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Ultra in marathons

MARQUETTE – Running a marathon can be hard enough, but some people are going to push themselves even further this weekend.

The seventh annual Marquette Trail 50 Ultramarathon will take place Saturday at the Forestville trailhead of the Noquemanon Trail Network in Marquette Township. Race director Andrew Grosvenor says the event draws people from all over the country thanks to the beautiful scenery of the Upper Peninsula.

“It’s an event that draws people from all over the country from out west and out east,” he said. “Our trails are pretty spectacular. We’re very unique in the Midwest and we get people to come back again because the trails are so amazing.”

This year, he said organizers decided to take the next step and turned an all-day event into an all-night affair.

Originally, the Trail 50 was made up of a 50-kilometer race and a 50-mile race. A couple of years ago, a 50K relay competition was added. Now, a 100K race has been added for those runners who feel that they haven’t quite pushed their bodies to the limit. That’s 62.1 miles and racers have 20 hours to finish it after starting in the dead of night at 12:30 a.m.

The average person might think that few runners would participate in such an event, but they’d be wrong. The 50K and 50-mile race fields filled up in January. Grosvenor says that the Trail 50 has grown steadily over time as well as ultra-running as a whole.

“For the first few years, we would get about 50 or 60 people to come out and race,” he said. “This year, we have about 275 people signed up for our solo ultramarathons, the 50K, 50-mile and 100K, along with about a hundred for our 50K relay. There aren’t any races in the U.P. longer than 50K, so the 50-mile and 100K are very unique around here.

“The sport of ultra-running has grown by leaps and bounds the last few years. Marathons are growing in popularity by 60 percent and ultra-running has grown by 600 percent. It’s really exploding right now. It’s still only a small fraction of the sports world, but it’s becoming more popular each year.”

After the 100K runners start out in total darkness, the 50K and 50-mile runners take off not long before sunrise at 5:30 a.m. Grosvenor says snacks will be available for competitors along the trails, including coffee to perk up the 100K racers.

“We give a lot of food as well, not just water and energy drinks,” he said. “We give peanut butter-and-jelly sandwiches, fruit, boiled potatoes, cookies, chips, pretzels, candy. We even have soup and cheese quesadillas.

“Ultra-running is unique in that unless you’re an elite athlete, you’re not running the whole thing. There’s some walking and hiking involved and you have to be able to eat food. If you overdo it and you are working too hard like you would in a 5K, you’re not going to be able to eat because all your blood is in your muscles.

“So if you try to eat something when you are working that hard, your stomach won’t be able to handle it and you’ll feel nauseous. You need a lot of calories when you are doing this. Typically people are out there from eight to 10 to 12 hours, and in the 100K, people are out for 16 to 20 hours. It makes for a long day.”

The 50K relay, which Grosvenor says is a great way for people to check out ultra-running, already took place late this morning, but if kids want to join in the fun, there will be a one-mile and 5K race for them at Tourist Park tonight. Registration is at 6 p.m. and the cost is $10. The races then start at 7 p.m.

Kids can also run in an obstacle course before or after their race between 6 and 8 p.m. Families can also run with their kids.

All of the proceeds from the two-day event go to the Noquemanon Trail Network, the North Country Trail Association, the Northern Michigan University women’s cross country team and various charities.

All in all, Grosvenor says it’s a fun experience and a great way to truly appreciate the scenery of the area.

“We climb up Sugarloaf Mountain, we do Hogsback Mountain and we run along Lake Superior,” he said. “We’re unique (in) that you can be running in a marshland and then later along the biggest freshwater lake in the world. It’s really hard to beat.”

Ryan Stieg can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 246. His email address is rstieg@miningjournal.net.

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