When 75-year-old Michael Koppy crossed the finish line of the 2026 Arrowhead 135 Mile on January 28 with 59:30:00 on the clock, he became the oldest ever finisher of the difficult winter race in northern Minnesota. The event, held entirely on snow on the Arrowhead State Trail, often sees temperatures that dip well below zero degrees Fahrenheit and high attrition rates, and this year was no exception, with less than half of the runners finishing the race.
Michael Koppy (center) at the finish of the 2026 Arrowhead 135 Mile with two race volunteers. Photo courtesy of Michael Koppy.
The route, which traverses 135 miles of groomed multi-use winter trails, starts in International Falls, Minnesota, a city nicknamed the “Icebox of the Nation,” and finishes in Tower. The race is notorious for its frigid temperatures, and this year, only 32 of the initial 70 runners finished. The race also has a ski and bike category, and all competitors must carry a full complement of survival gear, including a -20-degree Fahrenheit sleeping bag, a bivvy or tent, eight ounces of fuel, a stove, and a pot. Koppy, as well as most of the other runners, carried their gear in a tow-behind sled. Racers must carry a whistle around their neck to call for help if needed, with the warning that their mouths could become too numb to yell.
This year, conditions were — as expected — cold. On the International Falls start line on January 26 at 7 a.m., the temperature hovered around -2 degrees Fahrenheit. Over the next 135 miles and nearly two-and-a-half days, Koppy traversed the wide and well-groomed multi-use trail with about 6,500 feet of elevation gain. Most of the hills are in the middle section, with a final climb up Wakemup Hill about 26 miles from the finish.
Michael Koppy (right) during the 2026 Arrowhead 135 Mile. Photo courtesy of Michael Koppy.
Koppy is no stranger to the event. He started the race in 2025 — vying for the title of the oldest person to finish the run — but unfortunately had to drop just six miles from the finish. He says that after a mishap with some caffeine pills and sprinting for 15 miles, “I just collapsed. I was so spent. The medics came and got me. I couldn’t get up. They had to lift me up.” While he still had seven hours to finish those final six miles, he says, “I couldn’t even walk.” This year, he came back with a different but similar goal. Had Koppy finished last year, he’d have simply been the oldest person to finish the run. He proudly states, “This year, I was the oldest person to finish any of the categories.”
The race has a 60-hour cut-off time. Despite beginning to think he wasn’t going to make it as the clock started to count down, Koppy finished by Lake Vermilion in Tower with 30 minutes to spare. He says, “When I came into the hospitality room, everybody stood and cheered. It was pretty great.”
Koppy is no stranger to ultramarathons, and his prolific list of achievements includes finishes at the 2024 Cocodona 250 Mile, 2022 Bigfoot 200 Mile, 2021 Tunnel Hill 100 Mile, 2020 Bandera 100k, 2019 Tahoe 200 Mile, and 2017 Moab 240 Mile. He also holds the supported fastest known time on the 310-mile Superior Hiking Trail in Minnesota, a record he set in 2020 at age 69. He also started the 2025 Western States 100, aiming to become the oldest finisher. Sadly, he had to drop at the Robinson Flats aid station, 30 miles into the race, after narrowly missing the cut-off time.
Michael Koppy pulling his sled through the night at the 2026 Arrowhead 135 Mile. Photo courtesy of Michael Koppy.
This year, Koppy is doing the Bighorn 100 Mile in Wyoming — a qualifier for Western States — hoping to return to the California race for redemption in the future. He’s also doing the Summit 200 Mile in Colorado and hoping to take his number of 200 milers to a nice round 10.
Koppy says it’s too soon to say for sure, but he would also like to return to Arrowhead 135 to compete in the bike and ski categories, continuing to make a solid declaration that age is not a barrier to incredible feats of endurance.
