So, one of the most amazing races thus far in my short career of running, and it is now in the books. Shawn and I head back to the hotel to clean up a bit and decide to head out to find some hiking trails north of Duluth. We check out the map on the iPhone and find some trailheads near the knife river about 25 minutes out of town. So, we head due north (where good things are) and we're feeling quite free...tired, but free. On the way up we stop for a quick bite at Subway, tasted great after a rough morning. Bellies full, and feeling one more stop on the way up. Cravings for coffee!!! Shawn assures me there will be a little coffee shop somehwere on the way up. He's right, cause he's smart like that. We head off the normal path to exit back into the woods where coffee shops hide (not like here where they are on every block screaming for you to partake). We head on in and smell the freshness of coffee and pastry alike. I, of course, go for the sugary goodness that melts in my pants and in my mouth. Shawn went with a more subtle and human route of the reg, doctored up just a bit! It was all good, and so we head back out in our search for trailhead goodness.
not too far up the road heading norht out of Duluth we finda a nice spot to park by the Knife river. We pull up, look around and start heading toward the river. Searching around froa trail to consume us, we get crossed up by the river forging and the bridge above. Finally we walk up river in hopes for better hiking opportunities, to no avail. Finally we see some other humans and a dog...a quick couple exchanges and we are pointed in the right direction and we are off to soem hiking. Deep, dense and dark trails...never seeing much light and damp as can be. Heavenly and woodsly, we trek forward toward some light. Finding the river and some falls we have a choice to make at the fork in the trail. And all we hear is a BIG "WHOOOOSH"...I look up and quickly see the wingspan of a huge bird, larger than life, a bald eagle in all its glory swooping down from the tree above, making her presence known and then out of sight with no reserve. Beautiful! Graceful! Numbingly fantastic...
Long story short ( I tend to get long winded ), we finish up our hike, head back to civilization get ready for another night on the town in Duluth. This night...awesome pizza, great beer, good company, Irish pub...and back to Canal Street for some late night drinks and conversation. No hair bands tonight unfortunately, but enough fun for a day and time to head back for some sleep to prepare for the morning 5k. Quick synopsis soon to come.
Bish bidding ADU!?
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Monday, October 5, 2009
Can you say Gnarly?
Saturday morning came in a jiffy!
The smell of 'hard-core' was in the air.
Up and out of bed, getting ready for 15km
in the hills, trails, and woods of Duluth.
Said to be some of the best trail running in the upper midwest...
who's gonna lie about that?
We fill our bellies up with the oats
and the fruits and head on out toward the
Duluth Zoo.
this is actually where the race is going to end,
but since its a point to point style race
we parked at the finish,
got shuttled to the beginning and then
magically our ride home was where we started
which is at the finish.
If your from Finland, you'll understand...
I'm not form Finland, not even a little.
So, here we are at the zoo, its 10:15 AM and we
are feeling the beauty of the landscape.
Trees are turning, the air is crisp and the
weather is just plain beautiful.
We make some small talk with some of the friends that
we had met the night before
and start thinking about our gear, what to bring, what not to bring
on the course, etc.
Mr. Raymond was still getting things set up for the finish line...
we were hanging out.
The shuttle was slotted to get us to the start point
promptly at 10:50 so we could head out at 11.
And that, my friends, is exactly what we did.
Only 25 of us running today.
yeah, 25 tough people who are about to start an adventure
they won't soon forget, but might want to.
So we're off on to the path that heads towards the hills
easy running at first, and then....POW!
you get right into the climb...the rocks, the roots.
There are blue tally marks along the trail to keep you on
track. Rod had also gone through and tied blue ribbon on trees
to make it that much easier to navigate through.
Its still tough though, you spend so much time
looking down at your feet and the rocks, roots, etc
you miss the sash's that are laid out for you.
The head pack was out of sight and there were about 6 of us running together.
At times i would be in the lead, at times Lydia would take control, and then Shawn would get up there and pull
us along! it ws great to have others to run with
it could get real lonely real quick out there.
So, we continue to meander through the hills...
the body is in sensory overload with everything to see
and hear, its tough stuff out there!
now remember, this is over 9 miles of heavy duty trail running...
not hiking, running.
It takes alot out of you but you just have to keep plugging away.
Thats what we did and then about mile 6 we get to
what is notably called..."The Puker"
I think you can imagine what kind of hill this is.
I was in the lead at the time so I started this climb with good intentions.
Then i realized that this climb wouldn't quit,
it just kept going up, over and through!!
It didn't let off for even a second so I could catch my breath,
feel my legs, rest my heart or mind.
RUTHLESS! My guts were seriously twisting in my stomach...
like an unrelenting AB workout from hell and beyond.
Honestly, it hurt, yet we ALL kept moving and making it closer
to the top, then closer, and closer and there we were.
I must admit, i had to walk at the top, just to regain my bearings.
I wasn't shot, by any means, just disoriented a bit.
the good news...we were getting closer to the finish.
Although, if my body would let me, i would run those trails ALL day...
its that glorious.
one more water stop, then a SUPER crazy hill climb on man made steps.
Straight up almost literally, just obscene.
More good news...
A) Rocky takes the lead for the first time today..full of energy and verve! I yell
"Go Rocky!" and he kept moving forward...nice work
B) downhill (almost totally) to the finish.
So we are on our way, and I'm bringing up the rear. Rocky and Shawn are out front and pulling away, no too far, but away nonetheless. The girls asked if I wanted to pass, I declined at the moment, but knew I needed to make a move sooner than later if I wanted to hang with the boys up front. We were getting within a mile of the finish and I made my move ahead of the gals and on ward to the guys up front...then I notice the clearing and through the trees I could see the finish just about 200 yards ahead. To my delight I see Rocky and Shawn stopped, waiting...for the 3 of us. We ran the whole race to gether and they would be damned skippy if we didn't all finish together! That is what we did...hands held high, cheers from the small crowd and smiles all around. I took a deep breath and looked around and just realized what had happened...I just ran the most beautifully fun grueling tough and awesome race to date. I honestly would have gone back to the start and done it one more time. Thanks out to the 5 who ran together for this one, what a great time it was, and it is nice to know you all.
We watched and waited for the rest of the runners to come in, sat around and ate bananas, oranges, and granola bars. Drank the G2, and filled up on water. One by one they started coming in, all getting claps and cheers form the finishers. perfect morning!
Next we gave out awards! I got 3rd in my age group and got a handcrafted trophy that is totally one of a kind and completely bad-ass! Won a free pair of Salomon trail running shoes, Hammer HEED, and some water bottle s and such. Excellent morning...and now off to do some hiking with Shawn along the Knife River. More on that to come int he next post and day 3 right around the corner.
Thanks again to Rod Raymond for putting this together. We were part of something great that will become something greater in the years to come.
Duluth....a new love of mine!
The smell of 'hard-core' was in the air.
Up and out of bed, getting ready for 15km
in the hills, trails, and woods of Duluth.
Said to be some of the best trail running in the upper midwest...
who's gonna lie about that?
We fill our bellies up with the oats
and the fruits and head on out toward the
Duluth Zoo.
this is actually where the race is going to end,
but since its a point to point style race
we parked at the finish,
got shuttled to the beginning and then
magically our ride home was where we started
which is at the finish.
If your from Finland, you'll understand...
I'm not form Finland, not even a little.
So, here we are at the zoo, its 10:15 AM and we
are feeling the beauty of the landscape.
Trees are turning, the air is crisp and the
weather is just plain beautiful.
We make some small talk with some of the friends that
we had met the night before
and start thinking about our gear, what to bring, what not to bring
on the course, etc.
Mr. Raymond was still getting things set up for the finish line...
we were hanging out.
The shuttle was slotted to get us to the start point
promptly at 10:50 so we could head out at 11.
And that, my friends, is exactly what we did.
Only 25 of us running today.
yeah, 25 tough people who are about to start an adventure
they won't soon forget, but might want to.
So we're off on to the path that heads towards the hills
easy running at first, and then....POW!
you get right into the climb...the rocks, the roots.
There are blue tally marks along the trail to keep you on
track. Rod had also gone through and tied blue ribbon on trees
to make it that much easier to navigate through.
Its still tough though, you spend so much time
looking down at your feet and the rocks, roots, etc
you miss the sash's that are laid out for you.
The head pack was out of sight and there were about 6 of us running together.
At times i would be in the lead, at times Lydia would take control, and then Shawn would get up there and pull
us along! it ws great to have others to run with
it could get real lonely real quick out there.
So, we continue to meander through the hills...
the body is in sensory overload with everything to see
and hear, its tough stuff out there!
now remember, this is over 9 miles of heavy duty trail running...
not hiking, running.
It takes alot out of you but you just have to keep plugging away.
Thats what we did and then about mile 6 we get to
what is notably called..."The Puker"
I think you can imagine what kind of hill this is.
I was in the lead at the time so I started this climb with good intentions.
Then i realized that this climb wouldn't quit,
it just kept going up, over and through!!
It didn't let off for even a second so I could catch my breath,
feel my legs, rest my heart or mind.
RUTHLESS! My guts were seriously twisting in my stomach...
like an unrelenting AB workout from hell and beyond.
Honestly, it hurt, yet we ALL kept moving and making it closer
to the top, then closer, and closer and there we were.
I must admit, i had to walk at the top, just to regain my bearings.
I wasn't shot, by any means, just disoriented a bit.
the good news...we were getting closer to the finish.
Although, if my body would let me, i would run those trails ALL day...
its that glorious.
one more water stop, then a SUPER crazy hill climb on man made steps.
Straight up almost literally, just obscene.
More good news...
A) Rocky takes the lead for the first time today..full of energy and verve! I yell
"Go Rocky!" and he kept moving forward...nice work
B) downhill (almost totally) to the finish.
So we are on our way, and I'm bringing up the rear. Rocky and Shawn are out front and pulling away, no too far, but away nonetheless. The girls asked if I wanted to pass, I declined at the moment, but knew I needed to make a move sooner than later if I wanted to hang with the boys up front. We were getting within a mile of the finish and I made my move ahead of the gals and on ward to the guys up front...then I notice the clearing and through the trees I could see the finish just about 200 yards ahead. To my delight I see Rocky and Shawn stopped, waiting...for the 3 of us. We ran the whole race to gether and they would be damned skippy if we didn't all finish together! That is what we did...hands held high, cheers from the small crowd and smiles all around. I took a deep breath and looked around and just realized what had happened...I just ran the most beautifully fun grueling tough and awesome race to date. I honestly would have gone back to the start and done it one more time. Thanks out to the 5 who ran together for this one, what a great time it was, and it is nice to know you all.
We watched and waited for the rest of the runners to come in, sat around and ate bananas, oranges, and granola bars. Drank the G2, and filled up on water. One by one they started coming in, all getting claps and cheers form the finishers. perfect morning!
Next we gave out awards! I got 3rd in my age group and got a handcrafted trophy that is totally one of a kind and completely bad-ass! Won a free pair of Salomon trail running shoes, Hammer HEED, and some water bottle s and such. Excellent morning...and now off to do some hiking with Shawn along the Knife River. More on that to come int he next post and day 3 right around the corner.
Thanks again to Rod Raymond for putting this together. We were part of something great that will become something greater in the years to come.
Duluth....a new love of mine!
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Party time after first race...
Got back to the hotel after the Chester Challenge. Showered up, helped each other dress (not really, totally) and headed out to Burrito Union for a two fisted burrito and a home grown beer. Awesome place to eat and hang out. Staff was friendly, ambiance was perfect...what a great place to take a date...or for two guys who are in Duluth for trail racing, am I right?
After the huge burrito fest we headed over to Fitgers to check out the scene. Not a whole lot going on like we thought for a huge college town, but it was a good spot to relax. Sat and chatted at Redstar and enjoyed another beer and some scenary. After that we were on the verge of heading back and getting some shut-eye for our BIg race the next morning....but before we did we checked out Canal Park to see if there was any buzz down there. Sure enough there was one joint taht was hopping. We went and stood in line and when we got inside we realized it was 80's night and there was a great cover band playing.....HAIRBALL!!! What an awesome show it was, and it went til almost 2 in the morning. Dare I say we stayed until that time as well...what a bunch of morons we are, but it was vacation, so who cared? Not us, we loved every minute of it.
Finally back at the hotel and into bed, ready to rise around 8:30 (race wasn't til 11). Little breakfast in the AM and off to the Duluth Zoo for pre-race meeting and set-up. Can't wait!
After the huge burrito fest we headed over to Fitgers to check out the scene. Not a whole lot going on like we thought for a huge college town, but it was a good spot to relax. Sat and chatted at Redstar and enjoyed another beer and some scenary. After that we were on the verge of heading back and getting some shut-eye for our BIg race the next morning....but before we did we checked out Canal Park to see if there was any buzz down there. Sure enough there was one joint taht was hopping. We went and stood in line and when we got inside we realized it was 80's night and there was a great cover band playing.....HAIRBALL!!! What an awesome show it was, and it went til almost 2 in the morning. Dare I say we stayed until that time as well...what a bunch of morons we are, but it was vacation, so who cared? Not us, we loved every minute of it.
Finally back at the hotel and into bed, ready to rise around 8:30 (race wasn't til 11). Little breakfast in the AM and off to the Duluth Zoo for pre-race meeting and set-up. Can't wait!
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