1) Able to scale sequoia-sized tree trunks in a single bound.
2) Able to slide straight down a hill, while trying to run up it, without losing all my fingernails.
3) Able to smile at the end of a 4-mile leg that turned into a 6-mile leg when my actual legs felt like they weighed about 20 pounds apiece.
This is a mere sampling of the challenges I experienced while running DWD in Hell, Michigan, a few years ago.
DWD is many things to many runners. It includes a 100K trail relay event (teams of five runners cover 15 legs), a 50K, 50-mile ultra, marathon and half marathon.
I was asked to be the fifth runner on an all-female team in Princess Barbie costumes. Yep, there is a team theme and costume contest thrown into the relay. This should be your first clue this is no ordinary event. The winners of the “Creative Team and Vehicle Award” earn a free entry into the event the following year.
I’m not a “girlie girl” by any means, nor were any of the women with whom I was racing. But I rolled with it, happily running the trails around Hell while wearing a sparkly tiara and pink Barbie sunglasses while carrying a blonde Barbie doll as a baton.
The inaugural DWD, held in 1997, hosted 22 teams. For each of the past five years, about 400 teams have hit the trails in Hell. The event sells out within minutes of opening registration, which is one of the reasons DWD added venues in Gnaw Bone, Indiana; Devil’s Lake State Park near Baraboo, Wisconsin; and Dade City, Florida, in the last couple of years. Another reason is event organizer and promoter Randy Step’s belief that the race calendar can use a few more relay events.
The first DWD Devil’s Lake event, held July 9, 2009, attracted 25 teams and 350 individual runners. Devil’s Head Resort will again play host to DWD on July 10.
The relay aspect of the race is truly a blast. For me the fun began at 7 a.m. with 2,500 participants – many of whom incorporated running gear into their wacky costumes – at the starting line cheering on runners of the first leg. There were runners dressed as Sumo wrestlers, lumberjacks and St. Pauli Girls, while others carried objects like megaphones, beer bottles and various inflatable objects to complement their team theme.
With the first relay runners are on their way, their teammates piled into vehicles (one per team) and headed for the first transition point. The transition areas soon resembled tailgate parties with people constantly coming and going.
Some folks are serious in their pursuit of an overall win or a top place in their categories. Others pack coolers of beer and treat it like an afternoon of jogging in the woods with friends. The rest of us are somewhere in between those extremes, hoping to run a decent time overall, but interested in having fun along the way.
The race is designed to leave plenty of time for each team to get from one transition to the next without being disqualified. In fact, I’m not sure it’s possible to be DQ’d from DWD for time. Some teams take more than 10 hours to get through the course.
I recommend packing two pairs of shoes, a change of clothes and a cooler with enough food and drink to last about eight hours. The extra shoes are for when you run through poison ivy, which is highly probable. The change of clothes is for the end of the day so you can enjoy the after party in comfort.
Experienced teams scout the course beforehand and figure out which legs of the race are best suited for each team member. Legs of the course average 4.5 miles and each runner is required to run three legs. A high five between team members serves as the exchange.
Although I had been a recreational runner for years before my DWD, I had not done a lot of off-road running and I was not great following directions. In fact, shortly after I began my third leg, I missed a turn and got lost for close to two miles as my legs turned to concrete. I must have crossed that stream four times in search of the pink flags that marked the course.
Even though I lost my way, I never lost my cool. Instead of throwing my Barbie and tiara to the ground and stomping on them in despair, I soldiered on. It was frustrating, absolutely, but the sense of relief I felt when I found my way back was exhilarating. The heaviness in my legs disappeared as I made my way back to my team.
Because the end of the day was approaching, my teammates sent our next runner on her way, rather than continue to wait for my return. The rules allow this, but you have to let organizers know that you “doubled up” on a leg so they can account for it in your total time.
I was not alone in getting lost that day. Our captain lost her way on the “muck leg” and another teammate took a wrong turn that set us back a half hour. So it wasn’t our day to win DWD, but it was our day to laugh a lot, meet a bunch of great people and bond over sport with women I’d never competed with before.
DWD was definitely one of the most memorable running experiences I’ve ever had. The organizers clearly love what they do and the participants love to do it. The courses are out-of-this-world beautiful and sometimes ridiculously hard, but always lots of fun. All of this makes for a great combination of competition, community, craziness and classic moments. As a result, my DWD “Survivor” medal will remain a tremendous source of pride for years to come.
Peggy Herron is the founding editor of Michigan Sports & Fitness Magazine (retitled in 2009 to Outdoor Athlete Magazine). She now works as a media consultant for sports-related businesses and still loves running trails.
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