Reprinted with permission from APKURT @ http://www.ultramn.com – Ultra Minnesota “COVERING THE TRAIL AND ULTRARUNNING SCENE IN MINNESOTA SINCE 2011” – Please pay them a visit!

 

Preliminary recap – course records take a shelling at Superior

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The conditions were great – and so were the runners. Of six races contested this weekend on the north shore, new course records were established in three of them, and six individuals went under previous course records in their respective races.

Superior 100

Both the men’s and women’s course records went down in the hundred. Steven Moore, of Austin, Texas, clocked a 21:02:41, breaking the previous record of 21:42:11, set by Sean Andrish in 2006. Adam Schwartz-Lowe, of Minneapolis, was second in 22:41:02 (read our pre-race Q&A with him here) and Ryan Welts, of Goffstown, New Hampshire, finished third in 22:58:03.

In the women’s race, the top three finishers were all under the previous course record. Kristina Folcick – also of Goffstown (a town of about 16,000 people) – passed early leader Christi Nowack to win in 24:49:06, under Helen Lavin’s old record of 26:49:22, set in 2008. Nowak (read her pre-race Q&A here), of Duluth, finished second in 25:52:59, and Baxter’s Becky George finished third in 26:05:25. Their times were good for 7th, 10th and 11th overall.

Complete results of the 100 can be found here.

Superior 50 Mile

Despite a mid-race rainstorm making the course considerably slicker and muddier, the top two men in the 50-mile race went under Chris Rubesch’s previous course record of 9:09:18, set in 2010. Minneapolis’ James Sorensen led from the start to win in 8:53:19, and Eric Nordgren, of Duluth, finished second in 9:05:10. Ethan Richards, of St. Paul, barely missed Rubesch’s old mark, clocking a 9:09:24 to finish third.

In the women’s race, DeDe Gibbs, of Stevens Point, Wisconsin, won in 11:54:04, just over two and a half minutes over runner-up Shelly Groenke, of Mankato, who crossed the line in 11:56:48. Maranda Lorraine, of Ironton, Minnesota, finished third in 12:47:32. They placed 20th, 22nd, and 32nd overall.

Complete 50-mile results can be found here.

Moose Mountain Marathon

The marathon course records remained intact in 2012. Lane Johnson, of Bayfield, Minnesota, won the approximately 26.2-mile race in 3:55:38, barely edging out runner-up Ryan Braun, of Rochest, who finished in 3:56:07. Willie Tibbets, of Eagan, won the women’s race and placed 11th overall in 4:39:03.

Full marathon results can be found here.

Look for a more extensive recap either here or in Down the Backstretch soon.

Superior Fall Trail Race
100MI, 50MI, 26.2MI Trail Race(s)
Lutsen, Minnesota
(approx 4hrs North of Minneapolis, MN)
September 11 & 12, 2020
100MI Friday 8:00AM
50MI Saturday 5:15AM
26.2MI Saturday 8:00AM

Registration / Lottery:
Registration via 15 day lottery registration period.
Opens Wednesday January 1st, 2020 – 12:01AM CST
Closes Wednesday January 15th, 2020 – 11:59PM CST
Complete Lottery / Registration Details HERE

Directions:
100MI Start: Gooseberry Falls State Park, MN HERE
50MI Start: Finland Rec Center – Finland, MN HERE
26.2MI Start: Cramer Road – Schroder, MN HERE
Races Finish: Carbibou Highlands – Lutsen, MN HERE

Terrain:
The Superior Fall Trail Races 100MI, 50MI & 26.2MI are run on rugged, rooty, rocky, 95% single-track trail with near constant climbs and descents.  The race is held on the Superior Hiking Trail in the Sawtooth Mountains paralleling Lake Superior in Northern Minnesota / not far from the Canadian border.  The race located approximately 4 hours North of Minneapolis, Minnesota.   The Superior Fall Trail Races are very difficult / challenging races and are probably not a good choice for your first trail or ultra race (see Registration Info for qualifying requirements).

100 Mile:
Point to Point 103.3 Miles
Elevation Gain 21,000 FT
Elevation Loss 21,000 FT
NET Elevation Change 42,000 FT
13 Aid Stations
38 hour time limit
Complete 100MI Info HERE

50 Mile:
Point to Point 52.1 Miles
Elevation Gain 12,500 FT
Elevation Loss 12,500 FT
NET Elevation Change 25,000 FT
7 Aid Stations
16.75 hour time limit
Complete 50MI Info HERE

26.2 Mile:
Point to point 26.2 Miles
Elevation Gain 5,500 FT
Elevation Loss 5,500 FT
NET Elevation Change 11,000 FT
3 Aid Stations
14 hour cutoff
Complete 26.2MI Info HERE

More About the Race:
The Superior Trail 100 was founded in 1991 when there was no more than a dozen or so 100 mile trail races in the USA, back then if you wanted to run a 100, you had choices like Western States, Hardrock, Leadville, Wasatch, Cascade Crest, Umstead, Massanutten and Superior . Superior quickly earned it’s reputation of its namesake today – Rugged, Relentless and Remote and is known as one of the tougher 100 mile trail races.  Superior lives on now as one of the “legacy 100 milers” and is considered by many to be one of the most challenging, prestigious and beautiful 100 mile trail races in the country. Shortly after the inception of the 100, the Superior 50 was started and in the early 2000’s the Moose Mountain Marathon was added. None of the history or tradition of this race has been lost and is a great event for those looking for a world-class event with a low-key, old-school 100 miler feel.  The Superior Trail Race is put on by ultrarunners for ultrarunners.

More About the Area:
The North Shore of Lake Superior runs from Duluth, Minnesota at the Southwestern end of the lake, to Thunder Bay and Nipigon, Ontario, Canada, in the North to Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, in the east. The shore is characterized by alternating rocky cliffs and cobblestone beaches, with rolling hills and ridges covered in boreal forest inland from the lake, through which scenic rivers and waterfalls descend as they flow to Lake Superior. The shoreline between the city of Duluth to the international border at Grand Portage as the North Shore.  Lake Superior is considered the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface area. It is the world’s third-largest freshwater lake by volume and the largest by volume in North America.  The Superior Hiking Trail, also known as the SHT, is a 310-mile long distance hiking single-track hiking trail in Northeastern Minnesota that follows the ridgeline overlooking Lake Superior for most of its length. The trail travels through forests of birch, aspen, pine, fir, and cedar. Hikers and runners enjoy views of boreal forests, the Sawtooth Mountains, babbling brooks, rushing waterfalls, and abundant wildlife. The lowest point on the trail is 602 feet above sea level and the highest point is 1,829 feet above sea level.