Illinois Fat Ass 50k - 2009

I finished in 4 hr 47 min. Good for 3rd place!

This was a tough race. Mainly because of the weather conditions. It was 13 degrees at the start, with wind pushing the "feels like" temp to about 0 degrees. The course was also covered with snow, so that made it hard to get a good pace going.

There was also that German Shephard that stopped my in my tracks at about mile 2. He was PISSED and was going to bite me until I reached into my bag of tricks and gave him some caffeinated sport beans as I slowly walked backwards. The owner finally saw what was happening and called the dog off after I negotiated with the dog for at least 15-20 minutes.

The food etc at the aid stations was all frozen, but so was my face, so I wasn't able to chew much at all. My water bottles had frozen up after about an hour, so if I wanted a drink, I had to stop and take the tops off of the bottles.

As you can see from some of the pictures, my daughters were able to run with me in certain sections, and then Liv ran in with me for the last 4 miles, and Anna the last 100 yards.

All in all it was a tough race, and a great training run. Bob Rehn and his crew are a class act. I would recommend this race for anyone who can get down there.

Happy New Year!

After taking some time off through the Holidays, it’s time to get back on track. For the last month or two I have taken it easy. I’ve run a few 15 milers, and my longest run was 20 miles. Other than those runs I have been trying to get back into my weight training and boxing routine, playing basketball, and trying to run the stairs at work during lunch. Our building is 20 floors. So I go up and back down 4 or 5 times. That’s 80-100 flights up and down. My mileage goal is going to be 80 miles/week for the forseeable future.


The picture above was me trying to get a run in on a day when the high temp was –3 F (it was –40 F with the wind chill) and there was a blizzard warning. I made it 8 miles and called it quits. It can be very hard to stay on a good routine through the winter. So needless to say I am envious of all of those who live in year round warm climates.

Another Christmas has come and gone. I ended up getting a Garmin Forerunner 405. I’ve been quite busy lately, but I’m looking forward to using it soon, maybe even tomorrow morning.

Next up for me is possibly the Illinois Fat Ass 50k in McNabb, IL. I ran it last year. It’s a 10 mi out and back course, so that’s basically 3 trips back and forth. I’m not much for these types of courses, but if I’m going to run the McNaughton Park 150 miler, it’s time to start liking loops. McNaughton Park 150 mi is 15 10 mile loops. That’s mentally tough for me.

Well, I hope everyone had a great Christmas! Happy New Year!

TrailRunner Magazine Article 12.2.08

TrailRunner Magazine recently published a story about my experience of going from a non-runner, to a 100 mile ultrarunner in one year. See below for the story. I am very thankful to them for their interest in my story. There were a few slight errors in the story. Hey – Nobody’s perfect! Anyhow, because I’m such a stickler for details – Here’s the corrections.

- “How Nolan Ming finished the Arkansas Traveller 100 miler with 12 months’ training”

- I finished the Kettle Moraine 100 miler with 12 months training.

- “Ming began training in February 2007 (what he considers the beginning of his “real” running career), and ran his first race, the Sunburst Hall of Fame to Notre Dame 10K in South Bend, Indiana, in June, followed by a half marathon, marathon and then a 50K.”

- I actually started running in February 2007. My first race was the Hall of Fame to Notre Dame Half Marathon. Here’s my full race resume –

’07 Races completed -

- Hall of Fame to Notre Dame Half Marathon (My first race ever) - 2hr 8min

- University of Okoboji Marathon - 4hr 20min

- Chicago Distance Classic Half Marathon - 1hr 45min

- North Face Endurance Challenge 50k in Des Moines, IA - 5hr 30min

- Arkansas Traveller 100 mile - Paced for 20 miles

- Chicago Lakefront 50 mile - 8hr 57min

’08 Races completed -

- Three Days of Syllamo 100 mile Ultra Stage Race – 22 hrs 16 min – 15^th place. (Got lost for 2 hours on the 50k course the first day.)

- Kettle Moraine 100 mile – 23 hr 23 min – 11^th place, 5^th place in age group.

- Pacer for 50 miles of Superior Saw Tooth 100 mile – Runner placed 7^th with time of 29 hrs 45 min.

- Arkansas Traveller 100 mile – 22 hr 54 min – 15^th place, 1^st place in age group.

- North Face Endurance Challenge – Madison, WI – 8 hr 55 min – 30^th place out of 180 runners.

- “As Ming’s coach and mentor, Humphrey carefully designed training programs that included running four times a week (reaching a weekly peak of 85 miles), swimming, boxing and weight training twice a week, and three rest days.”

- I was running 4 times a week and boxing and weight training on the other days. I pool ran after my first race because of a foot injury. I would take maybe 1 day off per week, if any at all.

- “One year to the day after Ming’s first race, he ran the LaGrange, Wisconsin, Kettle Moraine 100-miler, with Humphrey as his pacer dishing out practical, tough-love advice. “Ignore your inner wuss and deal with the situation,” he’d say when Ming’s energy waned. “The facts are that you are not hurt or sick, so you can run.””

- This advice was provided by Uncle Dale after the Arkansas Traveller 100 mile, not during the KM 100. During the KM 100 he was providing as much entertainment as he was encouragement. See my KM 100 blog entry HERE for details….

The full story is below -

	Inside Dirt December 2008 brought to you by GORE-TEX®

Zero to 100 in One Year
How Nolan Ming finished the Arkansas Traveller 100 miler with 12 months’ training
By Allison Pattillo

Transforming oneself from a non-runner to a 100-mile finisher is an impressive feat no matter how long it takes. But for Nolan Ming, 33, of Yorkville, Illinois, who did it in one year, it was an accomplishment beyond his wildest dreams. Meticulous preparation, a stringent training schedule, smart fuelling and powerful inspiration helped him succeed. “Achieving this running goal has given me confidence in myself that I had not known before,” he says.

Before embarking on his 100-mile goal, Ming occasionally pounded out a slow two miles. But when he announced to family and friends his desire to get in shape, his uncle, Dale Humphrey, suggested that Ming pace him for 20 miles at the Arkansas Traveller 100 in Perryville, Arkansas, in October 2007. Ming jumped at the offer.

Ming began training in February 2007 (what he considers the beginning of his “real” running career), and ran his first race, the Sunburst Hall of Fame to Notre Dame 10K in South Bend, Indiana, in June, followed by a half marathon, marathon and then a 50K. When the time came for the Arkansas Traveller, Ming was fit enough to run 20 miles alongside his uncle through the Ouachita National Forest. At aid stations he witnessed a dizzying array of emotions among the others runners, which motivated him to train for a 100-miler himself.

As Ming’s coach and mentor, Humphrey carefully designed training programs that included running four times a week (reaching a weekly peak of 85 miles), swimming, boxing and weight training twice a week, and three rest days. “I always focused on the next goal so there was little room to get sidetracked from training by life’s daily challenges,” he says.

One year to the day after Ming’s first race, he ran the LaGrange, Wisconsin, Kettle Moraine 100-miler, with Humphrey as his pacer dishing out practical, tough-love advice. “Ignore your inner wuss and deal with the situation,” he’d say when Ming’s energy waned. “The facts are that you are not hurt or sick, so you can run.” The verbal cues and support of family members kept Ming on pace, motivating him to an 11th-place finish in 23 hours 23 minutes.

Ming was one of only 37 people to finish the Kettle Moraine that day (from the starting field of 123) because of scorching heat, pounding rain, high winds and hair-raising lightning. During one especially rough patch, Ming thought about how his voluntary suffering was nothing compared to the involuntary hardships other people in the world deal with. “If I couldn’t handle [this race], then I was copping out,” he says.

Next on his tick-list was the race that started it all—the Arkansas Traveler 100. With a goal of finishing in less than 23 hours, Ming reminded himself throughout the run of a Martin Luther King, Jr. quote, “Run when you can. Walk when you have to. Crawl if you must. Just don’t give up.”

Thanks to a smart race strategy and his pacer, Chris, constantly reminding him to drink enough fluids, Ming crossed the finish line in 22 hours 54 minutes, and won his age group.

Through it all, Ming had the good fortune of remaining injury free. And he never lost motivation to stick to his meticulous training program, which had him starting workouts at 4 a.m. to fit around a full-time job running a construction company and spending time with his wife and three daughters. “I’ll keep running because it gives me a sense of accomplishment to keep raising the bar on distance, time and difficulty,” says Ming.

Find out more about Ming’s incredible evolution into a 100-mile runner at his blog, www.nolansultrarunningblog.blogspot.com.

2008 Chili Chase 5k - Yorkville, IL

My oldest daughter Olivia (10) ran in the local 5k race last weekend – The Yorkville Chili Chase 5k. She did a great job finishing 2nd in her age group with a time of 24 min 34 sec. There's some pictures over there-------------->

The cross country coach at her school handed out entry forms to all of the kids after the season was over, so she ran along with some of her classmates/teammates. When she said that she wanted to run in the race, she also asked if I’d run with her. Of course I would! So we trained a little bit here and there, but not much. Then, with about 2 weeks until race day I looked at the flier and said – Oh man, this is coming up quick, we need to make sure you’re getting some miles in before this race. So I made sure to get her running at least 1-2 miles per day.

She was doing great, and would sometimes run around our block (.6 miles) before I get home from work, or would wait for me to get home from work (I work in Chicago, so I don’t get home until 6:30-7:00 PM). Last week, I got home late and she had waited for me. It was pitch dark and she was ready to run. She was supposed to run 4 miles this day. So we got ready, threw the headlights and reflectors on, and took off at 8:00 PM. It was a cold and windy night. As we took off she asked again – “How far are we going again??” I had decided to take her on my 5 mile loop route and not tell her. I wanted to see how she’d do. But I couldn’t lie to her, so I said 5 miles. She didn’t flinch or say a word. She was ready to run…!

She had been asking me if she could bring her Ipod along. I said no because I wanted her to be able to hear everything, as we’d be running along some busy roads. Well we talked quite a bit and I think it was possibly my favorite run ever to date. Nothing special, just some very quality time in which we were running and engaging in a meaningful conversation. Very fulfilling…..

A few days before the race she had come down with a pretty nasty cold. I was worried that she wouldn’t be able to run. I hoped that she would at least be able to finish, but wanted her to be able to do her best too. I didn’t worry too much about it and just waited to see how things looked on race morning. She was feeling better, but still had the sniffles. So, we broke out the netti pot, cleared her sinuses out, and she was ready to rock….

When we showed up at the start/finish line, we were greeted by many familiar faces. Our neighbors and their kids were all running, my friend Ben Niles and his wife, the ex-Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert and his wife Jeanne (Who I have known my entire life) and Liv’s friends Trevor Wills, Skyler Bollinger and her mom Joanne (Cross Country coach), Theresa Murray, and Jack Plaza.

Liv and I joined the cross country group to get warmed up. It was quite cold (22 degrees) at the start.

Before we knew it we were off and running. We started out with a pretty fast pace. I just tried to keep in front of her enough to keep her going as fast as she could. She practiced her new talent that she learned from me - The Farmer's blow - a few times along the course. Always making sure there was nobody in the line of fire. Very proud of her!! Haha...

As we closed in on mile 2 she started to constantly ask if we were getting close. I kept telling her that we were getting very close, and that if she had anything left in the tank, now was the time to use it. With about 100 yards left she dug deep and sprinted ahead of me to the finish line. We had some family lined up along the finish area, so they were all cheering for her as she hammered into the finish very strong at around 24 minutes (I don't have the exact time), good for 2nd in her age group.

I couldn't have been more proud of her. Her teammates also did well.

2008 North Face Endurance Challenge - Madison, WI - 50 Mile

My last run of 2008 is in the books. It didn't go as well as I had planned, but it went ok considering I had just run the Arkansas Traveller 100 mile 3 weeks prior, and I had a stomach bug. I finished in 8hrs 54min. 30th out of 187 race entrants. Only 136 started the race, maybe due to the cold and rain. For full results click HERE.

There's some pictures over there ----------------->

My goal was to finish in 8 hours, but that train came off the tracks early.

We showed up to the start area a little bit late so I rushed to get everything in order before the start. Before I knew it I was standing at the starting line with some tough runners. Nikki Kimball, Diane Van Deren, Philppe Rolly, and James Bonnett to name a few.



As we took off I stuck with the lead pack. It was still dark out, cold, and had rained much of the night before, so the going was a bit sloppy at the start. The course marking was also a bit tough to follow, and we got lost and/or delayed a few times.


As we made our way through the trails, the pack thinned out around mile 10 or so. I came into the second aid station 15 minutes ahead of schedule, but desperately looking for a porta potty.



No such luck.



So I made my way out of the aid station and down the trail about a mile until I found a good spot. Does Nolan sh** in the woods? Yep, in extreme circumstances, I do. I certainly don't want to get graphic, but I had what they call the Green Apple Quick Steps. My stomach had been rumbling all morning up until then, and after it didn't feel that much better. I also felt dehydrated in general. My legs were feeling tight and sluggish.

I made my way through the next section. This section was across much of the same open prairie section that we had run through at the Kettle Moraine 100 in June. There was one difference this time though. There were pheasant hunters EVERYWHERE, along with their dogs. It sounded like we were running through a war zone. A few times it was so close I thought I'd better get down and bear crawl so as not to get shot. This was a section where quite a few runners passed me up as I took time at the aid station (16.5 miles) to take in as much food as I could, and drink some soup. Discouraged with my stomach, I moved on.


It was just 4.7 miles to the next aid station, but that seemed to take forever, as I could feel my legs seizing up, and my stomach continually cramping. I've been given lots of advice in my life, but one thing I will never forget is "Never trust a fart". Especially when you have the Quick Steps. So all the way into that next aid station I fought with that advice in my head.

As I came into the aid station at mile 21.2, I felt like this was going to be a long day if I continued to feel the way I had all morning. My wife and daughter reassured me that I was doing great, and was still on track for my goal. I slammed an Ensure, ate some other things, wasted lots of time whining (Like somebody made me do this!?) and made my way out of the aid station, heading across the longest section between aid stations. It was 7.13 miles, and when I get there, I have to turn around and come back the same way. So I wasn’t feeling too chipper heading out. But I decided to dip into my caffeinated sport beans to see if I could get a little kick.

I even tried sticking cones in my nose to see if that would help, but no such luck.

I would soon find out that the section from the McMiller Aid Station to the County Road Z Aid Station was relatively hilly. It seemed like I was always running down a hill, or running/walking up one. But I eventually started feeling better through this section. Since this section was out and back, the leaders eventually started coming by me headed the opposite way. This got my spirits up. I like to see the other runners and say “Hey – Good Job, Keep it up!” and stuff like that. I started picking up the pace and came into the turn around (CR 6 Aid Station) feeling ready to start making up some time.

I said a brief “Hello, thank you, and good bye” to my crew and took off back the way I came. I didn’t waste much time chit chatting. I was determined to attack this section because it was the longest between aid stations and I wanted to make it go by faster, so I gave it all I had.

Me cracking bad jokes at the turn around.

As I headed back to McMiller I started coming across the people that were heading into the turnaround. I saw a few familiar faces including Scott McTurner from Naperville Running Co., Christina Nassivera, Rebecca Leahy, and Howard Schaub whom we had met the night before at the check in. I was glad to see them and say “Hey – Good job, Keep it up!” I pushed as hard as I could through this section, running up and down most of the hills unless they were extremely large or steep.

This is also where I started playing my game of “If I see you ahead of me, I need to pass you”. It works for me. It keeps me motivated and keeps my head in the race. Otherwise I would wander off into LaLa Land and start thinking about why the Cubs suck so bad, why the economy sucks so bad, my tight hamstrings that felt like they might snap at any second, or our dog who had it made chilling out all day and not running one frickin mile.

I became a Dodgers fan after the Cub’s season this year. UNREAL.

Although I do have these negative thoughts, I do have some positive ones too. I think about how when I'm done and when I get home I can just chill out and play with the kids, eat some ice cream, put them to bed, and then watch the World Series and the Ohio State vs. Penn State Football game. All the while, having an enlightening discussion with my wife without the kids interrupting every other word. Ahhh – It’s the small things in life, let me tell you.

Ok – I’m wandering here…. Back to the race!

I ended up passing quite a few runners on this section back from CR 6 to McMiller, but I was still 15 minutes behind my goal pace. Not looking too good. When I came back into McMiller I had started feeling crappy again (No pun intended). I took in whatever I could as far as food including soup, M&Ms, potatoes with salt, and coke. Then I grabbed a stick of gum and threw it in my pocket. Thinking I might find a need for that later when I was ready to hurl from the Perpetuem that I had been sucking on ALL day. The stuff works, but I wish they could improve on the flavor. If it tasted good I could live on the stuff, heck, maybe even when it’s at the pancake batter consistency (Which it usually is for me) I could make Perpetuem Pancakes and carry them in a huge stack on a plate during the run instead of carrying the same old hand bottles. Maybe even serve it to runners as we come across each other. That would be cool.

So off I went to the next stop, which was Highway 67. Only 5.31 miles! But I was feeling crappy again so it looked to be a tough section. It was too. Quite a bit of up and down through this section too. I sipped on my Perpetuem and Heed, fighting back the queasy stomach the entire way. As I pulled into Highway 67 I was elated to see a porta potty. I used it real quick, grabbed some stuff to eat, drank more Ensure, and prepared to head out when the Rumbly Tumbly spoke up. I stopped a few strides into my run out of the aid station and wondered if I could trust this one. NOPE. I made a b-line for the porta potty. I was certainly glad I hadn’t trusted my gut. After all was said and done I headed out and made my way to the final aid station. It looked to be a pretty flat section across some prairie section, then into some low rolling hills through the woods.

Now for the kicker. Look at what my crew was doing while I was out on the trail trying not to crap my shorts!! The nerve!! I hope they had fun…. Haha…

Liv and the Scarecrow in Eagle, WI.

Liv and the Indian in Eagle, WI.

Liv enjoying the ride in Eagle, WI.

Beautiful scenery.

Once again I started playing the game and passing anyone that I could see in front of me. I ate more caffeinated sport beans to try to give me that kick again. But my legs were shot. My body didn’t respond too much to those beans this time. But I still played the game the rest of the way into the finish even though my hamstrings and calves were feeling like they might tear or pop at any second.

I pulled into the Piper aid station at 45.41 miles. The local cheerleading team manned it. They were very chipper, telling me I was almost there, and that I was a superhero!! I told them “Not until I finish – haha”. They did help me get my spirits up and I ran very hard from there into the finish. I ran up and down all of the hills, passed a few runners, and finished as strong as I could, sprinting the last 1-2 miles.

As I came across the finish line I was glad that this one had come to an end. I had finished 54 minutes over my goal time of 8 hours, but I was fighting some stomach issues and cramping all day long. It seems like the entire day I was just fighting to not crap my pants, or cramp up and pull something. So I was happy to have overcome those issues and just made it to the finish line.

“Dude! Where’s the crapper!?”

It was a great race. The people were great. The scenery was beautiful. I am thankful that I was able to make it to the end and take the whole thing in.

Now I intend to relax for a few weeks and spend some time with my family. As of right now I have my sights set on Three Days of Syllamo, Kettle Moraine 100, Leadville 100, and possibly the new Syllamo 100 for 2009. I’m sure a few others may pop up along the way.

Happy Halloween! Gotta run…..

Chips off the Old Block

My oldest daughter Liv ran in the Illinois Lutheran Sports Association State Cross Country Meet last weekend. With minimal training due to the fact that this is the first year that the school fielded a cross country team, and she was also in Soccer at the same time, she finished 20th out of 73 runners. I couldn't be more proud of her. She's in 5th Grade and finished in the top 26% out of 5th through 8th Graders. Like I said, I couldn't be more proud, and am looking forward to next year! Great job Liv, and the rest of the Cross Lutheran Cross Country Team! There's more pictures over there --------------->



Also, Our middle daughter Anna, who is 7 and has Down Syndrome, ran in the Fun Run at the State Meet. I ran along with her. She ran a total of 2 miles! Unbelievable!! We are very proud of her as well. She woke up the next morning and was hobbling around like her Dad the day after a race. It was GREAT! A couple of Chips off the old block I guess. Let me tell you - Nothing can stop Anna when she sets her mind on something!

Last Race of '08 (Probably)

The North Face 50 Mi is this weekend up near Eagle, WI in the Kettle Moraine State Forest (Same area where I ran my 1st 100 miler in June). It's my last race of the year (Probably). I'm hoping to do well, but at the same time, I'd like to go out and just enjoy the race and the people. I have a goal of finishing in around 8-8.5 hrs. If I feel good and/or the weather is good, I will push it. If I'm not feeling great and/or the weather is bad, I'll try to just let it come to me. Either way, I'm looking forward to it. The elevation map is below.