This past weekend we completed our sixth annual St Croix 40 Winter Ultra event. We started this journey seven years ago (one year off for COVID) and have since added a second race to our stable, as well as contemplated others. What began as an idle question has now developed into something that has provided incredible experiences to hundreds of people.

St Croix 40 began when I mused that I wished there were some shorter winter ultra events in the area so that people could work themselves up to events like Tuscobia or Arrowhead, and have a training ground to test out how to be successful. From this idea my wife and I created an event that takes this idea and gives the race a specific purpose that is baked into its fabric. Participants not only need to complete the course, but also need to demonstrate proficiency with skills such as boiling water and using their sleep system. It’s been an event that has launched some people into incredibly bigger adventures, such as the Iditarod Trail Invitational in Alaska.

Over the course of these years we’ve also honed our skills and learned what works and what doesn’t. COVID shifted us to pre-recorded pre-race meetings instead of sitting everyone down in a room the night of the event. We’ve settled on swag and gear that works for us and have developed relationships with vendors that help smooth that whole process. We’ve also partnered with great folks like a local chef who comes out and caters all of our food for the participants and takes all that work off of our plate.

All in all we’ve learned a lot and have grown as event planners. In doing some self-reflection I think we need to make sure we don’t get too lax on things though. This year we didn’t do our traditional checklist and ended up forgetting our finish line banner. Next year we’ll tighten up our pre-race checks a little better.

I still think that the biggest thing that race directing does for me is the joy I get when people cross that finish line and realize that they just did something very hard and challenging that only very few people experience. Especially in years where there are difficulties to overcome (like the snow challenges this year) seeing people reach their limits and then push beyond, is incredible. Even seeing people make that call that they need to tap out and live to fight another day is inspiring because it shows that we’re giving people the type of challenge that they’re looking for. That’s the thing with a challenge, sometimes you don’t succeed.

One of our biggest concerns in the coming years has got to be the changing climate conditions. The past two years have been terrible winters for snow conditions, and if it wasn’t for a 1.5 inch snowfall a couple days before the race participants would have been on dry ground. Then we ended up getting 6 inches of snow throughout the event which made for an amazingly beautiful night, despite the ever softening and mushy ground conditions for the racers. All the winter ultra race directors are concerns about how these trends are going to shift and change over the next few years.

Overall though, I’m happy that we started this endeavor seven years ago and despite the busyness it adds to our life, it feels worth it. We’re adding something to the world that has meaning and value, and creates adventures, memories, and relationships for people that they wouldn’t otherwise have.

Onward to even more adventures in the future.