Kettle Moraine 100 Race Report

I’ve been sitting at the computer staring at the screen not really knowing how to start this race report. I am still processing everything that has happened over the last couple of days and I hope I can just get all these thoughts down in a readable format.

My family and I arrived at the packet pickup, which was situated in the back yard of the La Grange general store, on Friday evening. We met up with Matt and his family and chatted while the kids ran around in the yard.

The race began in the usual low key ultra fashion and I was finally starting what I had been planning to do for months, run 100 miles. The first 7.5 miles is run on wide Nordic ski trails, which is nice when you have a couple hundred people starting together in a trail race. I was happy to hit the single track of the Ice Age Trail just after Bluff aid station (mile 7.5) and it was beautiful terrain.

The run was fairly uneventful for quite some time and I was enjoying the scenery of southern Wisconsin. Then came a section of trail about 10 miles long that was mostly in open meadows with very little tree cover and I realized it was going to be a brutal day of running. I felt fine at the time but it was getting hot and it was steamy. I was happy to see Michelle, Jakob and Hanna (my crew) at the highway 67 aid station (mile 23.9) and they had all of my supplies ready to go and got me out running again quickly.

During the next section I started having a queasy stomach and I decided to up my electrolyte intake to 1 S-cap every 45 minutes instead of 1/hr. It seemed like a long haul to get to the first out and back turnaround at 31 miles but I was happy to be headed back the other direction after getting some supplies from my crew.

I saw Matt on the way back and he indicated that he was having a tough time with the heat and that he was thinking of dropping at the turnaround. I said to hang in there and re-evaluate after resting for a bit. After reading his blog, I believe he made a wise decision in light of the signs and symptoms of heat related illness.

Michelle started getting worried about me after seeing Matt at the 31 mile mark and she decided to bring me my bandana that can carry ice to the next aid station. I gladly accepted the bandana and once around my neck it made a huge difference in how I felt.

After getting one more chance to fuel up at the highway 67 aid station (mile 39) I was ready but not excited to run the open fields…again. This time the heat was unrelenting and I was slowed to a walk on a few occasions but I continued to move forward and eventually made it to Emma Carlin (mile 47.3). My crew had a shoe change ready and I worked on one blister that was developing on the side of my left foot. Fresh socks and shoes brought some life back to my legs. Put more ice in the bandana, drank an Ensure and I even had Hanna (3.5 yrs) as an escort for the first 50 yards on the way back out on the trail. She thinks she is faster than dad and at that point I think she was.

Hot one minute, torrential down pours the next, it seemed like Mother Nature wanted to have a say in how this race would turn out. It started sprinkling at first but from the sounds of thunder in the distance, it just felt like we were going to get some serious weather. Soon it was raining steady and it felt great to get the cooling effect of the water. But as is rained harder and harder the trails started filling with water and on any hills it became running streams…so much for the fresh socks and shoes. At one point a 25 ft. pine tree fell across the trail about 10 feet in front of another runner with me right behind. We both stopped, looked at each other, shrugged our shoulders and said “that was close,” and kept running.

Running the flats and down hills and walking the up hills is what I did until reaching the Nordic aid station at mile 62. I slowed quite a bit because my feet and quads were starting to hurt. It was nice to see Michelle and the kids but it was also 8pm and I knew I would be heading out in the dark so I gathered my headlamp, backup flashlight, wind jacket, refueled and…more rain. This was the weakest point in the race for me, I was cold, tired, sore, hungry and I knew I could just call it a day and even get counted as a 100 Kilometer race finisher, and be back at the hotel in 15 min. But I was prepared for this and I also coached Michelle to try to keep me motivated, and that’s when she said they would walk me out for a little while on the trail. Bingo, game on.

My legs loosened up after a short distance and I was back to running. Soon it was dark and I was running with a headlamp. I was able to run pretty well in the dark and I was able to run the next 10 miles to the Duffin Rd. aid station (mile 72.8). Sometime in the next mile is when my legs turned to cement and refused to run…so I walked and as I walked it stormed and dumped another round of rain onto the already muddy trails and runners.

I made it to the Hwy 12 aid station around midnight and Michelle was waiting for me with any food or gear that I needed. It was nice just to have someone on the course for moral support. At times the lows can be pretty low and the highs are not much above the lows so crews can make a big difference. Some runners had pacers (runners that accompany a competitor) but I decided not to use one. I didn’t mind being on my own most of the time and when I did join up with others it was a nice change.

Soon I was at the Rice Lake aid station (mile 81.5) and it was at this point I knew I would finish barring any bizarre occurrence. I hooked up with three guys from Illinois on the trail back to Hwy 12 and I really had to dig deep and push myself to keep up with the 15 minute/mile walking pace they had going. After some soup and a brief rest at the aid station I went out ahead of them knowing that I could not keep up that pace any longer and they would soon catch me. It was after loosing contact with the runners from Illinois that I first tried listening to my ipod…for one song. I just couldn’t do it. I was having too much fun listening to all the creatures in the forest and swamps, so I took it off and it will probably never be carried in a race again.

I would tell myself, “just keep moving forward,” as I slogged along to the Bluff aid station (mile 92.8) at first light. I ate some soup and kept on going…knowing that they were making pancakes at the Tamarack aid station. It was a long 2.3 miles but well worth the effort for a taste of those pancakes. The only solid foods that I ate the whole day were from this aid station, grilled cheese sandwiches and pancakes. Mary Gorski (who is running Badwater this year) handed me a “pancake rollup,” a pancake with sausage and syrup inside, and I ate it as I headed back out on the trail. I also drank 2 cups of coke and this was the magic combination that gave my legs some life.

I was actually able to start running again, even with badly blistered feet, and according to my GPS watch I was clipping along at 11-12 minutes per mile. It helps knowing that the finish is only 5 miles away. It seemed like it took forever, but no time at all, to run the last miles…sort of a contradiction as time seemed blurred by all the events of the day and night and day again.

I rounded the corner leading into the finish area and I could see Michelle, Hanna, Jakob and a few volunteers and spectators (family waiting for their runners) and they started to cheer. It was a good feeling to finally be done with what had become a very difficult day for all the runners involved. Official time: 25:25:17 (15th place).

On a final note I would like to thank the race directors Timo and Jason for organizing an outstanding event and to all the volunteers out on the course that had to endure some crazy weather to make this event possible.

My next blog entry will detail my lessons learned from doing this event.