Coree Woltering — Inner Circle

Inner Circle
Coree Woltering

1,147 miles.
21 days.


A small-town kid from Ottawa, Illinois, who ran the entire Ice Age Trail faster than anyone ever had. College runner, then triathlete, then a pacer at Leadville who fell for the long stuff on the climb up Hope Pass. A decade later: two Western States finishes, a 200-mile podium, and Cocodona. Pro with Merrell. Now running out of Maine. Openly sober. Serious about coffee. Even more serious behind a camera.

From
Ottawa, IL
Based
Maine
Sponsor
Merrell
Format
FKT · 200 · 100
Shop his kit↓ Back to the Inner Circle→
Ice Age Trail
1,147 mi
100-mile PR
19:31:50
Races on record
51
Status
Rebuilding in Maine
Coree Woltering
01 — The Origin

Hope Pass did it.

SubjectCoree WolteringFromOttawa, IllinoisBasedMaineSponsorMerrellRecordIce Age Trail FKT · UltraRunning Magazine · UTMB IndexOff the clockWildlife photographer. Coffee connoisseur.AlsoOpenly sober

Coree grew up in Ottawa, Illinois, and has been running since he was seven. He ran track and cross country at Greenville College on an academic scholarship, then went into triathlon and qualified for the Ironman 70.3 World Championships twice, in 2013 and 2014 (iRunFar).

In 2014 he paced a friend at the Leadville 100. That was the end of triathlon.

“I fell in love with the sport as we were climbing up the backside of Hope Pass.”— Coree Woltering, to Pandora Outfitters

The wins came fast. Tunnel Hill 50 in 2015 and again in 2016, the second time in 5:30:15. A string of 50K wins across the Midwest. Second at American River 50 in 2018, then 25th at Western States that June in 19:31:50 (results).

02 — The Ice Age Trail

21 days, 13 hours, 35 minutes.

June 2020. Races were canceled everywhere. Coree started at the west end of Wisconsin's Ice Age Trail on June 1 and ran east, 1,147 miles across the state, day after day.

Day two, he came out of the woods with 30 or 40 ticks on him. An Instagram follower suggested wrapping duct tape around his ankles, sticky side out. It worked. None of them made it past his ankles (Run Spirited).

To get the record he had to cover the final 157 miles in under 40 hours. He did. He finished in 21 days, 13 hours, 35 minutes, the fastest supported time ever on the trail. He beat the overall record by nearly five hours and the previous men's record by about 17 (iRunFar).

  • Distance1,147 miles
  • DirectionWest to east
  • Time21d 13h 35m · supported
  • Final push157 miles in under 40 hours
  • Raised~$33K for Feeding America

That same pandemic summer he ran every street in his hometown of Ottawa to raise money for small businesses and frontline workers (GearJunkie).

03 — The Poster

Someone who looks like me.

Coree has spent years pushing to make ultrarunning look more like the people who could be running it. He advocates for LGBTQ+ runners and for getting more people of color into the outdoors. He raced Eco-Challenge Fiji with Team Onyx, billed as the first all-Black team in expedition racing (GearJunkie).

“I want there to be someone who looks like me on a poster that others can look up to.”— Coree Woltering, to iRunFar

He's talked openly about the ugly messages that come with being visible. His take: he'd rather they come at him than at someone new to the sport who might quit over it (Run Spirited).

He's open about his sobriety, too. Same idea: be the person someone else can see and recognize.

He's also pushed brands to keep showing up after the trend passes. Consistent, diverse marketing, not a one-season campaign (iRunFar).

04 — The Range

Hawaii to the desert.

After the Ice Age Trail, Coree kept widening the map: HURT in Hawaii, Kullamannen in Sweden, back to Western States, then the 200s.

  • Western States 1002018 · 25th · 19:31:50
  • Ice Age Trail FKT2020 · 21d 13h 35m
  • Kullamannen by UTMB 100K2022 · 11th
  • HURT 1002023 · 12th · 29:00:57
  • Western States 1002023 · 22:42:09
  • Pine Mountain 402023 · 1st · 7:14:15
  • Stillhouse 100K2024 · 1st · 11:54:16
  • Southern States 2002025 · 2nd overall · 64:40:45
  • Cocodona 2502025 · 40th · 94:04:52

Second overall at a 200-miler, then Cocodona six weeks later. Same spring.

05 — Maine

No treadmill. No excuses.

Coree trains year-round in Maine and doesn't own a treadmill. Whatever the weather does, he runs in it. His ideal run is northern Maine or Quebec in early October, and it ends with a cup of coffee (Smartwool). He takes the coffee as seriously as the miles.

The camera comes along too. Coree is a phenomenal wildlife photographer, and the woods he trains in are where he shoots.

Bobcat, photographed by Coree Woltering
// Bobcat · Photo: Coree Woltering

He's coming back from injury right now, and his approach is simple: “do what you can, when you can, no stress.”

  • Running sinceAge 7
  • Training baseMaine, year-round
  • TreadmillNone
  • Post-runCoffee, always
  • Off the trailWildlife photography
“You just have to show up.”— Coree Woltering, to Smartwool
06 — The Protocol

Better days are ahead.

Coree's mental game is built for the long stuff. On hard days he keeps going because he believes better days are coming, on the trail and off it. He's also a coach himself, and his advice for new runners is the same thing he does on a 1,147-mile trail: start small, and focus on the next short stretch of effort (GearJunkie).

  • The ruleOne day at a time
  • Hard daysBetter ones are coming
  • Bad daysAdjust or skip, no guilt
  • For beginnersStart with 20 minutes
“36-year-old Coree is a much different athlete than 7-year-old Coree.”— Coree Woltering, to Smartwool

Three weeks of friction.

A race ends. A trail like the Ice Age keeps going, day after day, through heat, rain, and wet socks that never dry. Hot spots don't get a chance to heal. They just get worse every morning you start again.

Go Stick
Go Stick
$9.99
Everyday carry. Start here.
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Endurance Tin
Endurance Tin
$15.99
The crew-bin workhorse.
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Go Pouch
Go Pouch
$2.99
Pocket-size for point to point.
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08 — Next

Rebuilding. On his terms.

Coree is working his way back from injury in Maine, one run at a time. Do what you can, when you can, no stress. If the last decade is any guide, the next big thing will be long.

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// Embrace the friction. // FRXN // Inner Circle // File 05