Annalisa Harrington Peterson was a cross country skiing standout at Duluth East High School in the late-1990s and Dartmouth College in the early-2000s. She rediscovered cross country skiing when she moved from California back to her hometown of Duluth, Minnesota, about 10 years ago. After returning to Duluth, Annalisa soon became a leader in the... Continue Reading →
Alayna Sonnesyn is a professional nordic skier who has excelled at racing ski marathons. Alayna is a four-time winner of the American Birkibeiner or “Birkie”, was the youngest Birkie winner at age 22, and raced the very first women’s World Cup 50k. Alayna grew up outside Minneapolis, Minnesota, and now trains in Stratton, Vermont, with... Continue Reading →
After moving from Tennessee to Minnesota in 2014, Amanda Harvey starting riding fat bikes and racing winter ultras in an effort to embrace winter. This week, she will head to Alaska to race her 10th winter ultra: the Iditarod Trail Invitational. I caught up with Amanda after Arrowhead 135. This year, Amanda raced Arrowhead 135... Continue Reading →
Like many, Claire Richard took up biking during the COVID pandemic. While many new bikers are content to check out their local trails and gravel roads, Claire dreamed bigger. Claire dreamed of racing the Iditarod Trail Invitational (ITI) — the original winter ultramarathon — in Alaska. To qualify, Claire first had to race Arrowhead 135... Continue Reading →
Pam Reed is a trail running legend. Pam was one of the first women seriously training for and racing ultras in the 1990s and 2000s. She ran her first 100 miler — Wasatch 100 — in 1992. Pam is best known for her outright Badwater 135 wins in 2002 and 2003, where she beat Dean... Continue Reading →
With races cancelled, many trail runners have been attempting Fastest Known Times or FKTs. Remarkably, FKTs have increased fourfold during the pandemic. To set a FKT, trail runners head to fastestknowntime.com, choose a route, and decide which style FKT to attempt: supported, self-supported or unsupported. Athletes are further divided into gender category: male, female or... Continue Reading →
I like podcasts. This is my weekly(ish) thank you to those creating great podcasts about female endurance athletes for me — and you — to enjoy. "Panda Power - Amanda Nauman" // Girls Gone Gravel (June 9, 2020) A fantastic interview with pro gravel cyclist and two-time Dirty K*** winner Amanda Nauman about virtual rides... Continue Reading →
This is the story of my friend Gretchen Karsten's first 100 mile trail race: the Superior 100 mile in Northern Minnesota. Gretchen is a pediatrician, a mom of two girls, and, despite what she says in this interview, very much a runner. Prior to the Superior 100, she had run several road marathons, several 50k's... Continue Reading →
Hanna Derby is an outdoor enthusiast with a hunger for adventure. She is a competitive mountain biker who competes in a variety of disciplines, including downhill, enduro, cross country and now endurance. She’ll often compete in multiple types of events in a single weekend. In 2019, Hanna won 14 out of the 16 mountain bike... Continue Reading →
Brittany Peterson and Cody Lind had been hoping to race Western States this coming weekend. Brittany earned herself a Western States spot with an impressive second place finish at last year’s race. Brittany’s boyfriend Cody — fresh off a win at The Coastal Challenge — was planning to run a Golden Ticket Race to see... Continue Reading →
Onward 