Michael Koppy
At 50 miles in, after about 13 hours of serious hiking, Michael Koppy looked good. The 69-year-old Hermantown man received a quick leg massage from his crew that was parked on the Lindskog Road, and then he followed his pacer back onto the Superior Hiking Trail.
Koppy’s quest was to smash the “Fastest Known Time” of six days and eight hours to complete the rugged 310 mile Superior Hiking Trail. The man that holds that record is half his age.
Michael Koppy started his adventure on Friday, May 29, at 6:28 a.m. near the Canadian border.
Michael was attempting to complete the trail in four days. That’s an average of 77.5 miles per day, but it was too fast to expect on such a hard course. After four days, Michael, using a pair of ski poles to help navigate the rocky, rugged terrain, had hiked 190.62 miles, averaging 1.92 miles per hour.
However, Koppy got a second wind and completed the course (unofficially) in five days three hours and 44 minutes.
Along the way, Michael encountered thick screeds of mosquitoes, bugs of all sorts, and he was being used as a taxi by a plethora of wood ticks. “The wood ticks are way too numerous and they’re hitching a ride on Michael,” said his Facebook page on June 2.
At one point, he plucked 40 wood ticks from his legs.
After failing to complete the course on a record attempt in 2019, Koppy, a seasoned ultra-marathon runner, trained with a single minded vengeance over the last year to set the record in 2020.
But Koppy also had another goal. He wanted to use his record attempt to raise money for the Superior Hiking Trail Association.
After being interviewed by WDIO-TV, he told the reporter that 95 percent of his runs are done on the Superior Hiking Trail, so he wanted to use his record attempt to raise funds for the Two Harbors based organization.
Towards that end, Michael has dedicated a match of $7,500 to help reach the goal of raising $15,000 for the SHTA.
Koppy wasn’t alone in his venture. He had a crew of people helping him, including assorted male and female pacers who helped him navigate (day and night) the unending up and down course that often travels the ridgeline along Lake Superior.
On June 3, Michael had completed 250 miles. With 60 miles left on his journey, he told the television reporter he was running on adrenaline.
But Koppy pushed through, all the while knowing that two earlier record attempts were made this spring and both failed.
Whether this latest accomplishment is the “cherry” on top of Michaels’ distinguished career remains to be seen. Koppy is an experienced runner, having finished several two hundred plus mile runs and admits he doesn’t need much sleep. Plus, he has covered the entire Superior Hiking Trail in segments over the last two and a half years, so he knew how tough this effort was going to be.
One thing for sure, age doesn’t define him. And the trail that Michael loves to run, the give and take between runner and nature, that’s a sweet relationship that hopefully has a long future.
Superior Hiking Trail records
Last year was a big year to set a new hiking record on the 310-mile Superior hiking trail. On September 4, Austin Nastrom completed the trail- with assistance in six days, eight hours, 30 minutes.
The unsupported record is seven days, 13 hours and 25 minutes by Rory Anderson of Lonsdale, Minnesota. Anderson completed his run on September 28, 2019.
Alex Elizabeth, 33, Minneapolis, covered the distance in six days, 12 hours and 32 minutes, the fastest time, with support, to become the fastest known woman to have completed the course. She set her record on October 27, 2019.
In July 2019, Cameron Schaefer, Apple Valley, Minnesota, blazed the route in six days, 18 hours, and 45 minutes. He finished with blistered feet and needed a knee brace to finish at Jay Cook State Park located south of Duluth in Wisconsin. His girlfriend and her dog, Charlie, supported him throughout his effort. At that time Austin had the fastest completion for a supported finish.
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