The Arrowhead 135 starts in International Falls and winds through 135 miles of roads, snowmobile trails, massive hills and lakes and ends at Fortune Bay Casino in Tower, Minn. The distance for the race is not that unusual for an ultra marathon. Sure, it's long, but there are longer ultras out there. The thing that makes this race particularly challenging are the elements. While the warm conditions at this year's race were an anomaly, it's standard fare to find starting time temperatures hovering around 20 below with athletes braving conditions that reach near 50 below at other points in the course. That's without the wind chill folks.

Another interesting tidbit about this race is that you can either run, bike or ski the 135 miles. Since conditions can get so extreme and checkpoints are often many miles apart, race officials require competitors to carry the following on them at all times: -20 degree Fahrenheit sleeping bag or colder rating, insulated sleeping pad, bivy sack or tent, fire starter, stove, eight ounces of fuel, a pot, two quarts of water in an insulated container, headlamp or flashlight, flashing LED lights on both the front and back of your sled or bike or on your back if you're skiing, whistle to call for your help "because your mouth is too numb to yell" and one day's worth of food at all-time, which amounts to 3,200 calories.

The race officials have good reasons for requiring all of that. With conditions averaging many degrees below zero, things can go wrong quickly in places that are miles from another human, warm shelter or road. For example, the shortest distance between checkpoints is 25 miles and the longest is 35 miles. You don't want to be stuck out in the wilderness without protection.

This year the weather was not so extreme.  Overnight lows dipped into only the teens and some sections of the race saw temperatures 60+ degrees warmer than last year. I was assigned to shoot the race for Minnesota Public Radio and was up pretty early Tuesday morning to catch racers making their way across frozen Elephant Lake to the Melgeorge's checkpoint. It was definitely fun to see how a race like this works and to see the amazing things these athletes were accomplishing. Here are a few of my favorite photos from this year's Arrowhead 135.

An Arrowhead 135 competitor makes his way across Elephant Lake early Tuesday morning near the Melgeorge's check-in point about 70 miles into the race.

Garrett Mulrooney of St. Paul, Minn. makes his way across Elephant Lake early Tuesday morning near the Melgeorge's check-in point about 70 miles into the race.

Chris Peters of Iowa makes his way across Elephant Lake early Tuesday morning near the Melgeorge's check-in point about 70 miles into the race. Peters dropped out of the race at Melgeorge's.

Chris Peters of Iowa makes his way across Elephant Lake early Tuesday morning near the Melgeorge's check-in point about 70 miles into the race. Peters dropped out of the race at Melgeorge's.

Jason Boon of St. Paul, Minn. makes his way across Elephant Lake early Tuesday morning near the Melgeorge's check-in point and the halfway mark of the Arrowhead 135 ultra marathon.

Heidi Peter of Lacey, Wash. makes her way across Elephant Lake early Tuesday morning near the Melgeorge's check-in point about 70 miles into the race.

Heidi Peter of Lacey, Wash. makes her way across Elephant Lake early Tuesday morning near the Melgeorge's check-in point about 70 miles into the race.

Runners, bikers and skiers sleep, eat, drink, talk and recover at a cabin serving as the check-in point at the Melgeorge's resort early Tuesday morning near Elephant Lake about ten miles north of Orr, Minn.

Lee Petyon of Edinburgh, United Kingdom gingerly takes off his socks to the site of a larger blister underneath the toenail on his big toe Tuesday morning at a cabin serving as the check-in point at the Melgeorge's resort early Tuesday morning near Elephant Lake about ten miles north of Orr, Minn. At this point, Peyton was 70 miles into the 135-mile race.

Lee Peyton's blistered and bruised feet after 70 miles of running over snow, ice and rocks during the Arrowhead 135 ultra marathon.

Lee Peyton of Edinburgh, United Kingdom winces as Sabine Couteau, a nurse from Grenoble, France, lances the toenail on the big toe of his left foot so fluid could drain from a blister beneath the toenail. A few minutes later, Couteau did the same for the big toe on Peyton's right foot. Petyon was recovering and resting at a cabin serving as the check-in point at the Melgeorge's resort early Tuesday morning near Elephant Lake about ten miles north of Orr, Minn.

LEFT: Chris Bollinger of Alaska approaches the finish line of the Arrowhead 135 ultra marathon Tuesday afternoon at Fortune Bay Casino in Tower, Minn. RIGHT: A light snowfall left snow behind on a mask situated atop a trail marker near the Ski Pulk checkpoint Tuesday afternoon during the Arrowhead 15 ultra marathon.

Charlie Farrow of Duluth, Minn. approaches the finish line of the Arrowhead 135 ultra marathon Tuesday afternoon at Fortune Bay Casino in Tower, Minn.

Charlie Farrow of Duluth, Minn. rests for a second after finishing the Arrowhead 135 ultra marathon Tuesday afternoon at Fortune Bay Casino in Tower, Minn.

Tom Lais (left) of Milwaukee, Wisc. and Craig Irving (right) of Cedar Rapids, Iowa approach the Ski Pulk checkpoint Tuesday afternoon during the Arrowhead 135 ultra marathon. The Ski Pulk checkpoint is 110 miles into the race and the last checkpoint before the finish.

Craig Irving of Cedar Rapids, Iowa had no issue with taking a few bites out of a burger from his backpack Tuesday afternoon at the Ski Pulk checkpoint. Irving bought the burger 26 hours before and 76 miles ago at the Gateway Store.

Honestly, I'm surprised it took this long for another major fire to break out.  Drought conditions have prevailed over the northern half of the state for the better part of two years.  With all the people who visit the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and the ongoing threat of lightning from storms, it really is miraculous that it took this long for a major fire to break out.  The cause of the Pagami Creek Fire is being attributed to lightning.  High winds caused the fire to increase in size from 16,000 acres on Sunday to more than 60,000 on Monday.  As of the time this blog post goes live, the state is estimating the fire to be over 100,000 acres or 10x it's reported size yesterday morning.

As with most fires of this size and in this region, it may be winter before the fire completely dies out and the smoldering stops.  Unlike the 2007 Ham Lake Fire, the Pagami Creek Fire has not been a major threat to homes and structures yet.  The Ham Lake Fire destroyed more than 30 structures as it tore across the northern section of the Gunflint Trail.  Whether or not the Pagami Creek Fire has a similar impact remains to be seen.  It's still early in this fire's life cycle.

The photos below were shot from about 4,000 feet and about 10-12 miles north of Isabella, Minn.  The fire was heading away from Isabella at the time, but seeing as how it jumped 17 miles in one day, people in those communities are hoping the wind stays in their favor.  Fires like this are scary things, but they are also a natural part of the forest cycle.  It was incredible looking out one side of the plane and seeing regular green forest and on the other side, incredible plumes of smoke, jumping flames and smoke as far as the eye could see.  Here are a few photos from Tuesday afternoon while covering the fire for Minnesota Public Radio...

Out of nowhere came a Republican upstart named Chip Cravaack.  A retired Naval officer and Northwest Airlines pilot, Cravaack seized on Oberstar's votes for the bailout and health care reform and voters' discontent about the economy and made this a race unlike anything this part of Minnesota had ever seen.  In the weeks before the election, the gap in the polls closed and race became a dead heat.  A contentious debate in Duluth on October 19th revealed just how heated this race had become when supporters for both Cravaack and Oberstar often drowned out the candidates themselves with heckling and boos.

Then election day came.  I was tasked to cover Oberstar's election party.  People there were pretty enthusiastic and hopeful.  Oberstar led for a vast majority of the night until about 2 a.m. when the polls tightened and lead switched back and forth.  At 4 a.m., the Minnesota Secretary of State's office declared the race for Cravaack.  There wasn't much going on at Oberstar's party considering he had left at 11 p.m. and at 230 a.m. when I left there were only 20 people left in the room--18 of which were media, one campaign manager who said he was not going to give a speech and one supporter who was asleep.

The next day Oberstar gave a moving concession speech where he refused to apologize for any of his votes, listed his favorite accomplishments and then thanked friends, family members and supporters before quietly slipping away.  It was the end of an era for northern Minnesota.

Congressman Jim Oberstar speaks to a crowd of supporters Thursday evening at the Miners Memorial Building in Virginia, Minn.

Representative Tom Rukavina gets in a few fiery words before United States Congressman Jim Oberstar takes the mic during a DFL rally Thursday evening at the Miners Memorial Building in Virginia, Minn. On the right is United States Senator Amy Klobuchar.

District eight congressional candidate Chip Cravaack (2nd from left) listens to Congressman Jim Oberstar (2nd from right) talk about proposed cap-and-trade regulations Tuesday morning during a debate at the DECC auditorium in Duluth, Minn.

Chip Cravaack debates Congressman Jim Oberstar at the DECC auditorium in Duluth, Minn.

Claude Washington checks out the scene at the Jim Oberstar election party Tuesday evening at the Holiday Inn in Duluth, Minn. Washington's facepaint was part of a celebration of Mexico's Day of the Dead.

United States representative Jim Oberstar (left) and friend Kris Ridgewell (right) watch the first results come in for Oberstar's race against Chip Cravaack Tuesday evening at the Holiday Inn in Duluth, Minn.

From left: Scott Yeazle, Carrie Edwards, Cathy Schuyler and Claire Kirch watch election results come in on a television setup at the Jim Oberstar election party Tuesday evening at the Holiday Inn in Duluth, Minn.

United States representative Jim Oberstar (right) and his wife Jean Oberstar (left) talk to a crowd of supporters Tuesday evening at the Holiday Inn in Duluth, Minn. as election results continue to come in.

At 12:41 in the morning, Kelvin Covington was one of the last Jim Oberstar supporters awaiting results Wednesday morning at the Holiday Inn in Duluth, Minn.

Surrounded by friends, family and supporters, United States representative Jim Oberstar speaks to the media Wednesday afternoon at the Gerald W. Heaney Federal Building in Duluth, Minn.

United States representative Jim Oberstar begins to tear up while speaking to the media after being defeated by Republican challenger Chip Cravaack Wednesday afternoon at the Gerald W. Heaney Federal Building in Duluth, Minn.

United States representative Jim Oberstar hugs his wife Jean after speaking to media Wednesday afternoon at the Gerald W. Heaney Federal Building in Duluth, Minn. Oberstar had just been defeated by Republican challenger Chip Cravaack.

United States representative Jim Oberstar leaves the Gerald W. Heaney Federal Building in Duluth, Minn. after speaking to the media Wednesday afternoon. Oberstar had just been defeated by Republican challenger Chip Cravaack.

]]> http://www.drockphoto.com/2010/11/05/pictures-for-radio-the-end-of-an-era/feed/ 0 http://www.drockphoto.com/2010/08/10/hey-you-guys-holy-mary-mother-of-god-look-at-that-the-tall-ships-are-coming/ http://www.drockphoto.com/2010/08/10/hey-you-guys-holy-mary-mother-of-god-look-at-that-the-tall-ships-are-coming/#comments Wed, 11 Aug 2010 06:19:35 +0000 DRock http://www.drockphoto.com/?p=1070 A couple of weekends ago, an armada of tall ships descended upon Duluth for the Tall Ships Duluth festival.  I photographed their arrival for the Duluth News Tribune and Minnesota Public Radio.  Throughout their time here, I could not stop thinking of various "Goonies" phrases.  The two that came to mind the most were Sloth's infamous "Hey you guys!!!" and the Sheriff remarking "Holy Mary Mother of God, Look at that..." at the end of the movie when One-Eyed Willie's ship finally finds the open sea.

The event was a big deal for the city.  Two years ago, three tall ships came to Duluth and so did an estimated 125,000 people to see them.  Many waited hours in line to get a tour and if you weren't in line by 10 a.m., chances are you weren't getting on the ship.  At one point, the line to tour the ships stretched over a mile.  The problem was much less of an issue this year since there were nine ships instead of three.

During their five days in Duluth, they were the talk of the town.  Whether it was the traffic, the crowds in Canal Park or the constant reminders of one of cinema's greatest movies of all time in the Goonies, the tall ships left an impression on everyone.

The U.S. Brig Niagara sails through the Duluth ship canal toward the Aerial Lift Bridge during the start of the Tall Ships Duluth festival.

James Smith reaches for some oil to apply to the Pride of Baltimore's mast while the entire crew performed general maintenance on the ship ahead of Duluth, Minnesota's tall ships festival. The ship was docked at Loon's Foot Landing in Superior, Wisc.

Chief Mate Alan Morse sands near the bow of the Pride of Baltimore II while it was docked at Loon's Foot Landing in Superior, Wisc.

People get out their cameras and photograph the Pride of Baltimore II as it sails through the Duluth ship canal toward the Aerial LIft Bridge.

The U.S. Brig Niagara approaches the Aerial Lift Bridge through the Duluth ship canal during the start of the Tall Ships Duluth festival.

People line the roof of the Paulucci Building before the start of the Tall Ships Duluth festival.

The U.S. Brig Niagara approaches the Duluth ship canal on its way toward the Aerial Lift Bridge during the start of the Tall Ships Duluth festival.

Helicopters fly by the U.S. Brig Niagara during its entry under the Aerial Lift Bridge in Duluth, Minn.

The HMS Bounty sails under the Aerial Lift Bridge during the start of the Tall Ships Duluth festival. The HMS Bounty was in the movie "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead's Man Chest."

Lili Carranza (left) uses her brother Jack Carranza (right) as a prop for taking a photo of the approaching HMS Bounty as it neared the Aerial Lift Bridge during the start of the Tall Ships Duluth festival.

Duluth's Aerial Lift Bridge can be seen behind the sails and masts of the U.S. Brig Niagara during the Tall Ships Duluth festival in Duluth, Minn.

]]> http://www.drockphoto.com/2010/08/10/hey-you-guys-holy-mary-mother-of-god-look-at-that-the-tall-ships-are-coming/feed/ 2 http://www.drockphoto.com/2010/06/21/pictures-for-radio-an-afternoon-on-lake-winnipeg-and-the-mv-namao/ http://www.drockphoto.com/2010/06/21/pictures-for-radio-an-afternoon-on-lake-winnipeg-and-the-mv-namao/#comments Mon, 21 Jun 2010 18:27:48 +0000 DRock http://www.drockphoto.com/?p=921 A couple weeks ago, I had the chance to travel to Canada for the first time to document environmental issues on Canada's Lake Winnipeg.  You may have seen my review of a Canadian hot dog last week.  I can tell you my experience in Gimli and aboard the MV Namao was much better than that hot dog tasted or looked.

What is happening to Lake Winnipeg is a familiar story to anyone who is paying attention to the plight of lakes in this country.  Increased phosphorus runoff from wastewater, animal manure, laundry detergents and fertilizer are creating massive algal blooms in lakes, which can impact wildlife and fisherman and make swimming a dangerous venture if the algae that you are swimming in happens to be of the blue-green variety.

In Minnesota and North Dakota, more intense farming and floods have greatly increased the amount of phosphorous the flows north out of the Red River and into Lake Winnipeg.  Where algal blooms were once a thing that happened to other lakes and not Lake Winnipeg, it is now getting so bad that fishermen and the Canadian government are working hard to understand and stop the problem.  Enter the Motor Vessel (MV) Namao.  This retired Coast Guard vessel makes three cruises a year in the spring, summer and winter testing the same 65 locations during each season.  This gives the scientists good baseline information about what is happening to the lake.

If you do a little research, the same thing was happening to Lake Erie in the 1970s.  Massive algal blooms were appearing every year polluting beaches and devastating industries dependent on the lake.  People called the lake dead.  Scientists studied the problem, discovered inordinate amounts of phosphorus in the lake, put a stop to the primary sources and within a few years the lake came back to life.  It's a success story that scientists aboard the MV Namao hope can be repeated here without ever getting as dire as the Lake Erie story.

This is where the scientists come in.  In the pictures below, they are studying everything from water quality characteristics to details about Lake Winnipeg's food chain.  All of this information will go into developing a better understanding of a lake that was rarely studied before these issues surfaced.  In the end, they are hopeful this information will lead to some sort of change that will preserve the lake for generations to come.

Click here for a link to Minnesota Public Radio's story on the subject...

To listen to MPR's audio piece on the story, check it out below...

And now for the pictures!

Andrew Olynyk (right) takes a whiff of an Emerald Shiner after Heather Clark (center) commented that it smelled like cucumbers Thursday, June 3, 2010 near Gimli, Manitoba in Canada. To the left is Katie Sheppard. The three were separating fish brought up by a trawling net that skimmed the surface of Lake Winnipeg.

Increased phosphate and nitrate runoff from the Red River is one of the primary causes of more frequent and intense algae blooms in Canada's Lake Winnipeg.

University of Manitoba research student Heather Clark holds a small Emerald Shiner that was pulled out of the water after trawling Lake Winnipeg Thursday, June 3, 2010 near Gimli, Manitoba in Canada.

The contents of a trawling net that skimmed the surface of Lake Winnipeg for about 30 minutes Thursday, June 3, 2010 near Gimli, Manitoba in Canada. The fish were separated by species and then weighed, packaged and sent off as part of different studies involving Lake Winnipeg.

Every single fish brought to the surface by trawling nets aboard the MV Namao would have to be counted and weighed as part of a study to see what walleyes were feeding on in Lake Winnipeg Thursday, June 3, 2010 near Gimli, Manitoba in Canada.

Sunrise over Lake Winnipeg near Gimli Harbor in Gimli, Manitoba in Canada. Increased phosphate and nitrate runoff from the Red River is one of the primary causes of more frequent and intense algae blooms in Canada's Lake Winnipeg.

LEFT: Heather Clark uses a small fishing net to sift through the smallest remaining fish caught in a fishing trawl while aboard the MV Namao Thursday, June 3, 2010 near Gimli, Manitoba in Canada. Some of the fish are barely the size of a fingernail and each must be captured, counted and weighed. RIGHT: A bag of Cisco fish taken from a trawling net sit in a plastic bag awaiting shipment to various research institutions in Canada as part of ongoing studies to learn more about Lake Winnipeg.

Gordon Chamberlain (right) and Elise Watchorn (2nd from right), both of Environment Canada, empty their trawling nets Thursday, June 3, 2010 near Gimli, Manitoba in Canada. Next to Watchorn is University of Manitoba student Andrew Olynyk (far left) and above Watchorn is University of Manitoba student Katie Sheppard. The four were aboard the MV Namao.

A fishing trawl aboard the MV Namao is lowered into Lake Winnipeg while the ship's captain Walter Lee (center, bottom) watches Thursday, June 3, 2010 near Gimli, Manitoba in Canada. The net would skim the surface of the lake looking to see what fish such as walleyes might be feeding on.

The MV Namao captain Walter Lea looks through binoculars looking for buoys put out by fisherman while on Lake Winnipeg Thursday, June 3, 2010 near Gimli, Manitoba in Canada. The nets can span the length of a football field and can be dense in areas so Lea has to have a keen eye so they do not run over and destroy any nets.

The MV Namao's fore during research operations on Lake Winnipeg Thursday, June 3, 2010 near Gimli, Manitoba in Canada.

Sunrise over docked sailboats in Gimli Harbor in Gimli, Manitoba in Canada. Increased phosphate and nitrate runoff from the Red River is one of the primary causes of more frequent and intense algae blooms in Canada's Lake Winnipeg.

University of Saskatchewan student Amy Ofukany pulls Lake Winnipeg water from the Seabird Rosette Thursday, June 3, 2010 near Gimli, Manitoba in Canada. The Seabird Rosette is an auto-sampler that measures water characteristics such as conductivity, oxygen levels, light penetration and turbidity. These are some key characteristics in determining whether algae blooms will form.

The University of Regina's Vince Ignatiuk (left) and the University of Manitoba's Kaite Sheppard (right) help hoist a tube containing a probe that penetrated the floor of Lake Winnipeg Thursday, June 3, 2010 near Gimli, Manitoba in Canada. The two were aboard the MV Namao.

Manitoba Water Stewardship's Shannon McDougal (right) smiles after someone stepped on a hose aboard the MV Namao and water gushed out of it hitting McDougal and making her wet Thursday, June 3, 2010 near Gimli, Manitoba in Canada. Next to McDougal is Enivornment Canada's Todd Breeden. McDougal and Breeded were in the boat because when a probe that penetrated the floor of Lake Winnipeg is brought to the surface, someone needs to plug the bottom of the probe so the sediment does not fall out when it is lifted into the ship.

The MV Namao sits in the Gimli Harbor after a day on the water Thursday, June 3, 2010 near Gimli, Manitoba in Canada.

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