Doubling in the Midnight Sun

When Edvard Munch painted “The Scream”, it must have been in anticipation of Marathon Maniac Bekkie Wright and partner Joe Poliquin’s longest day double in Norway. In looking for an international fun run last January, Bekkie realized that at the summer solstice in Norway, it may be possible to run two marathons on the same day. The plan that was hatched was to run in Oslo in the morning, fly to Tromsø in the afternoon, and do a Midnight Sun run in the evening. The schedule would be tight because Tromsø, located above the Arctic Circle, is 1000 miles from Oslo. The prospect of making this double marathon day happen though, was to too good to resist.

On June 17^th there are more than 20 hours of daylight in Oslo while in Tromsø the sun never sets at this time of year. Though Norway is as far north as Greenland, on marathon day Oslo was experiencing a heat wave. We knew it would not be an easy day.

Nordmarka Forest is at the edge of Oslo where this big international city turns instantly into wilderness. The forest is crisscrossed with miles of wide well-maintained trails used by mountain bikers, hikers, runners, and most certainly x-c skiers. These forest trails and the marathon course were better marked and easier to navigate than the streets of Oslo. In Oslo though, X-C skiing must be an extreme sport. Nordmarka Forest has climbs and descents that persist for kilometers. The scenery including lakes and forest was lovely, but none of it was horizontal. When you plan to run two marathons in a single day, why not warm up with some serious hills.

We got off the starting line in the Nordmarka Skogsmaraton at 9 a.m., taking advantage of the 2 hour early start. The “extra” hours would come in handy because with 52.4 miles planned for the day, we would be running at “ultra” pace … i.e. walk all the hills and water stops. There was also that plane to catch to Tromsø. About 50 other runners joined us as we left the school campus, past a lake and off onto the trails. The first miles in the forest were pleasant in the shade of the firs. The water stops came about every 6 k and offered XL1, a sport drink , bananas, raisins, and wet sponges. The volunteers were all friendly even when we didn’t share a common language. The temperature along with the terrain was soon on the rise. It must have been close to 80 degrees. The sponges were appreciated.

The Nordmarka Skogsmaraton is a large loop with a half dozen kilometers of out and back and a single kilometer of rugged over the ridge single track. We were introduced to the largest climb at about 27 k when a number of mountain bikers screamed past us. It was obvious that they had been flying downhill for quite some time. At the 35 k water stop where the fare improved to include bread and jam and soda, we were past by the two leaders from the main 11a.m. start. Since they were running for time, they gulped down water, poured a cup over their heads, and were gone. Obviously their mission was different than ours. They would soon be done, but for us the main course was still ahead.

Back past the lake, we collected mugs at the finishing line and the real race began. Fortunately for the airlines, there were showers at the school. After 3 days with the Opel we had the route to the airport down. Even with maps and guidebooks and one of us driving and the other navigating, the “ring” system in Oslo was not easy to learn. Now, there was no time to get lost or get stuck in traffic and no one in Norway speeds. Though the airport check-in included “you’re late” and “there are no seats”, which was unnerving, we still managed to get on the plane and were off to Tromsø.

A two hour flight in the middle of an ultra is an interesting proposition. You wonder whether your legs will still work and whether your body will think it’s done for the day. Since we were flying above the Arctic Circle to the only Midnight Sun Marathon in the world that is held at night with an 8:30 p.m. start, we were motivated. It would have been easy if we only had to get off the plane and run. By the time we made the starting line, with 7 minutes to spare, we had rented another car, found the city with an inadequate map, dropped off a couple of stranded travelers from the airport to their hotel, been told that our hotel was fully booked and shuffled off to another, picked up our race packets, changed our clothes and prepared for temperatures that would be almost 40 degrees colder, and finished Burger King Whoppers, true ultra-food, as we hurried to the starting line. Actually running this marathon looked easy after the logistics of getting to it.

Tromsø is a beautiful place to run in the soft evening sunlight. Though the island is mountainous and surrounded by snow-covered fiords, the course hugged the coasts and the bridges were the only high points. There was an international crowd of 300+ runners from 33 countries at the start. Spectators throughout often checked their programs from the newspaper to cheer us on by name. We ran for a ways with 3 Germans in moose hats carrying their national flags. Yet no one pleased the crowds more than Bekkie who was lovely in the short gold satin evening dress she ran in. She turned every head and was constantly complimented on her midnight sun running attire. People even slowed in passing vehicles to photograph her.

With its 24 hours of sunlight, Tromso is a party town. It has more bars per capita than any other city in Norway. As we neared the finish line after 1 a.m. in full sunlight, we were not the only ones staggering home. The “locals” took advantage of the Saturday night, the midnight sun, and all the marathoners, to party on. They were enthusiastic, if a bit rowdy, supporters. We ran to constant shouts of “hy ah” from everyone along the course.

Finally at 1:38 a.m., 16 hours and 38 minutes after our 9 a.m. start 1000 miles away in Oslo, we crossed the second finish line. Bekkie finished again, as she had earlier in the day, with her signature cartwheel. It took us 10:28 to run the 52.4 miles, a very respectable time to complete our Norway Double, this ultra that included lots of hills and temperatures that were both too hot and too cold. Still, what a great way to celebrate the summer solstice, running through strange lands, in constant sunlight, with the best of partners. Wonder what Bekkie will come up with for the next fun run!