Willingness: Voyageur 50, 2018
After a surprisingly great finish at Two Hearted 50k, I had to deal with my cyclical pattern that follows me now since Wild Duluth 2017: riding the high thinking I'm recovered only to find out I am injured. Two weeks before Voyaguer, I finally went in to Tria to have my foot looked at. It was swollen and hurt to the touch. Thankfully, there was no fracture, but tendonitis. I was given stretches to do and was told activity is OK to do unless any activity triggers it. I treated it like a long taper and also started frequently going to Performance Running Gym, where Mark gave me a plan to follow. This helped me stay a bit more sane than doing nothing (which I am not good at, especially the no running part). At this point, Voyageur was up in the air, questioning whether or not I was going to even attempt it. As the day approached closer, and my foot wasn't too bad- I allowed myself to give it a try. I had the willingness and to simply let go of any expectations or goals. This would surprisingly come back to help me.
Friday was a half day of working and a half day of packing and heading up north. I don't think I can ever get tired of leaving the cities for a chance to go up north... minus that nasty traffic. We arrived at our campsite, set- up with our friends Jay and Kaleb who happily watched Bean for us while we played in the woods on Saturday (thanks you two!) and went to Park Point for a dip in the water and tried to get Bean to enjoy it as much as we did with no avail. We ate dinner by our campfire and went to bed early knowing we had a big day ahead of us. We talked about how peaceful the campsite was, only to have it backfire on us while we tried to get a wink of sleep with cars driving by and dogs barking for what seemed like the entire night.
 |
| Bean likes the beach: but not so much the water- driftwood will do. Photo: Long |
We woke up at 4:00 a.m. to get ready to head to the high school in Carlton, it was a bit tough leaving Bean behind with our friends, but she warmed up to them so quick and they gave her such a fun-filled, adventurous day!
Upon arriving at the high school, we were met by many friends. It's funny how the race starts and ends at a high school because it feels like an annual high school reunion in a way! Friends taking pictures together, talking about goals- well... I shouldn't speak from experience since I have never attended a high school reunion but I would hope it would be as cool as a bunch of ultra runners gathering every year! The RD gave a small race briefing, and we had a moment of silence for Shane. I never knew Shane on a personal level, but I sure do remember him being out there. We were told his picture would be out there greeting us and to give him a wave/acknowledgement. Shortly after, we were off! I went into this race with no expectations- which is a scary thing for me: the unknown paired with my anxious self. What would happen to my foot? My feelings of being undertrained? A lot was in my mind, but when I simply let go it was liberating. I finally felt the feeling of simply playing in the woods with my friends. I wasn't obsessively looking at my watch or negatively thinking to myself "I'm breathing too heavily" or "I have such terrible form". Right away I was running with Wendi, talking about life and races. Soon enough she was darting in front of me and off on the trail section. Watching her footing was so graceful! Somehow during the Jay Cooke Section Heidi ended up in front of me, I was so happy to finally have some trail time with her! We talked about Superior, the race we were in, puppies, and previous races. One guy ahead of us commented on how he knew Long before he even formally knew him because he was always amazed by how his hair looks perfect no matter what distance he is running. We had a good laugh at that one and even told Long when I crossed the finish line!. Heidi took off on the downhill leading up to the iconic swinging bridge, she is a strong runner, so I didn't expect to run with her for every long! I am grateful that I have got to know some amazing women through the trail running community- they have inspired and carried me through so many races and challenges, and even more grateful that they can shift my mindset during a race from being in 'race mode' to just having fun on the trails!
 |
| Heidi takes a quick photo before she darts to the swinging bridge and beyond! |
 |
| Willow caught Kari and I outside |
We also saw Rick and Willow out on the trail, giving encouragement, cheers, and hanging more trail markers!
We were on our way to the power lines, but not before stopping at the aid station. It was time to stock up before hitting those climbs and descents. As we were starting to head there, I heard a voice coming from my pack. Was I calling someone? I took out my phone, nothing. Was I hearing things? I brushed it off and continued to climb (remember this, reader). The trails were in great shape and were not the mud/clay mess they typically are this time of year.
On top of the last climb was a tripod and a picture of Shane, waiting where he usually does making us smile after those grueling climbs. I rested my hand on the tripod and bowed my head as a sudden wave of sadness came over me. Instantly, my eyes filled with tears, I never knew Shane personally, but I remembered him, his presence, and the thought of how precious and short life is. I distanced myself for a while as I cried and walked on the trail. I couldn't stop thinking about him and his legacy he left. I said a prayer for him and gathered myself enough to breathe and continue running. Soon again I was with Kari and Wendi! We were all running together and made it to the aid station under the bridge. We got a picture with the legendary Pearl, seeing her at a race is like seeing a mascot during a sporting event. She's always just so content with being out and about in her stroller greeting all her fans.
At one point, there was a volunteer telling runners that there is a beehive under one of the bridges and there would be someone there to tell us how to get around it. Kari joked it would be good Superior for them! We crossed many bridges with no volunteers nor bees in sight- but found out later that it had been taken care of (I pictured a baseball bat and a lot of people running fast).
I can't remember if the bee situation is before or after Becks, so I'm going to skip ahead to Becks. I loved seeing all the UMTR people! Greeted by so many familiar faces, and one of my highlights of the race was Amy making a box of inspirational quotes for runners to take with them. If you don't know Amy, you should (that is, if you don't know her already!). She is never short of inspiration, positivity, strength, and is a fantastic writer! Mine was a bible verse that I sadly lost somewhere but it was so fitting I thought of it the rest of the way! Thanks Amy!
After Becks is where I usually start to see the speedy runners head back from the turnaround. Zipping so fast down the trail! At this point I was by myself, and enjoyed the long hikes and the peace the trail had to offer. I remember this section from years past- lots of gradual uphills that leads to a road incline. I did my 20 run steps and 20 fast hike steps to make the climb seem less- thanks Long for the tip!
I happened to look at the women's shoes in front of me and saw they were the Salomon sense ride. I told her those were one of my favorite pairs of shoes and we started talking. She eventually darted off as we were approaching many people coming back from the turnaround. I love this part of the race, because I get to see my speedy friends head home! High fives, cheering, hugs, all of it! Plus it means I am almost ready to head back to Carlton.
My watch was a mile and a half so this lead to some disappointment when I saw I was over 25 miles and nowhere near the zoo. On top of the slopes and sprinkled in with confused mountain bikers and those riding the alpine slide, I was looking forward to the usual meeting spot I see Long at. I was eager to see him since it had been hours. There he was, smiling as always with his arms out. We hugged and chatted for a bit and let me know the condition of his ankle. Not phased by it, he told me I as doing great and he would see me at the finish. I didn't even get a chance to look at his ankle before he started to trot on. This gave me the boost I needed to get to the turnaround to start to head home! I loaded up on ice, pickles, and started to head back.
This is when the heat kicked in, the long afternoon miles on Spirit Mtn. and on pavement with mostly uphill climbing was getting to me, my heart rate was spiking and wasn't drinking a lot of water at all. I needed to start jogging and sipping water!
 |
| heading back to Carlton! Photo:Eve (?) |
A little over 30 miles and I started to say a prayer for my parents, who were celebrating their 30th wedding anniversary the following day, I am so thankful for them.
After the water crossing aid station, I asked Stephanie T. how many miles were left and how many to the next aid station. She told me only 13 left and 3 to the next one- the aid station under the bridge. This is where I start to get a little anxious about time and cutoffs. I am terrible at mental math when i'm not running, so when I run and try to do math, I make up numbers and fixate on said fake numbers- so it was time to get moving! I was heading down the path and noticed a runner standing on the trail. He asked if he was going the right way and assured him he was. Sometimes it would be a bit of a stretch before seeing one and to look for blue blazes if he was uncertain. WHAT!? I was confident in my abilities to navigate?! This wasn't like me at all, but I felt comfortable and controlled in this environment, it felt familiar and this brought a great deal of peace to me.
We made it to the bridge where I made the mistake of asking about mileage. I was told, again, that it's a half marathon. This exact situation happened to me last year and I could feel the wave of disappointment start to come over me. I didn't let it get to me. I knew I was still in great shape and had a lot left to give, so it was go time! Oh wait... the power lines again! Is it just me or does it seem longer on the way back. Because of the on and off rain, some sections were now slick with clay.
I am bad at remembering the sequence of events and who was at what aid station, but I do remember running behind a group of three friends who talked about anything and everything and it was highly entertaining, it was like having a talk radio station to listen to where I could tune out and enjoy their conversation.
Soon enough, I was at the the last aid station before the finish. I was pretty happy with the time I was seeing on my watch, but gave up the though of finishing under 12 because I know how brutal and slippery the Jay Cooke section would be since the rain and runners who already went through. Mary was volunteering at that aid station and was so happy to see her. She told me to take my time and to be gracious to myself. I needed to hear that after letting go of a time goal. I had made it this far feeling great and didn't want to let go of that feeling. I ran with a guy who was running this as his first 50, and congratulated him. He told me this would be his last as well, but reassured him that everyone says that and a not even a week later he would be signing up for another one. I also talked for a while with a guy named BJ, he was running his 6th Voyageur and has run more than 10 Grandmas Marathons. We exchanged race stories and helped pace each other to get through the Jay Cooke section. He took off, which pushed me to do the same. I could see the road section. 11:45 on my watch. I could make it! That road section is absolutely brutal. I ran and had to walk until I turned the right corner and saw the high school. 11:55. It's go time. I needed this. I ran as hard as I could (which from a spectator stand point probably looked like a waddle trot) and finished before 12 hours! A personal best! I was so happy. I gave the RD a hug and she handed me my coveted mug. Long was there and gave me a hug and congratulated me on doing so well on an injury. He also PRed with his bad ankle. I learned the 20 year course record was broken, and that many of our friends did so well and placed. Overall, it was a great day and was equally shocked and surprised at my performance.
 |
| Bringing it in for the 3rd time at Voyageur! PR! Photo: Marcus Taintor |
As we went to the car to head back to our campsite, since we both needed to elevate and tend to our injuries and hungry stomachs, he told me I needed to listen to something. Sure enough, my phone somehow called Long and left him a voicemail of my very horse-like running pattern. We both had a good laugh, a slow, shuffling and food-filled evening by the fire with an early bed time. We enjoyed our Sunday with good food and more time at Park Point as Superior serves as a large ice bath- it felt amazing!
 |
| Two injuries+Two PRs=a great day! Photo: Rhende |
 |
| We all needed a little R&R on Sunday |
 |
| Pooped after an adventure filled weekend |
Thank you to the volunteers, friends, and spectators who were out there making Voyageur the gem that it is, year after year, I look forward to the end of July annually because of this. I am inspired and hopeful to come year after year and be part of the 250 mile club someday and those who recently entered the 250 and 750 mile club themselves... WOW.
 |
| Fig stands on the newest addition to the Voyageur finishers mug collection. |
The memories that the trail holds are ones I will hold onto forever, the lessons are treasured, and those who have left us continue to leave their legacy with us out on the trail and embedded in our community.
This race was dedicated to Belle, Shane, and my parents 30th anniversary.
Comments
Post a Comment