Keewenaw Trail Running Festival

This last Sunday was the much anticipated (by me, at least) Keewenaw Trail Running Festival 25k. On Saturday there was also a 10k and a 3 mile hill climb but I opted for just one event in the festival given that doing all 3 would be more running than I've done in one week in a really long time.

I'm not sure why I decided to do this run as I'm really not a runner and I'm really not someone who does running in the summer. However, the idea of a trail run lodged in my mind and would not let go. It rattled around in there for awhile as I thought of all the reasons not to do this:

1. My knee hasn't tolerated running that well since my acl replacement surgery
2. I hate running when it gets hot so doing a July run would be silly
3. I was planning to take up rollerskiing this summer so I didn't need something else to take up my time
4. I don't really like endurance events and 25k would push the limits for me

However, I felt like this was the run for me so on the Sunday of Memorial Day Weekend I did a 5 mile trail run on the North Country Trail outside Cable to start off my training. I figured I needed to do 5 then if I were to make it to 25k by July 13.

Now about the run . . .

It started at 7am Eastern Time which made me a bit nervous as I'm not a morning runner. I was excited/nervous though so I was able to get up and get ready in time. However, when the alarm went off on Dave's watch I hit every button on the alarm clock in our hotel room in an attempt to turn it off. (Dave thought it was my watch alarm and he couldn't figure out why I didn't just turn it off).

The race starts on the Golf Course of the Keewenaw Mountain Lodge. That means you go down first and up at the end. I had driven over to the lookout point on the ridge above the lodge on Saturday and it was pretty intimidating seeing Lake Fanny Hooe where we run to and how far up it was back to the lodge.

Here is the start line at the golf course.

Here we go across part of the golf course.

Then you run a little loop right near the lodge. This part was just like a mountain bike race. Everyone charges off through the open part and then you hit the first singletrack section and the line comes to a stop. The first bit of singletrack was real mountain bike singletrack - narrow with rocks, roots, etc. I was totally in my element there as I'm used to picking a line and watching where I'm going.

After you do the loop right at the lodge you head down the Red Trail which is this awesome downhill with good terrain and some rocky sections. This takes you down to Lake Manganese where you run briefly along the shore. Then you head out towards Lake Fanny Hooe where you run the Kamikaze trail. This is a flat trail along the lake. However, you don't really ever get a chance to take in the views as this trail is super rooted so you have to watch every step. I like it as I like the distraction of obstacles. It helps me forget about the challenges of running. I did hear a couple of guys lamenting the lack of a good surface to put your foot so I guess it wasn't universally loved.

Eventually we complete that part and head up Paul's Plunge. The picture above is me just after coming up the plunge which is this steep rocky trail that was meant to be mountain biked down. One of the women in front of me told Dave that it was like mountain climbing. It was steep but at this point I was still going pretty good so I kind of liked it. I thought it looked like a rather hard downhill on the bike (Dave rode it later though and said it wasn't as bad as I thought so I guess the perspective of trying to make it up on foot made it seem worse than it is).

There was one spot on the course that you came by 3 times and that is where they had the aid station. This photo is my 2nd time at the aid station and I'm getting my water bottle refilled with water. In this race they require you to carry a water bottle so they don't have the waste of paper cups. I spent too long at the aid station my 3rd time through as I wanted to make more Luna drink mix but I couldn't get the packet open. I guess I was getting tired!

After the 2nd time through the aid station you head out to do Black Bear, Rock and Roll and French Annie trail. These are all nice little pieces of singletrack linked together with some forest roads. There was one stretch of mud bog on French Annie and I passed a guy there as he tried to gingerly pick his way through without getting muddy. I just saw a line of least resistance and charged on through getting a little muddy along the way. I think that was the cyclocrosser in me! There were also a couple of creek crossings. I only got a little wet on those and used the trees/stones to get across mostly dry. I didn't think I would want to run the rest of the way with wet feet but it would have been kind of fun to blast through (I bet the leaders did).

It was during this section of the run that I told myself that if the person I could see in front of me was walking that I didn't have to. Somehow seeing someone else walk a section made me think I should too. However, I decided that I needed to treat it like Chequamegon . . . the guys might get off their bikes (or walk) but I can just keep riding (running) and get up the hill. I just felt better very slowly running up the hills versus walking them. I knew that there would be plenty of walking to be had later and Dave will tell you that I like to get into my "all day" pace and just plug away at that speed with no variation.

For a big chunk of the last half of the course I was going back and forth with several guys. They would pass me, I would pass them. I think my strength was picking a line in the singletrack and theirs was running. It was fun not to be out there all by myself though. I did sometimes pass them on hills as they seemed to prefer the walking break on the hills and I tried to avoid it and just plug away.

I also spent some time telling myself that when I got done with this run I didn't have to run again for as long as I wanted. Another thing I did was always drink or eat if I needed to walk a hill. It made me feel like there was some larger reason to walk besides exhaustion and the challenge of running some of the steeper bits.

After French Annie Trail you finally reach the final time at the aid station. I had told the guys around me that I knew if I made it there I would finish as I knew I could always make it by just walking if need be.

After the aid station the tough part of the day starts and this is when the true difficulty of this race hits you. You know it's going to hurt when you go further downhill after the aid station. Let me tell you that you have no desire to lose more elevation when you know that you have to get up to the top where the Keewenaw Mountain Resort is located. I was still upbeat though as the singletrack is fun and I had ridden this piece the day before and remebered it fondly.

However, before long you get to the cut off down into town on the Stairway to Heaven trail and make the turn to begin the long, long, long slog to the top on the Here You Go trail. The funny part was this mountain biker who told us that it was only 2-3 miles to the top. True, I suppose, if we took the direct way but that was not the case. Instead we were faced with switchback after switchback after switchback all uphill. I would say that for the first mile (or maybe less) I kept a nice slow, steady running pace.

One of the hardest parts was when we got to a point in the trail when we could hear traffic on the road to the lodge and then we turned and ran the opposite direction. And we kept going and going and going. Slowly I started taking more walking breaks and it got harder to start running again. I tried to distract myself by thinking about what a fun trail it would be to mountain bike down. That didn't help. This part of the race was tough going and sometimes all I could do was make myself walk fast (I told myself I needed to at least do the hill walking pace of ski school drills).

It also seemed to stretch on forever. Finally though I got to the end of that trail and I knew the trail I was on would lead to the finish. It did but it snaked around a lot first. My legs were hurting by this point and I really, really wanted it to be done. It went walk, walk, run slowly, get to a small rise, walk, walk, force myself to run slowly, walk, try to psyche myself up to run again, run a little, wonder how much farther. Finally I saw someone standing in the woods so I started my pathetic jog and then I saw that I was at the edge of the golf course at the resort. Great joy came upon me and I told myself that I needed to do the best run I could muster as I was almost done. Jog, jog, jog, see the finish timers. Try to follow the red flags in the ground. Finally get close enough to see the time clock says 3:17. Hope I can get there before it says 3:20. Finally get there and it still says 3:17. Feel very happy and very tired all at the same time!

Here I am after 3 hours and 17 minutes of running ( and some serious walking) with the 3 guys I ran a lot of the race with. 1327 beat me and the other two came in just behind me.

All in all I was pleased with the race. I had fun although I did suffer but I didn't suffer so much that Iwished I weren't doing it. The last 3-4 miles was where my lack of running really showed. I really needed to finish every one of my runs with a really long climb and I really needed to run more than I did. However, I didn't run so much that I hated it or that I had injuries of any sort. I was pleased with a 3:17 finish time on a tough course. I expected to be slower but I ran the first 12 miles faster than I expected (and the last 4 were as slow and as hard as I imagined).

Would I do it again? I would but maybe not right away. I enjoy running especially trail running but I fear that too much of it would kill that enthusiasm. Who knows though. If you'd have asked me last year if I would do this I would have said no!