My Favorite Season!

Well, it's that time of year again. The leaves are changing to yellow, soon to be orange. The nights are getting cool, most of the bugs have gone. We haven't found a tick in weeks! I bought my deer hunting license a few days ago and the fall turkey season will begin in just a few more weeks.
But with all those changes, that's not really the time of year I'm talking about. What I'm suggesting is that it's time for the 4th annual 50 mile social run up here in the woods of Northwest Wisconsin. The first year was actually a 40 mile run to celebrate my 40th birthday. That first year my mother and 15 year old nephew joined me along with Joel and Brian. There were also about 8 others that stopped by and ran short sections throughout the day. The second year was one to remember! It was the first time we bumped it to 50 miles and Joel was the only one to show up for what turned out to be a very wet day! It rained virtually every step of the day and at one point it rained so hard that the trail was shin deep in water and had turned into a temporary stream. At one trailhead we came out of the woods wearing very heavy mud boots. Fortunately the next section was nice tall, very wet grass that cleaned the mud off, giving us our shoes back. Last year was a big growth year for the run. We had Joel (of course!), Steve G., Mitch, Molly, and....crap! I can't remember his name! There was this really nice young man that Joel brought along. He had never run more than a couple miles at a shot and he did great! And last but far from least CJBH! We'll just call him Jake. Or Chris. I don't know. Anyway, he was a stellar crew! He showed up at every trailhead and provided entertainment and fuel refills. So, I think that's the crew from last year. Did I miss anyone? Probably. Sorry if I did.
Each year I've changed the name of the run. Year one was 40 on Ice since we ran it in mid-November. This was also during the deer bow hunting season so I made everyone where bright orange. Year two was Premium 50. I sort of stole a logo from a beer company that shall remained un-named...sort of. Last year was PHOUR 50 Mile Fun Run. If I remember correctly it was Psychiatric Hospital for the Obsessed Ultra Runner. I had hoped to have shirts made for everyone each year but have had neither time or money to get the job done.
This year? Time certainly is at a premium. I've taken a job in Bloomington, MN so I am now driving two hours each way to work. This makes for at least 20 hours a week of driving along with at least 40 hours of work. Since I was raised a work-a-holic I rarely cut it off at 40 hours of work. It's a problem I know. I'll probably be entering a 12 step program for it sometime soon. Maybe.
Given my new job and the time commitment that has required I have not really run since we all ran together last fall. Needless to say I will not be running with you all this year. Last year our selfless, dear friend Chris nominated himself as our crew. This year, the selfish Pete will be your crew. I'd like to say I'm doing it for your benefit but the reality is that it's more of a self-preservation issue.
So, what shall we call it this year? I think I knew this before we even began running last year. My dog had just been diagnosed with cancer and was about the only thing I could think about. If you read this blog then you know he died in March so this year we'll run in honor of Tua. Maybe that's why I crew this year. To honor the totally selfless love you receive from a dog. I'll do my best to take care of each of you as you run on what I believe to be some of the best trails in the country at the absolute best time of the year. This year we'll run the Black Dog 50 on Saturday, October 3rd. I'd guess that once again we'll be in the midst of peak fall colors. The day will be crisp and hopefully dry. We will leave from our ending point at Cafe Wren in Luck, WI no later than 6:30 so we can be at our starting point by 7:00. Everyone that runs is responsible for their own dietary needs and they should be placed in some sort of easy to organize container so I can easily load and unload them at each aid station. We have the ability to have an aid station nearly every 3 miles but I find this tends to slow the day down so I'll likely meet you all every other trailhead. Oh, I almost forgot...I don't do any work to mark the trail beyond what the Ice Age Trail Foundation does. I don't go through and clear anything, although it is a well maintained trail. The trail is marked with yellow blazes on trees along with arrows at significant turns. It is possible to get lost so I suppose that's why we've always run as a group. If all goes well there will be at least one runner that's run the route before so they'll act as sort of a tour guide. There are a few short sections of gravel road and a few with pavement. The far majority of the trail is amazing, rolling singletrack through the woods that should be in perfect fall colors. You'll likely spend the day getting rained on my orange and yellow leaves bathed in sunshine.
One last thing....I have a surprise for everyone this year! I'm not going to tell you what it is but I will say that it's something special and you'll be some of the very first people to experience it. I promise it will be one of the highlights of the day! It will come to you at a time when you're feeling low and need something to give you that extra boost to get you through to the end. This is the one reason I wish I was running with you...so I can be there to see your reactions.
So this leaves us with RSVP's. Interested? Send me an e-mail (grimeyrunner@gmail.com) with your contact info and maybe a list of questions you might have. Everyone is welcome, whether you want to run the entire 50 or just sections. This run is whatever you want to make of it. It's not been raced, it's only been casual to this point. At some point I'm sure it will be run fast but until then it should be viewed as a day on the trail with some friends.
We'll gather for some dinner and a few beers at a local restaurant once we're done or depending on what everyone wants to do with their weekends, we can head to my house for a nice big fire and grill some venison or whatever else you might like. If you don't want to drive that night there's plenty of room for everyone to camp on my property and there's always room in the house for a few bodies to pass out.
I hope to see you there for a beautiful day in the woods while they show us all their glory. In my opinion gatherings like this are what trail running is about.