Photos in Strava.
Since all the races in the near future are cancelled, I figured I'd go for my own FKT (fastest known time). As far as I know, nobody has run the entire Duluth Traverse trail yet. I had an ambitious goal of 5:30, I knew it was going to be difficult and I paid for it. My first aid station was the bottom of Spirit Mt. 11.5 miles in. I split 1:30 (7:50pace) and was feeling good. The next part was climbing Kneen's Creek and droping back down to Haines Rd. I knew this was going to be the hardest section of trail for the day, but I was still on pace at this time. I saw my crew next at 24th and Skyline, but this was only about 3.5 miles or so from Haines Rd. so I just waved to my crew and kept on running. The next section below Enger Tower to the Old Central High School is a decivingly diificult section and this is where I startd to slow down. I made it to the aid station at the Central High School about 26.2 miles in 3:40 (~8:30 pace) and I was startig to fall behind my goal pace. Next, I ran through Chester Bowl and past my old alma mater, St. Scholastica. I made it to Hartley Nature Center and this is where the cramps started. This was the 50k mark and I made it there is 4:26. The final 10 or so miles were brutal and I suffered for going out so fast. You have a choice once you get to Hawks Ridge, you can take the intermediate Hawks Ridge trail or the easier Amity Creek trail. I chose the Amity Creek trail and I had cramps in my quads, hamstrings, and calves all the way down the trail. I made it to the final section of trail, the Lester River trail, and I was able to get my cramps under control and I pushed to finished under 6 hours. I came up a little short of my 6 hour goal and officially finished in 6 hours 7 minutes and 15 seconds. Thanks to Gary Lepisto for biking the entire trail with me. And thanks to my great crew my wife Amber, my mom Julie and her fiance Gary. And thanks for coming to a couple of the aid stations Sara Nicoles and my grandma Denise. Overall a fun day on the trail, some lessons learned, and I think if I did the trail again I could run under 5:45.