Girls’ weekend! (Zumbro 50 Mile...)

Julie Treder's Zumbro 50 mile race report...

There have been a handful of the male LPTR contingent that have travelled with Angela and I to races… but not too many return for seconds.  Is there a reason??  Hmmm…  We travelled alone this time around… GIRLS’ WEEKEND!

Zumbro was the race.  We heard a thing or two about it… and you can’t turn down a Minnesota run – so we were off.

This race was new territory for both Angela and I.  Zumbro has a 50-mile and a 100-mile distance.  We were both running the “cheerleader run”… the “measly” 50-miler.  Three times around a 16.7 mile loop.

An hour or so before our midnight start, the skies opened up.  It just poured and hailed.  The poor 100-milers!  Luckily, we were escaping the weather in the comfort of our car.  Although we were able to avoid the wetness from above… we weren’t able to avoid the mud and grime that were the trails.

I caused a slight back-up on the first big climb, as I got stuck in the mud.  Thanks to the push from the runner behind me… I was able to get up the rest of the mud slick.  The climb wasn’t the worst section, there was also a descent that was pure mud.  You just had to squat in the surfer position and glide down.  I only went down once, thankfully… but came close numerous other times.

Midnight starts are pretty cool, since you get the beauty of nighttime running… and having the opportunity to run through a sunrise.  The darkness was great because you couldn’t see how high the climbs were… or how long the sand patches were.  That helps!!  The daylight brought us the feeling we were running on a brand new course.  The same course, but you could actually see the countryside and some of the great views off the climbs.

The race was very well-supported.  We had aid stations every 4 miles or so, breaking up the loop quite nicely.  They had gummi bear and Jello jigglers galore at the aid stations… so I was in ultra meal heaven!  I couldn’t ask for a better food selection!  The volunteers were all so nice… always service with a smile and a good word.  Loved it!

Beautiful weather for running… mud patches to make things interesting… great race all around.  Fun girls weekend!  One of us even walked away with hardware…

Angela wins first place in the Grandmaster's division...