piqued my interest.

In these races you are required to carry winter survival gear so that you can be safe if you need to stop for a period of time. Required gear includes a -20 degree sleeping bag, insulated air pad, bivy sac, a stove, and several other items. Most people on foot at these races (you can also bike or ski) pull a sled to hold their gear.

So I upgraded my winter running gear and covered a couple hundred miles this year on the coldest days of the year pulling a 20+ pound sled behind me. I ended the winter doing a 62 mile "run" with my sled. I learned a lot this winter, more to come on this topic next winter season. It was nice for once to actually have a reason to look forward to snow.

My PVC pole and sled contraption that I used this winter.

This is what I look like after a run in below zero temperatures.

As the snow melted I started ramping back up the mileage with a similar approach as last year that worked very well. I built up to 10 miles twice during the week and a run of a marathon or longer each weekend. I ran beat my marathon and 50k PR in training runs without destroying myself and felt really good going into my first race of the year, the Ice Age Trail 50k.

The Ice Age Trail 50k is on some nice and hilly trails in the Kettle Moraine Southern Unit. 266 runners registered for the race, but based on the results the turn out was closer to 200 runners. The course is a 13 mile out and back followed by two 9 mile loops. As the race started it settled down quickly to a few of us out front a couple miles in and I found myself leading the race at 2.5 miles in after the lead runner took a 10 yard detour the wrong direction. I was not pushing it, just keeping around 7:20 pace like I wanted to. At 6.5 miles I hit the turn around and saw that I had about a minute on the two guys behind me. By the time I finished the 13 mile out and back my average pace was 7:15 per mile and I felt great.

The trail is nice and wide for the two loops, and the first 4 miles of that loop are not that hilly. I was cruising on this section without feeling like I was doing anything I would regret later. I had no idea how far back second place was, and I wouldn't until I could see him. The hills on the back side of the loop are steep but they felt manageable. I saw no signs of the guys behind me on that loop. My pace for the 9 mile loop had dropped to 6:56 per mile. At the end of the loop I wouldn't say I was fresh, but I was still feeling good for being 22 miles into a 31 mile race. My son Carson was there ready to hand me a hand bottle as I dropped by hydration pack going into the last nine mile loop.

The kids waiting for me to come around at the finish of my first loop.

The beginning of that last loop once again felt great as it does not have many steep sections. Once that back section arrived I was around a marathon into the race and the legs started cramping. To prevent my body from locking up completely I focused on a consistent effort level which was a bit lighter than what I had been doing. The whole time I am just wondering if someone is going to catch me since I was slowing slightly. One last GU gave me a little boost as I pushed through those last hills and I made it to the finish at 3:43:04 with an overall pace of 7:11 per mile and a first place finish. This race was my fifth trail 50k race and was my best time by 23 minutes.

I am very happy with the result of this race. I think my pacing was good, even though I ran the second 9 mile loop almost four minutes slower than the first loop. I found out after the race that I actually increased my lead by over seven minutes on that last loop. Only 16 of the 195 finishers ran that second loop faster than the first. It is a good thing I did not know about my lead, otherwise it would have been very tempting to slow down. Since this race has a larger and more competitive 50 mile distance it has a great sponsorship from Salomon and I got some sweet prizes for my finish in the 50k which included a new hydration pack, an awesome collapsible hand bottle, and a new pair of shoes.

My legs were in rough shape only for about an hour after the race, then I was walking around just fine which is unusual for me. I am normally a complete mess. This is in line with how much quicker I have recovered from my long training runs this year, I don't know for sure why recovery time has dropped so much for me. I did not have a hobble in my step at any point in the days after my race.

Next up is the 100k at the Marquette 50 Trail Races in August. That looks like some gnarly trail. Devil's Lake is going to get a few more visits from me this summer to get in some major hill and terrain training.

Data from the race:

First 13 miles: 1:34:26, 7:15 per mile
First 9 mile loop: 1:02:25, 6:56 per mile
Second 9 mile loop: 1:06:13, 7:21 per mile
Total 31 miles: 3:43:04, 7:11 per mile

Lead after 6.5 miles: about 1 minute
Lead after 13 miles: 2:07
Lead after 22 miles: 6:11
Lead after 31 miles: 13:25

Food before the race: Plain Bagel, Banana, 4 oz Gatorade
Food during the race: 4 GU, water
Food after the race: Fruit, Heed, Brat, Chips, Cookies, MKE Session Ale (great post race scene)

Official Race Results