Trail running. Lots of trail running.

On July 30 I am running the Grand Island Trail Marathon just off the coast of Munising, Michigan, in Lake Superior. For most of the past 6 months, this race has been my primary season target. I have raced a trail half marathon and a collection of shorter trail races, but nothing like this. That said, race reports I have read say that it is challenging, but forgiving to a beginning trail distance athlete. Actually, it is made of of a pretty long stretch of rolling fire roads, two beach stretches, just a few technical singletrack trail spots, and some softly rolling ridgeline trails. In other words, it's going to be more challenging than a flat road marathon in many ways, but doable.



For months I have been dialing in the best trail gear for this challenge (there are only a few aid stations, so you have to carry your own fuel and water) including trail shoes and socks, clothes, nutrition, and water carrying apparatus. I have been logging about half my weekly mileage on the trails of Bird Hills and the surrounding nature areas maintained by the City of Ann Arbor. A few weeks ago I did well to finish in about the top third of the field at the Running Fit Trail Half Marathon.On top of that, I have logged long training runs out at the venerable Potawatomi Trail about 20 miles from my home.


Now that I have gotten into the groove of making myself into a long-distance trail runner, you'd think I'd be dying to rip up the Grand Island race with everything I've got. Well, kinda.  I can't wait to experience the race. I have never seen Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore (an area which Grand Island is basically a part of). I am excited about taking Moira and Leo to a new place and to have a nice week of hanging out in the best, most beautiful parts of our noble home State. But I'm going to take it easy at Grand Island.  

That is because I (foolishly?) signed up last week for the Stumpjump 50k Trail Ultramarathon on October 1. Basically what I did was relegate Grand Island from primary race of the year status to training run status. I watched a sensationally well produced video (see the end of this post) about the race after doodling around the internet one day and I was hooked. For weeks it sort of haunted me. I am a marathon finisher, but I have only done one marathon (and it was a struggle in the heat and humidity of Chicago last year).  I will have only one trail marathon under my belt by October.  Perhaps the most daunting part of it is that the Stumpjump is no ordinary 50k (31 miles), it is perhaps one of the hardest off-road 50k courses in the eastern United States.  It has 10,000 feet of elevation change (5k up, 5k down).  It has a mile of course known as the rock garden where the trail evaporates and you have to scurry down a collection of boulders. But what everyone I can find who has raced it says it is INCREDIBLY beautiful, fun, professionally run, and the experience of a lifetime.


In the past, I think my old running coach would have said I was nuts. In fact, I know she would have advised me against it and poured on the negativity.Of course, when I asked Marie Wolfgram, my awesome new coach, if she thought I could do it she replied with this email (with abbreviations, as it was sent from an iPhone):


For sure u can do it! U r crazy though! U gotta live life to it's fullest and that is exactly what u do.;) See u in the morn!


That, to me, is what our running group, P.R. Fitness, is all about. I loved that and figured that if Marie is on board to get me in shape, then I will do my part. My usual running gang may find me pushing a little harder on tempo days, adding a few miles here and there on long run days, and getting a few percent more serious as the race gets closer this fall. But the best part is that the only pressure I am putting on myself is to finish.  


The average race time for finishing the Stumpjump for guys was about 7.5 hours. That is long, given that its just 5 miles more than a marathon. And the bummer for me is that the Stumpjump doesn't attract a slow field...a big percentage of the field are multiple-ultramarathon guys and girls.  This is a tough race for a tough field. My goal is to just complete the thing, and I may be well into the bottom half of the finishers, but that is a-ok. I mean, what do you call the last place finisher of a 50k trail ultramarathon? An ultramarathon finisher.


So that brings me back to the "warm up" race on Grand Island. If I feel good, the weather cooperates, and the trail is manageable, I am going to shoot for sub-4:43, which would be a PR in the marathon for me. I am in far better shape as a runner than I ever have been and my vegetarian diet and minimalist running technique have helped me stay healthier than ever. There is something novel about having a marathon PR on a trail. That said, I am not going to kill myself because I will likely have to run another three 26+ mile training runs after Grand Island to get prepared for Stumpjump. It's important that I stay healthy and enjoy the Grand Island experience. In fact I will likely use it to test nutrition, pacing, etc., so that I can really have as much experience on my side as possible come October.


I leave you with this video from last year's Stumpjump. Moira and Leo and I are headed down together, and we can't wait. Chattanooga actually has a ton of fun stuff to do as well, so the race will be just one part of a fun family road trip to the mountains. I may need an extra few hours a week to log the miles as I train, but I'll just get up before the little guy and run late into the evening, but most of all I will make it up by sharing this adventure with the two people I love best.