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.

The College of St. Scholastica's Kelsey Kehtel ties the game against Bethany Lutheran during the 2011 Upper Midwest Athletic Conference semifinal game at Saints Field in Duluth, Minn.

Farmer Joe Mathers of Fitchburg, Wisc. waves a flag while driving around the square of the Wisconsin State Capitol Saturday morning in Madison, Wisc.

Numerous trees line the ground near Danbury, Wisc. after a July 1st storm moved through the area.

The Pagami Creek Fire burns across the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Tuesday afternoon about 10 miles north of Isabella, Minn.

The Pagami Creek Fire burns across the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Tuesday afternoon about 10 miles north of Isabella, Minn.

The Pagami Creek Fire burns across the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Tuesday afternoon about 10 miles north of Isabella, Minn.

The Pagami Creek Fire burns across the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Tuesday afternoon about 10 miles north of Isabella, Minn.

The Pagami Creek Fire burns across the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Tuesday afternoon about 10 miles north of Isabella, Minn.

Steve Malzacher of Rock Hill Fire Corporation scans the forest for hot spots after stamping one out Thursday afternoon north of Island River in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness while fighting the Pagami Creek Fire. Malzacher is from Duluth, Minn.

Prince Fielder looks toward the field during a game against the Minnesota Twins on Friday, June 24th at Miller Park in Milwaukee, Wisc.

Nyjer Morgan lip syncs to "God Bless America" during the seventh inning of the Milwaukee Brewers' game against the Minnesota Twins on Sunday, June 26th, 2011 at Miller Park in Milwaukee, Wisc.

Prince Fielder reacts after hitting an RBI double against the Minnesota Twins during the Milwaukee Brewers' game against the Minnesota Twins on Friday, June 24th, 2011 at Miller Park in Milwaukee, Wisc.

Nyjer Morgan reacts after catching the final out of the game against the Minnesota Twins on Saturday, June 25th, 2011 at Miller Park in Milwaukee, Wisc.

The College of St. Scholastica's Claire Lubanskey collides with the Carleton College goalkeeper during a game on September 5th, 2011 at Saints Field in Duluth, Minn.

The College of St. Scholastica's Kelsey Kehtel collides with the Northland College goalkeeper during a game on October 7th, 2011 at Saints Field in Duluth, Minn.

A protestor refuses to get up after being hauled out of the room outside the Assembly chambers by the Wisconsin State Patrol Thursday morning at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wisc.

Assembly minority leader Peter Barca (D-Kenosha) holds a lighter to the a book containing the laws of the congressional procedure while accusing Assembly Republicans of running amok of those laws Thursday afternoon at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wisc.

Representative Andy Jorgensen (D-Fort Atkinson) yells at Representative Joel Kleefisch (R-Oconomowoc, not pictured) about his vote for Governor Walker's collective bargaining bill Thursday morning at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wisc.

Runners take off from the start of Grandma's Marathon Saturday morning in Two Harbors.

Denny Jordan of Roseville, Minn. bundled up to stay dry before running Grandma's Marathon Saturday morning in Two Harbors, Minn.

UMD goaltender Kenny Reiter (right) and Wade Bergman (left) watch a puck Reiter deflected sail over the head of Notre Dame's David Gerths Thursday evening during an NCAA semifinal hockey game at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn.

UMD students Matt Morris (left) and Andy Fondrick (right) cheer on the Bulldogs during introductions before the start of their NCAA semifinal hockey game against Notre Dame Thursday afternoon at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn. Fondrick is a freshman at UMD while Morris is a junior.

Senate minority leader Mark Miller (D-Monona) reacts to supporters after stepping onto the Capitol square for the first time in 22 days Saturday afternoon in Madison, Wisc. Miller and 13 other Senate Democrats fled the state to stall a budget bill by Republican Gov. Scott Walker that stripped most collective bargaining rights from public employees.

A large crowd estimated at over 70,000 gathers on the square outside the Wisconsin State Capitol Saturday afternoon to listen to speeches by Senate Democrats and to protest the passage of Republican Gov. Scott Walker's budget bill Saturday afternoon in Madison, Wisc.

Storm clouds build over Lake Superior and Wisconsin on July 10th, 2011 as seen from Duluth, Minnesota.

Storm clouds build over Lake Superior and Wisconsin on July 10th, 2011 as seen from Duluth, Minnesota.

Storm clouds build over Lake Superior and Wisconsin on July 10th, 2011 as seen from Duluth, Minnesota.

• Best of 2011 Weddings

Next week, I'll detail my favorite sports and editorial images from 2011. Lastly, thank you to all the couples I worked with last year. None of this would be possible without you guys. Finally, check out some of my favorite engagement shots from the past year.