2009 Ice Age 50

Another Ice Age run under my belt. The day started out pretty miserable with windy and light rain conditions at the start. A bunch of people tried to huddle around the outhouse to stay out of the wind but most packed into the warming hut until a few minutes before the start.

I took my normal position at the back of the pack and shuffled off a few minutes after 6AM. The crappy weather seemed to ease off as we were finishing off the nordic loop and my glasses were fogging up so I changed to a short sleeve shirt and headed off to the Rice Lake turnaround. This is a nice section through a pine plantation, a few open fields but a lot of Wisconsin native forests. As we got near Highway 12 we could hear the Sandhill Cranes making their normal racket. The boardwalk section has been rerouted to a evil hill right before Hwy 12 due to ? (flooding or damage - its been 2 years now).

Just past 12, I saw Zach Ginerich coming the other way. I didn't see his race number and I assumed he was just a runner that was not part of the race. It seemed too early to have the lead runners coming back? Then I saw Wynn Davis powering right behind and I knew that there was going to be a fast finish. After the Rice Lake turn, it feels like a long haul to Confusion Corner (not really very confusing). This is probably around 25 to 30 miles into the race. Its tough because I am starting to feel fatigue but I know that I have 4+ hours of running ahead of me. I always feel that the mental elements of these races is critical. The body can do a lot of things if the mind tells it to.

On this last out and back to Emma Carlin aid station, I hooked up with a group including Scott Meyers, Dave Reid, Ken and Steve Plumb, and Nick Stoneman and we trudged along for most of the remainder. It was somewhat exciting to see the leaders coming back around including the women runners: Christine Crawford in first and Ann Heaslett following closely. There were also two younger women running well: Chelsea Clammer and Toney Avakova - good to see some fast youngsters.

Anyway, I was able to keep moving forward and tagged along with Dave Reid (first 50 miler) for the last few miles (although I did sit on the bench on top of Bald Bluff for 20 seconds as a reward to myself). Just before the finish, I noticed Steven Arndt making a sprint to pass us but I found a few more fumes in the tank to finish 59th in 9:31:58 at an 11:27 pace.

I turned out to be a great running day - cool and overcast. The beer at the finish was tasty and I sat by the fire to keep warm. Great race and volunteers. It was probably a tough day to man an aid station due to the cold, light rain and breeze but I thank you all! Especially the person at Confusion Corner who had the lonely job to steer people onto the right trail.