Just dandy on the Gandy

It’s hard not to feel dandy when you’re trotting down a state trail called the Gandy Dancer on a sunny fall morning. The trail runs 98 miles through Minnesota and Wisconsin, and passes just a few miles west of Loveless.

Like so many of the great trails in this part of the country, the Gandy Dancer is built on a former railroad corridor. Its colorful name comes from the crews who laid the railroad tracks using tools made by the Gandy Tool Co., headquartered in Chicago. The term “gandy dancer” is said to be slang for the men who worked the tracks, swinging their tools and moving their feet in harmony, no doubt as a foreman looked on.

If you’re on the Gandy Dancer, it’s an even better bet if you’re in Luck. The town of, that is. A few weeks back, Chris and I partook in the first annual Gandy Dancer Marathon in Luck, Wis., a benefit for the town's fire department and qualifier for the Boston Marathon.

We're no marathoners, mind you, unless you count the metaphorical one we're on as we bring some love 2 Loveless. No, we entered the 5K. I trotted and Chris sprinted, and he came  home with a coffee mug trophy for finishing runner-up in his age group.

He finished No. 2, but he's my No. 1.

Pre-race fuel stop gave Chris the winning edge. Go Gators.

Workmates with a nearby cabin ran the half marathon. Animals