Run Like an Antelope?

I have been trying to hammer out this year’s race schedule since December, but nothing quite fits. There is a dearth of longer trail runs in Michigan, and Marquette, Woodstock, and North Country are all late in the season. Something needs to be done about this, but since I’m currently writing my dissertation, I’m going to wait another year before trying my hand as a race director. In the meantime, the empty calendar has led my eyes to wander farther afield.

Looking at the race calendar on ultrarunning.com, I noticed the Finger Lakes Fifties will, once again, be held over the 4^th of July weekend (July 2^nd to be exact). Just then something clicked in my brain: “isn’t that the weekend Phish is playing in Watkins Glen?”

It may be indeed!

A quick search of the web produced this article, confirming a rumor that’s been circulating for a couple of months. It says that “sources close to the situation” report that Phish will be hosting a festival at the Watkins Glen International racetrack over the 4^th of July weekend. That’s just 10 miles from the Finger Lakes National Forest and the Finger Lakes Fifties.

If the rumor turns out to be true, it will mean that 250 ultrarunners will have about 70,000 friendly phish fans for company. So pass the salt potatoes because this may be shaping up into a great time for running and music in upstate New York!

HUFF 50K - 2010 Race Report

The Huntington Ultra Frigid Fifty (HUFF) lived up to its name this year. It was nine degrees (F) when I rolled in to the Kil-So-Quah campground just outside Huntington, Indiana. This race was billed as being “one of the ten largest ultramarathons in North America.” And, indeed, there was a fairly large field of runners as we lined up for the start.

The course is a three loop setup, with three aid stations per loop (including the start/finish area). The morning was clear, sunny, and still as I started out on the first loop around the Huntington reservoir. The course had mile markers, and, just before mile three, we reached the dam holding back the waters of the Wabash River. In the distance I could see the bridge three miles to the southeast that I would be crossing later in the day.

Just down the road from the damn we reached mile four and the first aid station. They had turtles! (chocolate covered candies with caramel and pecans.) Yum!

The course is pretty flat, except for a few places where erosion has cut into the hillside. There the trail dips and then climbs out of a mild ravine. Other than that, it’s even going: wide and smooth with few roots or rocks. Although today the ground was hard packed from the cold and all the folks in front of me, another runner told me that in warm years, the course can be very muddy.

The second aid station comes just before the bridge on the southeast side of the reservoir

The difficult part of this race this year was the cold. The ground was frozen hard, and the hard surface made for increased leg strain. That, coupled with the wide and level trail, made trail running a lot more like road running.

Midway through the second loop, I ran past a pack of hunting beagles. They sounded like a flock of geese. Just after I passed them I heard a loud shot. Apparently the south side of the reservoir is open to hunting this time of year (the north side is a “safety zone”). So, it’s a good idea to wear some orange for this race!

After the second loop, my legs were tired from pounding the frozen ground, but I my energy was otherwise good. I thought about dropping for a minute, but since I’d driven down from Grand Rapids, I figured I would get my money’s worth and finish it up. I walked a bit more at the beginning of the third loop, but then my legs loosened up and trotted through the rest of the distance, passing a number of beat up looking runners in the last few miles. I came through the finish line in 7:27:01.