Underdown Trail Run 50k Race Report
The IRONBULL Ultra Trail 50k was my first ultramarathon, which I finished in 8:53.
GLEASON - In 2019, I ran my first ultramarathon in Wausau, WI, the IRONBULL Ultra Trail 50k. My husband and I were blown away by the beauty of the course and were especially amazed by the community surrounding the IRONBULL organization. Since then, we have been looking for opportunities to return to Wausau to run a race together. We were unable to race in 2020 and a family wedding disrupted our plans for 2021. We signed up for the 2022 IRONBULL Ultra Trail 50k, only to be invited to yet another family wedding. Intent on racing, we worked with the race organizers, who allowed us to transfer our registrations from the IRONBULL Ultra Trail to the Underdown Trail Races. Little did we know that what started as a last-minute option to run a race turned into one of our favorite trails and courses yet!
We drove into Wausau from our home in Illinois on Friday evening for packet pickup at the race starting line. We had signed up to volunteer with race setup and were introduced to the Underdown race organizers and volunteers. We had a wonderful evening getting to know everyone while making last minute preparations for the race start on Saturday. We got a great recommendation for dinner at Red Eye Brewery in Wausau before heading back to our hotel for some rest.
We woke up Saturday to a foggy and rainy morning. In true tradition, we would be starting the race in the rain, just like every other race that I’ve participated in! The forecast predicted overcast weather for the entire day, providing us with a comfortable 60-degree temperature for the race. We arrived at the start/finish line and found ourselves surrounded by 50K runners, volunteers, and mountain bikers participating in their own race. The atmosphere was intoxicating.
Starting out on the 50k adventure at the Underdown Trail Run before hitting the single track.
At 9:30 AM on the dot, we all started the 2022 Underdown 50k Trail race. We ran as a group with the other runners for the first half mile until we hit the single track of the mountain bike trail. We quickly funneled into the forest and just like that we found ourselves in the peace and quiet of the course, surrounded by bird song and the sound of raindrops falling through the tree canopy. The winding single track course took us over and countless forest blanketed glacial hills. The rain fell intermittently, but the rocky soil of the area prevented the trail from becoming the mud bath we had expected. We ran past several beautiful, crystal-clear lakes surrounded by thick stands of pine trees and numerous ponds that resonated with the croaking of their resident frogs.
Although some of the aid stations on the course were unmanned, most had at least one volunteer present. My husband and I have always had a hard time leaving aid stations, and this time was no exception. We found ourselves reluctant to end conversations with the awesome volunteers who had sacrificed their time to be there for us. The aid stations were stocked with anything we could have wanted: snacks, water, Tailwind, etc. I gravitated towards the Cheetos for something salty, while my husband’s sweet tooth prompted him to carry a number of Twizzlers out of each aid station.
At a certain point, we both began to feel slightly beat. My GPS watch showed that we had only run 11 miles so far when in truth it felt more like 15 miles. When we got to the next aid station the volunteer mentioned that we were actually on mile 17! We had been warned that the undulating hills played havoc with GPS, and that the readings would be off, but this was so much more than we had expected! With this amazing news, we were cruising. As we climbed up the hill onto a ridge along Spring Lake Road, we realized that we could hear the live music of the band at the start/finish. We instantly perked up, running the last mile of the first loop with new energy and dancing our way into the aid station.
Still, we knew that the last loop of the course was going to be tough. After using the adrenaline rush brought on by the crowd gathered at the start/finish to propel us into the woods for the last 5-miles on the Prairie Dells Loop, we settled in to finishing the task at hand. Here, the less rocky terrain made the trail significantly muddier. Our sore legs and tired bodies also made this the most difficult part of the race. Luckily, the beautiful trail made for a great distraction from our aching feet, as we passed through deep forest beds that periodically opened into prairies. At one point, the trail followed the rim of a cliff cut out by the river raging below. The Prairie Dells Loop felt very remote for how close we were to the start/finish. We saw only a few 50K and half-marathon runners and mountain bikers, and were otherwise alone, digging deep and pushing to the finish line.
Standing at the finish line with our pint glasses ready to be filled!
After what felt like a much longer loop, we got out of the single track back onto the road for the last few hundred feet to the finish line. We finished the race with a time of 7 hours and 12 minutes, a personal best for us both! We were each handed an Underdown Trail beer glass and directed to the keg for a delicious glass of cold crisp beer from a local brewery. We stayed at the finish line for a long time, chatting with the volunteers, racers, and their family members, recounting our experiences on the trail. We cheered on the runners and bikers still coming in while enjoying great company, music, and beer. It was the perfect ending to a wonderful race, and we will definitely be coming back for more next year!
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