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Bunk runs 50 at 70

Posted by Tom Held of the Journal Sentinel on May 20, 2011

Lorraine Bunk earned her status as the “first lady” of trail running with persistence, not speed.

In fact, she prefers to ignore the clock during distance pursuits, using a watch only to remind her when to take in an energy gel or fluids.

It’s a proven approach.

Bunk finished the Ice Age 50 Trail Run on May 14 more than 10 minutes under the 12-hour time limit, and became the first female runner over 70 to complete the 50-mile ultra marathon in the Southern Kettle Moraine State Forest.

She holds the course record in four different age categories, in an event that has been run for 30 years.

Bunk, from North Prairie, has finished within the time limit in 20 of them.

“I run within myself,” she said to explain her success. “I don’t run by time, I run the way I feel. That’s how I lasted so long. For me, it worked.”

Bunk admitted to feeling an unwelcome sense of pressure in her latest ramble through the Southern Kettle. She had a bad day in 2010, and failed to knock off Ice Age number 20 within that hard-and-fast 12 hours. She reached the finish line, but didn’t earn a finisher’s belt buckle, and the failure haunted her as she ran this year, with husband, Tom, at her side.

Tom and Lorraine Bunk

A cold a few weeks before the race limited her training and added to the lingering doubts.

“This was the hardest one I’ve done since I’ve been running,” she said. “It was a tough day for me mentally. I really had to put my head down and get there.

“I did it and I’m so happy. It was just awesome.”

Bunk plans to relax, and enjoy her accomplishment then prepare for the Lakefront Marathon in Fall and the Boston Marathon in spring. A couple years ago, she finished that historic marathon in four hours, 33 minutes, in the top 10 of her age group.

For the “first lady,” persistent doesn’t mean slow.

Results of the 50-mile and 50K Ice Trail Runs can be found here.

For more stories from the trail, check out the Lapham Peak Trail Runners.