2022 Voyageur 50 Mile Trail Ultramarathon

With my first 50k trail race in the rear view mirror, my body was ready to rest and recover. I was soaking in the accomplishment and riding the high of the experience. I felt that I had trained and tapered properly, and I was pleased to be feeling good and recovering well.

Not 48 hours after the event, Elliot said to me, “You know, the Voyageur 50 miler is only a few weeks away, and we’re basically trained for it.” No. Hell no. That was my immediate reaction. I had been nursing my knee back to health for a couple years now. The Afton 50k was the first long race I had completed since I started PT where it didn’t act up, and I didn’t want to overdo it and set myself back. Plus, 19 more miles? Are you kidding me? I wasn’t ready to commit to that. Especially not as a last minute decision.

As the days passed, the idea kept rolling around in my brain (with a little help from Elliot consistently reminding me about it). The further the 50k got behind me, and the more my body got back to normal, the more ready I felt. What’s the worst that can happen? My knee acts up and I DNF? I suffer through some pain from being undertrained? Less than two weeks before race day, I decided to pull the trigger. Let’s go!

The Minnesota Voyageur Trail Ultra is one of the oldest trail ultras in the United States. Founded in 1982, the course brings runners through the beauty of Jay Cooke State Park from the Carlton High School to the Duluth Zoo and back. Being held in July, runners can bank on a hot and humid day to make the challenge extra special.

This race was so much different from any other I had attempted because the decision was made so last minute. I was essentially tapering at the time I decided to run it, banking on my 50k training to pull me through. All we had to do was plan the logistics. We are fortunate to have dear friends that live in Carlton, a mere 5 minute drive from the start line. They graciously opened up their home for us to stay with them and offered to watch our girls and dogs while we ran. It couldn’t have been any more perfect.

The next decision was drop bags. With the race being an out and back, there were three locations for us to drop bags. Two along the route, which we would access on the way out and on the way back, and one at the turnaround. We took advantage of all of them. Our goodies included extra electrolyte and carbohydrate powders, Clif bars, PBJs, pureed sweet potatoes and bananas, and my favorite, a puree of frozen fruit and coconut milk (a special treat on a hot day!). I also decided to pack poles to pick up at the half way mark. We had everything spread across the kitchen table to be neatly organized into our bags. We way overpacked. But hey, better to be over prepared, right? It’s funny to reflect on how much we packed for this race as we haven’t used drop bags for this race ever since.

Now all that was left was to rest up before the big day. We enjoyed our traditional dinner (gnocchi with homemade spaghetti sauce and spinach), laid low with our friends, and got to bed early to get as much sleep as we could. With a race start time of 6am, and only needing to drive 5 minutes to get there, it was the easiest race logistics of all time. We had plenty of time to enjoy breakfast and coffee before leisurely making our way to Carlton High School.

There is so much I love about this race. For one, it’s a small field, which makes it easy to spot familiar faces and socialize. Runners also have access to the bathrooms inside the school, and there’s barely any lines, making it easy to pop in multiple times before the race starts (which is pretty typical for me, whether that’s due to nerves or mom bladder). Everything generally just feels so simple, easy, and stress free.

Before we knew it, it was time to get moving. We took our oath of respect to the trail and each other, and headed down the road toward the Munger Trail. This is it, I thought. No turning back now. We started out at a decent pace to get towards the front of the pack before hitting the single track to prevent getting caught in the conga line. We did our best to hold a strong pace to ensure we stayed ahead of the cutoff times. I was pleased to find there was quite a bit of runnable trail, but it was broken up nicely by sections of climbs and descents. Just enough to keep it interesting and engaging.

We hit the worst bout of climbing about 9 or 10 miles in at a section affectionately coined “purgatory.” Purgatory consists of two very steep climbs and descents that I could barely slog up and felt like I was going to fall on my ass and slide down. Apparently there used to be two miles of these hills, and they were called the “power lines.” I was thankful to only have the two hills to climb. Especially knowing I'd see them again at mile 40 or so.

From there we came through the mountain bike section of the trail, which felt like riding a rollercoaster up and down the rolling hills. Then onto the fern gully (as we call it), which was one of the most breathtaking sections, so lush and green and magical. And then, there was quite a bit of straight and mostly flat trail. Over grass. Over gravel. Until eventually we started to make the long descent down towards the zoo. I couldn’t help but think about having to hike back up and out after the turnaround.

We made it to the halfway point in about 5.5 hours. My stretch goal for this race was 11 hours, another arbitrary goal based on my one and only 50k time. I was feeling really good about our progress, but I knew the likelihood of finishing the second half in the same amount of time as the first half was slim to none. An 11 hour finish was not realistic. I didn’t mind though. Just finishing the race was the ultimate goal. We took some time at the aid station to collect ourselves, hydrate, and repack our vests. I was excited to pick up my poles, and had also decided before the race that I would allow myself headphones for the second half to help distract me (I only ended up listening for about 2 hours, I found I enjoyed myself more without them). We were way ahead of cutoff times, but we wanted to keep it that way. Back onto the trail we went.

As expected, the journey back felt like there was twice as much up hill. Additionally, the heat had kicked up to about 80 degrees and there wasn’t a single cloud in the sky. I was thankful for the tree coverage to offer some reprieve, but it wasn’t enough to keep Elliot’s stomach from bubbling. Meanwhile, the deuce that wouldn’t come out before the race was ready to make an appearance, and we were nowhere near a bathroom. Needless to say, we slowed down a bit to sort things out. But we also capitalized on the moments when we were feeling good, running when we could and power hiking when we needed to. I did my best to maintain a positive mindset, and it felt good to be over half way and counting down the miles. I was pleasantly surprised to find a beautiful, technical section right at the end, a different trail than what we took in. It was the perfect way to end the race, we soaked in the beauty and took some pictures along the way.

The route back ended up taking us about an hour and a half longer than the first half, and we finished in a respectable 12 hours, 34 minutes, and 36 seconds. The best part was, we finished side by side, something we rarely do. It made the experience extra special, and a moment I will remember for years to come. I love that we are able to do these things together. Running has made our relationship, our connection, stronger than ever. Which I didn’t think was possible.

When we finished, we unloaded the bulk of our stuff into the truck, Elliot unloaded the contents of his stomach onto the pavement, and we made our way back to the finish line to grab some food and watch the rest of the runners come in. The golden hour is my favorite. Watching the runners who have been working the hardest of us all push themselves to the finish line. The last gal to make her way in must have been in her 60s and crossed the line with just 30 seconds to spare and the biggest smile on her face. I was in awe from her zest and energy. I hope to still be able to do this stuff at her age.

This race sunk the hook in even deeper. Having a 50 miler under my belt brought a whole new level of confidence. I knew immediately that I wanted to do it again. The connection to Mother Nature that I felt that day was like nothing else. So pure and beautiful and perfect. It was a treat to spend the day with her. And I was so grateful for my body carrying me all that way after barely being able to run two miles just two years prior. This, I thought, is the next evolution in my journey.

I learned so much from this race…

1. I thought about quitting. A lot. When I was 10 miles in, it was hard to fathom doing another 40 miles. At 20 miles, hard to fathom 30 more. At the turnaround, I felt the weight of doing it all over again. I had to learn to stay in the mile I was in. I realized I was worried about how I might feel at mile 30, 40, 50. But there was no way to know how I was going to feel in the future. I needed to focus on how I felt in the present moment, and simply enjoy the fact that I got to spend an entire day out in the woods, with no responsibilities, hanging out with my hubs and a whole lot of other cool people.

2. Advil was a game changer. I know, it’s not a great idea to take this stuff when you’re running ultras. I know there are risks to your kidneys. But I was experiencing a great deal of pain in my hips, and it really turned my race around. I do try to avoid it at all costs, but desperate times…

3. Having carrots to dangle in front of myself got me excited for the next aid station. It seems so small, but I was so excited for the frozen fruit and coconut milk in my first drop bag. And my PBJ waiting for me in my second drop bag. And the poles and headphones at the halfway point. These little joys gave me just the boost I needed along the way.

4. Striking up conversation with other runners really helps pass the time. And, you get to meet some really great people. One gal I met right after the turnaround shared that she was using this race as a training run for her tenth 100 miler. Her TENTH 100 MILER! Hearing her share that was so incredibly motivating and made me believe that what I was working towards was totally achievable.

5. Never pass up the opportunity to use the biffy. It’s worth the extra 0.1 miles to use it while you can.

6. It’s ok to hike. As a marathoner, it was hard to get used to walking during a race. But ultras are different, and walking is expected at times, not a sign of weakness.

7. Take time to enjoy the views. Especially when the trail gets too technical to look up. Take a moment to pause and enjoy the scenery, it’s worth the few extra seconds to soak it in.

For those who are considering taking the leap from the 50k to the 50 mile, I’m here to tell you, not only can you do it, you won’t regret it! You’ll never know unless you go for it. You may never feel ready, and that’s ok. Sometimes you just need to get out there and surprise yourself. And then, you’ll be hooked, too.