Ice Age Trail 50 (1/2 marathon)

Ice Age Trail 50 (1/2 marathon) - May 10th, 2025
time = 2:17:15

pace = 10:29

placed 5th in my age group (50-59) out of 34

placed 23rd in women out of 151

placed 70th overall out of 285

strava data here

the last time i ran this race was in 2019.  i ran it better (aka faster) then, but i was also 6 years younger, and not in menopause.  although i suppose i can't really blame the menopause, but i am constantly fatigued, which is my new normal since going into menopause. so there's that...

notably, everyone in my age group who beat me was also older than me, so that maybe debunks my menopause theory. 

this year, they changed up the parking structure and were shuttling people in from the nearby (10 min drive away) high school.  my anxiety was really high going into this race for some reason.  i was worried about parking and wanted to have my car close, so i went to nordic at 7am even though my race wasn't until 9am.  gabby and michael were there already because michael's brother was running the 50-miler, and that took off at 6am, i think.  

the 2 hours went by very quickly.  my brother, sister in law, and nephew were coming and set to arrive around 8:30am.  i talked to a couple of people i knew, and while i was talking to someone, dax called me.  i turned around and there he was, so he also came out to support my run.  i'm really fortunate to have such wonderful people in my life.

i was still feeling nervous for some reason and (in hindsight) didn't get enough warming up in before the start of the race, but that's neither here nor there.

i got changed into my running gear and then my family arrived.  we said hello and talked until it was time to line up for the start.  i tried to position myself towards the front middle of the pack so that i wasn't going to be stuck passing people right away.  i still got stuck in a clump of people, but then everyone found their strides and spread out.  the first mile or so, my achilles tendons were talking to me and sort of burning like they were doing too much.  i made note of it but everything else on my body felt really good so i just worked through it.  it eventually went away and felt fine.

i went out WAY TOO FAST per usual.  sheesh... i was trying to temper my stride and keep it at around a 10.  i did fairly well after the first 2 miles, but had to really pay close attention or i'd fall back into a faster pace than preferred.  this ended up being my downfall for the second loop.  too fast the first loop, and then the heat came, and so did the struggle bus.

i came through the start/finish after the first loop at the 1/2 way mark and was already feeling the warming day.  my fingers were starting to swell like sausages, and my handheld was nearly empty.  got some water from emily at the aid station and then continued on my way.  i walked out of the start/finish and got beyond the bathrooms before i started running again.  not a good sign. foreshadowing maybe? 

at about mile 9 the chafing began in earnest. i stopped at the aid station kevin was manning to slather some vaseline on my thighs, joke with the volunteers, and then get moving.  there was a woman who i believe to be in my age group switching positions with me through the whole first loop back and forth and i decided that i wanted to get in before her.  she was coming up behind me while i was at the aid station so i took off to try and stay ahead of her.  honestly, if it weren't for that goal i probably would have run in slower than i already was running. 

i had an A goal of 2 hours, B goal of 2:20, and C goal of finishing.  i always go into every race with an A, B, C goal set.  the A goal is usually a little unrealistic but still possible, the B goal is usually completely doable but challenging, and then the C goal is when all else fails... just get it done.  one foot in front of the other and anything can be accomplished. i managed to stay ahead of her until the finish while several others passed me in the last open prairie stretch before the last set of hills to the finish.  nothing was hurting but for some reason i could not get my "go" to go... i was really fatigued and just kept wanting to walk.  so. many. hills.

i ran into the finish as fast as i could and managed a pretty solid time.  i almost cried several times in the last few miles, as one does, but its nearly impossible to run and cry at the same time so that works in my favor.  i suppose that i'm happy with my finish, but also a tiny bit disappointed because i really wanted to be faster.  the first loop made me think that i could get it done, but i guess there's no accounting for all the uncontrollable factors that impact a race.  i'm not acclimated to warm weather running yet, and this race being in may makes it challenging to know what weather to expect.  for me, these things make a difference.  i've noticed that things that didn't impact me years ago when i was running/racing are now factors to consider in my running.  weather, fueling, etc... 

as always, this race is the best.  the race director does a wonderful job, and all the volunteers are really great and supportive.  everyone involved with this race wants the runners to do well.

the iceage 50 is the oldest trail race in the country. people come from all over to run the various distances (50 miles, 50K, and the 1/2 marathon). i’ve run the 50K twice. completed it the first time (in 5:34) and DNF’d the second time at mile 19.9. this is my second time running the 1/2. the first time i finished in 2:06. so a smidge slower this time coming in at 2:17 but i'm not complaining!  my body works, i'm running again, and i've got a lot to be grateful for.  life is really good.  

Chippewa Trail Races - 20 Miler

 Chippewa Trail Races - April 26, 2025
time = 4:32:05

pace = 13:20
placed 4 in my age group (50-59) out of 11
placed 10 in women out of 43
placed 29 overall out of 80
link to strava data

a lot of trail runners i know run this race annually but neither gabby nor i have ever run it so we decided to give it a go.  the plan was to run it "comfortably" as we both are training for other things and didn't want to exactly "race" this race.  we arrived in chetek on friday afternoon, found northwoods best inn, and got our stuff situated there.  asked the front desk for food recommendations, and she recommended gilligan's (which i might add is on 8 1/2 avenue.  incidentally... a lot of the streets were fractions 8 3/16 ave, 5/16 ave, 25 3/8 ave, etc... which we laughed about.)  other options were "joe's b&b bar and grill", "phil's bar and grill", and "mary's cafe and pub", all on the same block. 

gilligan's was as expected.  a little bar and grill on one of the many bodies of water up in chetek.  the food was good.  the place was empty.  it was also 2:30pm, so there's that.

we ate, we left, and nearly forgot we had to go pick up our bibs.  we drove the 25 minutes to the david r. obey ice age interpretive center. we looked at a bunch of animal pelts, stuffed animals, live animals, picked up our packets and headed back to the "inn". on the way back we stopped for ice cream and candy at the aptly named "custer's cones & candy". 

once we got our food, bibs, and sugar fill we headed back to the "inn" for the rest of the day/night.  we watched some bad tv until lights out, and that was that.  the place was nice enough. no frills, and the rooms were clean.  no muss no fuss.

saturday morning started at 6am.  we both slept pretty badly for various reasons, but race day is race day yay!  i ate the rest of my steak and potatoes for breakfast, and we were out the door by 7:30am for an 8:30am start.

the weather was a bit cool, but we knew it was going to warm up fairly quickly.  the race starts at the center on the top of a hill.  i think we clocked it at a quarter mile maybe... i don't remember.  the beginning of the race is a downhill which ended in a muddy section of trail before continuing around and then back up to the road.  we ran on the road for a short distance and then headed out on the iceage trail.  the majority of the race is on the iceage trail with glorious views, many little lakes, and quite perfect conditions.  very few muddy spots, but lots of roots and rocks for our dancing pleasure... or if you're me tripping and falling pleasure.

this race is an out and back with the 10 mile aid station turnaround on a short stretch of road.  we picked up a man, whom i started calling our caboose, right at the beginning of the race, and he stayed with us most of the time.  we lost each other here and there, and then lost him for good somewhere between miles 13-15.  the 10 mile aid station was stocked with nut roll candy things, snickers, fruit snacks, gatorade, water (of course), and some other snacky type things. we were hoping for some real food, but you get what you get.  around mile 13ish, i started chafing (thighs) and kicking myself for not bringing the lube along.  i really didn't think i would need it... i was wrong.  i won't make that mistake again.   my hip flexors also started talking to me.  i managed to eat shit twice (once fairly early on and then the second time near miles 16-17) and tripped without falling twice... no injuries tho'... just a little bit of a skinned left knee.  i pulled my right glute rock climbing on the tuesday before the race and was pretty worried it was going to be problematic, but nope... absolutely no pain at all on race day.

we were leapfrogging a couple of people (and groups) throughout the race and picked a woman in denim printed spandex running shorts and a group of four younger women to beat to the finish.  we passed up denim shortly after the 10 mile turn around (which incidentally was a pretty big dirt road hill) and about 1 mile after that we passed the 4 horsemen because they took a wrong turn and had to back track to get back on the right trail... they never caught back up to us.

eventually we were running grouped with a couple of older people, and we just stuck with them for some time.  there was an aid station at mile 3, and gabby and i discussed it and decided not to stop going out or coming back.  this allowed us to pass up a few more people who did stop on the way back.  the goal then became to stay ahead of all those we passed and get to the finish as quickly as we could.

i was really hurting by then and having a lot of trouble with my hip flexors.  i had to give myself an internal pep talk to keep it moving.  gabby was wonderful as our pacer and kept us on track with a pretty steady pace throughout.  i, as we know, have a lot of trouble with consistent pacing and tend to go out too fast and poop out at the finish.  not so much this time, which i'm grateful for.  we kept ticking down the last 3 miles, and as we came back towards the start, we were met with a bunch of mud on the last stretch to the center.  all of the places that were a little muddy on the way out were now very muddy with the late morning sun, and there wasn't much in the way of avoiding it.  so tromp through the mud, resulting in wet mud-covered shoes and legs, it was.

the finish is back up that original hill, and to be fair... it's more of a 3 tier rolling hill and very demoralizing.  as we were heading for it, i had a baby breakdown with a couple of tears, but it's virtually impossible to cry and run at the same time, so run we did.

gabby had to go to the bathroom since before the last aid station, so with a bursting bladder and an apology, off she went.  she ran up the last 1/3ish of the hill while i walked it out, trying not to cry.  

i tend to cry when i do hard things and am in physical pain.  the race was really fun, well supported, in a beautiful setting, and the weather couldn't have been more perfect.  

came through the finish with all the other finishers who came before me hanging out, sitting around, eating and resting after a job well done.  i dropped myself in the grass near the finish and watched others come in while i caught my breath, drank some coke, and ate some chicken noodle soup (although i didn't eat much as it was hot and not at all what i wanted to be consuming).  all in all we had a wonderful time and i would absolutely run this race again. 

next time tho' i will stay overnight saturday night too, as we ended up staying after the race for only about 30 minutes and then got in the car for the 4 hour drive home.  no bueno!  it was really challenging to drive home right after running 20 miles.  we stopped a few times to stretch and once for food and gas.  i have nothing but good things to say about this race.  i'm really glad i did it, and i'm really grateful for having such wonderful friends as gabby, who will sign up for a race 4 hours away on a whim.

Sweet Home Milwaukee - 5K

 Sweet Home Milwaukee - April 6, 2025
time = 25:38

pace = 8:16
placed 1 in my age group (50-59) out of 42
placed 7 in women out of 236
placed 32 overall out of 348
link to strava data

the last time i ran this race was back in 2016, the race was much larger (1369 participants), and i ran it marginally faster.  

picked my packet up yesterday at PRO and that was easy peasy lemon squeezy... in and out and well organized.

race day was just as seamless.

no corrals this time likely because there weren't enough people to need them. i signed up for this race on a whim.  i am FINALLY running consistently after years of injuries and life changes, and i'm feeling pretty good.  my brother was supposed to come with my nephew to cheer me on and go to brunch afterwards, but he wasn't feeling good and bowed out at the last minute.  i arrived about 30 minutes before race start.  didn't seem like there were a lot of people there, and several were arriving at the same time as me.  got a good parking spot right by the kites again and headed to the bathrooms.  no lines for me and i ran into celeste (incidentally, my yoga instructor), who signed up after i posted it on instagram a bit ago. she, in turn, spread the word and got a group of people together to run it.  i got to meet her friends and hang out with them all before and after the race which was really nice.  we got pictures, had hugs, and generally hyped each other up for a job well done.

photos by Eric Natamihardja

the course was the same as in 2016 (link to that race report).  just more potholes and uneven footing, as the trail could maybe use some repairing.  i started out near the front because, for some reason, i always think it's better to have people passing me than to have to pass myself.  this consistently proves to be a mistake.  i ALWAYS take off too fast and then sometimes putter out as the race goes on.  today was all of that and a bag of chips.  positive splits are not awesome, and they are what i had going on for sure.  i didn't know this during the race because i do not look at my watch/splits as i'm racing.  i wait to be surprised at the end. 

ran that first mile in 8:15, slowed down in mile two (while i chided myself in my head... yelling at myself "DON'T YOU DARE WALK!  DON'T YOU DARE WALK!" over and over until i got through that mile). clocked mile two at 8:31.  

the course was short according to my watch and the watches of others in the group.  my watch said the total was 3:04 instead of 3:10.  not a big difference, but short nonetheless.  mile three was 8:37.  nice and fast overall compared to what i have been doing for this distance.  just disappointed in myself for going out too fast and effectively thwarting a negative split.

i was struggling the whole time, but i managed to do some semblance of a sprint for the final stretch.  well, it FELT like a sprint, but it probably wasn't much of one. i didn't push hard enough to cry this time.  i suppose i'm not exactly in that mindset anymore, i am older but not quite wiser given that i still have no idea how to effectively pace myself.  

the race was fun.  the shirt is again a nice cotton long sleeve (the small is too big for me, but it is what it is), the medal is nice and doubles as a bottle opener,  and they had a well-supported finish with water and bananas.  a ticket for custard, a bloody mary at a brunch spot, and a coupon for another custard at a later date.

all in all, it's a nice flat, easy course.  today had barely any wind, which was also a blessing given that this is an open flat space, and if there were any wind, it would have been brutal coming right off the beautiful lake.  it was a really great way to start this sunday.  10/10 would do it again.

special thanks to celeste for sending me those photos!  you are the bees knees.  

evolution

evolution: my running goals and just how running exists in my brain and life have evolved.

2 years ago i believed that i would never run again.  i have suffered so many injuries over my 13 years of running.  my goals were always to be faster and faster.  i wanted to WIN!  i believe that this stems from my insatiable desire for recognition, approval, and praise... which, ultimately, stems from the traumatic childhood that i lived through.  its amazing how everything, quite literally everything, is connected.

yesterday, i was throwing together a training plan now that i've got a couple races on the schedule.  as i was putting the training runs on the calendar, i started to feel panic and a little stress over the idea that i HAVE TO commit to all of these training runs.  i started to feel mental exhaustion just thinking about how much i'm going to have to run over the next 6 ish weeks.   let's look at that for a minute... HAVE TO and GET TO... 

i run because i deeply love running.  i get so much pleasure from working my body, being out in nature, and playing on the trails.  key word is "playing".  running is play for me and i don't ever want to give that version up.  i don't want to make running a chore that i HAVE TO do in order to meet some arbitrary speed goal.  i want to LOVE each run.  i want to LOVE that i get to do this.  i want to LOVE that my body is still capable of such things!

so i shifted my perspective which came with a deeply felt blanket of relief.  i've decided that i will loosely follow the training plan i set up, and that i will run the races i've got coming up with less competitive drive and more casual fun drive.  i want my body to continue to feel great when i run, and i think that to do that i need to get less competitive with my goals.

i have such great friends.  i had this conversation today, and it makes me feel all warm and squishy inside.  to be validated by people who love me is top notch.  

the ways in which my life and relationships have evolved, changed, grown, and expanded after leaving my husband are innumerable. it is a testament to the strength of my friendships, my newly learned ability to set and maintain healthy boundaries, and my desire to stay curiously teachable.  i was really isolated in my marriage and felt so very alone.

in many ways, my life became so much happier, fuller, and easier the past couple of years since the end of my marriage.

growing into a more fully formed human has been difficult and i anticipate all future growth will be the same... however, no matter how difficult the growing pains have been every day is a gift and i am so fortunate to be living the life i am now living.

the community of runners that i am lucky enough to be a part of is varied and vast.  i've missed running, my running friends, and the running community at large.

i'm so grateful and happy to be back.  glass 1/2 full...

everything that this body of mine can do is a gift and i'm just so grateful to be here doing the things i'm doing with the people i get to do them with. 

and that's all i've got to say about that.

introducing Ludo (with a cameo by Boulder)

let's introduce my boy ludo.  

in 2020 (when the world fell apart) i had to rehome frank because the new landlord didn't allow pets and i had to move with a swiftness... fast forward a year and in 2021 i told said landlord that i was going to move out because i really missed my dog and wanted a dog.  he agreed and i tried to get frank back.  frank is in a wonderful home with people who love him, and when i reached out, they simply couldn't part with him.  he is now part of their family.

so i felt a bit better about getting another dog.  i reached out to the same farmers that i got frank from to see if they had any puppies.  lo and behold they did!  

meet ludo bunnybutt lobo!  

this beautiful little boy stole my heart upon first sight, and (as they say) the rest is history.  max (my son) and i drove 3+ hours to get him from northern wisconsin.  

met the woman at a truck stop, exchanged cash for puppy and away we went.  

ludo is a texas heeler.  i chose the heeler initially (when i got frank) for their stamina and energy.  frank was also a heeler.  notably, frank and ludo are cousins.  their mothers are sisters. being a texas heeler simply means that the dog is 1/2 australian cattle dog (blue heeler) and australian shepherd.

one thing i didn't consider when i got ludo is how much more hair the shepherd part causes... these dogs shed constantly.  there is never a time when my house is hairless anymore, except for the 5 minutes after vacuuming. 

                                             ludo's father and mother respectfully. 

ludo was born with a hip deformity.  his right rear hip has no socket (see how the ball of his femur is just hanging out there not attached?).  the only things holding his leg in place are the tendons and ligaments.  the bones are just chilin' there independent of each other on that side.  eventually he may need to have the leg removed but for now... he's doing just fine.  as of today he is 4 years old and ran his first 14 miler yesterday like a trooper.  contrary to generalizations about this breed he is not destructive when he's bored.  he's just really annoying and bothersome.  he is so very smart and wants what he wants when he wants it.  he is nice (not friendly), which i deeply appreciate about this breed of dog.  he loves other dogs but is very indifferent towards most people.  he is NOT a cuddly dog, which i originally attributed to the breed, but there are a lot of heelers that are VERY cuddly with their people.  my boy is just not one of them.  he likes to be near me, but he doesn't want to be snuggled or held.  he prefers to be scritched on the butt and hugged from behind as opposed to in the face.  he likes to run, go paddle boarding, lots of walks with his dog friends, and to lay around like a slug when he isn't moving around.  he's not nearly as high energy as frank was or as the breed suggests.  i guess i'm fortunate that way.

it's been a minute... or 4

 hello!!!  back in the saddle.  back in 2021, i was training for the iceage 50 miler and things began hurting again so i thought i would never run again!

as i stated in the last post, i joined the gym and started lifting weight regularly... to the tune of 5-6 days a week. zero to very little cardio and resigned myself to the fact that i would probably never run again.

lifting gets boring as the only way to have lifting goals is to lift heavier... always heavier.  my body was getting bigger, and i didn't fit into my clothing comfortably anymore.  

last september i quit the gym i belonged to because i was bored, and i decided to join adventure rock.  i started climbing and going to yoga again weekly.  i also started running semi-regularly again too.

i have 2 races on the schedule.  

sweet home milwaukee 5K (which i've run once before) and chippawa 20 miler - both in april.

i also joined another gym very close to my house, so i will be more motivated to go.  the new schedule begins tomorrow.  i need to actually hunker down and get serious again about my fitness and running.  

we will see how it goes...