Grand Traverse - Run & Bike (completing the triple crown)

Thanks you Hannes and Marin for letting me stay at your place the night before the run, and in your van with you the night before the bike.  Couldn't have pulled off this weekend without you!

Thank you Trey Barnes for hooking me up with a place to park the van Saturday night!

Thank you Erik Schulte for talking me into doing the Grand Traverse Ski race with you in March, which led to me doing the triple crown.

 Run on Saturday - Crested Butte to Aspen

pc: Petar Dopchev

This is a very, very runnable course.  I wanted to finish strong, so I settled into a comfortable pace early on.  I was back in 8th on the climb up to Star Pass and was able to sneak my way onto the podium. 

Bike on Sunday - Aspen to Crested Butte

pc: Petar Dopchev

My goal for the MTB race was to survive the 40 mile ride without getting hurt.  I felt good on the climbs, and extremely slow descending.  I got passed many, many times going downhill and ended up placing 42nd/114.  I need to learn how to ride downhill.

Turns out, this wasn't a competitive year for the duathlon.  I ended up winning the damn thang.  Congrats to Billy Laird for winning the triple crown. 

Run Podium: Sean Van Horn, Simi Hamilton, myself.

Duathlon Podium: Billy Laird, myself, Nathan Boyer-Rechlin

Next up: The Bear 100.  I'm hoping this GT weekend three weeks out from a hundred mile running race is well timed?  Time will tell.

Tahoe Rim Trail 100 - Race Report

The Tahoe Rim Trail Runs (55k, 50M & 100M) are extremely well run and have a great vibe.  Race Director, George Ruiz, can't be a nicer person and it's easy to see that he's a thoughtful considerable person that I am glad I supported by running his race.  The trails couldn't have been marked any better, the aid stations were perfect and and scenery was serene.  I highly recommend running one of these races.

Anyone who's been to Tahoe lately knows that it's kinda nuts when it comes to traffic.  It was convenient being able to hop on a bus that shuttled me from my hotel in Carson City up to the start at Spooner Lake.  The 3am pick up time was a tad early though.

"And I said baby, it's 3am I must be lonely."

I gulped down a yummy Fudge Brownie VFuel gel and we were off headlights ablaze at 5am.  I was determined to go out easy and keep my heart rate down this race.  I always want to do this, but over the last nine years any time the gun goes off I wanna race!  And I would always go out too fast.  I was able to take it easy for the first 30 or so.  I was pleasantly surprised to see an old friend, Elan, from SoCal and we shared some dawn miles.

photo by Facchino Photography

As the sky lit up we were treated to running on buttery single-track through dense pine forests and on ridges that offered up views for days.

By mile 18 the Tunnel Creek aid station volunteer informed me that I was in 10th place.  Perfect.  I continued to cruise at a comfortable pace.  Leaving the Diamond Peak ski resort and aid station it started to warm up and I started to reel people in.  I was surprised to catch Bob Shebest as he has the extremely stout course record on this course and he is a 100 mile machine.

Us 100 mile racers run the 50 mile course twice.  When I reached the 50 mile aid station near the start I couldn't really tell what place I was in, since we were sharing the trail with runners racing the other distances.   My dad was crewing and informed me that I was in 2nd place and the leader, Ben Tedore, left 25 minutes ago.  I got a little too excited with this news and went out a little too fast in the afternoon heat.

I caught Ben and continued to run a little too fast, I wanted to build a lead after all.  I puked around mile 75, the heat was getting to me as I descended down to Diamond Peak for the 2nd time.  I was greeted by my Dad and brother again and pacer extraordenaire, Mike Chamoun.  I almost passed out sitting at a table, trying to eat and drink a bit.  After a couple minutes I realized I wasn't getting any better, but Chamoun said we were going anyway and I didn't argue as we started up the 2,000' climb in 2 miles.

Sunsetting on Tahoe
photo by Chamoun

It started to cool down a bit and I felt a little better, so I tried to push a bit.  My stomach didn't like that idea.

photo by Chamoun

All I could keep down from mile 80 to the finish was diluted coke, but it gave me enough energy to stay upright and shuffle my was to the finish and not get caught by another runner.

as per usual, Mike lifted my spirits and paced me to another memorable 100 mile finish (in 19:56)

Huge thanks to my parents and brother for coming out to hang out with my daughter, Penny, while I raced and for crewing me!  Thanks for driving up to pace me again Mike, it's always a treat to have you there prodding me on with your contagious optimism.

I wore a pair of Drymax Lite Trail Running socks and they held up well through the dust, dirt, water crossings and heat, like they always do.

River of No Return 108k - Race Report

The whole event and weekend was an awesome experience.  My wife, daughter and dog drove up and met my parents at the Challis Hotsprings Campground.  My good old running friend from Oregon, Eric, whom I haven’t seen in too long, was there with his wife, daughters and parents as well.  The weather was perfect and Elissa and I both got to race due to my generous parents coming out to see us and watch Penny and Bo while we ran, and crew me for 12+ hours.  The highlight of my race was coming into Bayhorse Lake aid station with my three year old, Penny, running in beside me for 100 yards or so.

Eric and I drove to the 5am start and we took off with the lead runners in the dim glow of morning.  A group of five or so of us ran together into the first aid station at mile 16.  A mile into the climb out of the aid station I passed Luke Garten, and took the lead.  I kept the lead for the next 37 miles, running all by myself.  I did a good job of not pushing it and just keeping it in cruise control.  Little did I know that Luke was dealing with cramping and this was holding him back most of this time.  My plan was to take it relatively easy early on and have enough gas in the tank to charge hard up the last climb starting at mile 50.  I climbed well the first mile or two up this seven-mile climb, only to get nauseous and light headed and I succumbed to a lot of hiking and slowing way down.  I had been seeing elk tracks and bear prints in the mud all day and suddenly I heard foot-prints behind me, I jumped, turned around and saw Luke had caught me here at mile 54.  I stuck with him the next three miles up to the aid station.  His dad was at the aid station and asked, “are you guys going to finish together?”  I replied, “Hell no!... but I’m not sure who’s going to win.”  

From here it was a 14-mile descent to the finish.  I frantically rushed through the aid station and took off sprinting down the rocky dirt road.  Luke was maybe a minute back.  We’re both better at running downhill than up and I thought we were in for an awesome battle to the finish.  Then I had to stop and puke for a while.  Luke blazed past, not to be seen again until the grassy finish at the Challis Park.  I ran down to the next aid and got some water, 5 miles from the finish, tried to put down a gel but immediately puked it up.  I shuffled down into town, glad to not have anyone else pass me.  It was a relief to cross the finish line (in 12:36), be with my family and congratulate Luke on his well-deserved win only 5 minutes back of the course record.  I’m sure he would have smoked me by more than he did, if it weren’t for his miles of cramping early on.  We both grew up in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains of Northern California.  We raced the Bishop High Sierra 100k together five years ago and finished first and second in that race is well.  I got the better of him back then, but he dominated up here in Idaho.  Maybe we'll run a rematch race in 5 years?

Luke, myself, Ben Bucklin (last year's 108k champ.)

I highly recommend the River of No Return Endurance Runs.  It was the best-marked course I have ever run.  The aid stations were all well stocked and super helpful.  The scenery was beautiful.  The food and beverages at the finish were delicious and plentiful.  It was challenging and hopefully good preparation for my upcoming 100 mile race, more so than running a 100k race that would have taken me 9 hours to finish.  In addition to the 108K course that I ran, my wife ran the 54k race and they have a 29k option as well.  Thank you Paul Lind and family for putting on such a well run event!  Congratulations to Elissa for her 4th place finish in the 54k and to our friend Darla Askew for winning the 108k!  

Ouray 50 Mile Race Report - 2018

Just before the noon start
pc: Linda Hirt

The Ouray 50 Mile race was a great experience.   Early on in the race it hailed pretty steadily, covering the ground in a slick icy white layer.  There was also some good lightening and thunder, and hours of rain throughout the race. 

Before the race I thought there were four contenders for the win:  Avery Collins, Nico Barraza, Mike Cassidy, and myself.  Like old Jon Clark says, ultra-running is a race of attrition.  In the end Avery and Nico ended up dropping and I snuck in a W with a time of 14:07, shaving a couple minutes off the old course record.  My buddy, Mike finished second which I was thrilled about.  He and I put in a couple monster days in these mountains prior to race day.  I knew he was fit as a fiddle and he took care of bidness.  Last year's Ouray 100 female champion, Melissa Beaury, was 3rd overall this year in the 50 miler, setting a new course record and Alissa St. Laurent was 4th overall, both proving their big mountain aptitude in this race that had a 51% finishing rate... for a 50 miler. 

Penny greeting me at the Crystal Lake Aid Station - Mile 16
pc: Meghan Hicks

The weather was moody and fickle but it never really got that cold - perfect running weather.  The cool temps kept my stomach happy.  I drank tons of VFuel Ginger Twist drink and downed VFuel gels about every 20-30 minutes.  I was hungry and tried to keep up with the calories.  This all worked well until I ate too much real food at an aid station, and left with diluted red bull in my water bottle for the last section.  It was late, I thought the red bull would help keep me awake.  Unfortunately, it just made me puke and it turned the last 10 miles of the race into a bit of a death march up Bridge of Heaven, then a shuffle down.

The glorious Hayden Trail.  Red No. 1 and Storm Peak in the background.
pc: Howie Stern

I said it last year when I ran the Ouray 100 and I'll say it again this year, I highly recommend these races.  They are low key events on terrain that's tough and gorgeous.  Before I ever ran one of these races I was turned off by all the out and backs.  But when you're hiking slowly up the steep out, then bombing down the breakneck descent back, it is like you're running on two entirely different trails.  They out and backs also allow you to see more smiling/delirious faces in the race, which is more fun than just running by yourself for hours like we sometimes do in ultras.

Congratulations to my friend, Vale Hirt, for finishing the Ouray 100!  She unsuccessfully toed the line last year, and managed to come back and finish the beast this year.  Something only 38% of the starters can say.  She looked strong and smooth all day out there.  I'm excited to watch her running continue to progress and my fingers are crossed for you in the Hardrock lottery next year.

Wahoo!

Other gear:

My Julbo sunglasses with photochromic lenses functioned perfectly as the lighting fluctuated constantly during the daytime, from cloudy to sunny, dense forest to bright alpine tundra.

My Drymax Jester socks kept my feet happy all day.  No blisters after 14+ hours in the rain on steep rocky trails.

San Juan Solstice 50 Miler - Race Report 2018

Leading up to the race I was cautiously optimistic about my level of fitness.  I was hoping to earn a spot on the podium, but knew that a handful of guys running the race were easily capable of the same.

5 AM came and we were off through town, along a couple miles of dirt road to the Alpine Gulch and the long slow climb up it.  We approached tree line and running into the first aid station, I frantically demanded grape soda or horchata, a volunteer cackled, gave me high five and bidded me adieu.  Dustin Simoens (2016 SJS champ) led our four pack which also included another guy from Gunny, Jesse Rickert (multiple top 3 finishes here), myself and Tyler Fox, whom was sporting his wife's Hawaiian shirt (for reals).  We were all giddy as we traversed alpine ridges and bowls, pointing out peaks, talking about skiing, animals, snow, flowers, fires and all things mountain.  Tyler and I pulled ahead a little and we cruised back into the trees, eventually arriving at the Williams Creek aid station (mile 16ish).  

Before I knew it Dustin had caught back up and the three of us busted out our hike/run/hike skills on the 8 mile climb up to the Continental Divide.  Half way up we hit the Carson aid station and were joined by Jackson Brill (2018 Dirty 30 champ) and Carlos Ruibal (2nd place at SJS 2017).  For the rest of the race, another 28 miles, we were almost always within site of each other.  How cool is that?  Whereas in some ultras, you find yourself all by yourself for hours, which equates to horrible company when it's yours truly, instead, we all got to feed off the energy of the others and chat, share the experience of running along this 10 mile alpine section of the Continental Divide, soaking up the vast vistas, bugling at bull elk as then ran over the pass in front of us, and peering across the valley at the mountain we ran down 15 miles ago.

By mile 35ish Tyler had pulled away a tad off the front, I couldn't see him any more, I did still have Jackson in my sights 1 minute in front of me.  I couldn't drop Carlos behind me, but Dustin was just far enough behind him to be out of sight now.  We finally got to the steep descent which leads into the Slumgullion Earth Flow and its namesake aid station.  I run better downhill than I do on flats or uphill, so I knew it was now or never.  I caught Jackson at mile 37 and made sure to run hard for awhile to try and get out of his site as we were now winding down a jeep road through a forest of thick aspen and pine that could keep me out of his sight.  I reached the aid station at mile 40 in 2nd place, was cheered on and helped out by my daughter, Penny and wife, Elissa, whom informed me that Tyler left, "seconds ago."

I hurried out of the aid, crossed the highway, scurried over the earth flow and set off in pursuit of Tyler.  It took a couple miles but he came into view half way up the 2 mile long, final climb of the race at mile 42.  He was swiftly clickity-clacking uphill with his wizard sticks.  I was attempting to run, but couldn't muster out more than a little shuffle as I slowly passed him on the trail overgrown by young quakies.  I didn't look back much, but learned after the race that Jackson was behind us on this climb and could see Tyler and I right in front of him and Carlos just behind.  A genuine barn burner.

I hammered the descents but felt cramps creeping into my muscles anytime the trail flattened out, ruh-roh.  I took an electrolyte pill but considering all the recent studies revolving around cramping and it not being an electrolyte issue, but rather a neuromuscular issue that seems to be alleviated by ingesting bitter things like mustard or pickle juice I grabbed the bitterest thing in front of me and started chewing, mmm... pine needles.  Seemed to work!  I also sucked some sweat of my arm hair for good measure.

Rolling into the final aid station, Vickers, I filled my bottle and skedaddled.  30 seconds later I hear the volunteers cheering for Tyler as he arrived, ahhhh!  Lucky for me, the next two and a half miles drop 2,000' so I let my quads do their thing and carry me down into town.  The last mile and a half to the finish line runs on the mostly dirt roads through town and it's all flat.  Felt like I was shuffling in quicksand and had to tone it way down to keep my muscles from seizing up.  After looking back 100 times for Tyler I finally arrived back to where we began the race earlier today.  Penny ran down the finish line chute with we me and we completed the loop course in 8:33.  Tyler finished 2 minutes later, and Jackson about 7 minutes behind him and Carlos only 2 minutes further back.

Thanks to the Race Director, Jerry, and all the volunteers for a stellar event!  Congrats to my buddy, Cory Meaker on his first 50 miler, way to get it done!  

Next up: Ouray 50 Mile in late July


SPONSOR SHOUT OUTS:

Nutrition was solid all race, drinking bottles of VFuel's Ginger Twist drink and throwing down Raspberry Lemonade and Salted Caramel Apple VFuel gels kept my energy levels up and nausea didn't rear its ugly head.

My Julbo sunglasses with photochromic lenses adjusted to the varying levels of brightness and protected my eyes on the windy divide.  And they are so comfy I totally forgot they were on.

I didn't have any blisters or hot spots after running 50 miles, including half a dozen creek crossings early on thanks to my Drymax Socks.

Arches 50k.... 'er 50 mile.

With no winter in sight I couldn't ski much!  My mental health suffering immensely without an endurance outlet, I asked my friends Cory and Graham if there was any race we could run soon.  Cory offered up the Arches Ultra near Moab, UT.  Perfect I thought, I can run the 50k distance, and started to train.  This wouldn't require as much mileage as training for the 50 mile distance and long training runs can be trick up here in the mountains come January.

Fast forward a couple months and the three of us were cruising over to Moab in my Subaru the day before the race.

The temperatures were a bit chilly at the start and warmed up to sunny 40F's during the race.  Perfect running weather.  Kyle Pieatari, Andrew Vargo and I pulled ahead in the 50k and helped guide each other through the circuitous slick rock sections of the course.  I must say, it was market extremely well, especially considering the difficult nature of marking typical Moab terrain with all the washes, trails, roads, slick rock, etc.  Kyle and I pulled ahead slightly by mile 23 and Kyle started to gap me shortly after.  Coming into the mile 26 aid station it looked as if I could finish 50k in about 3:40, not quite a PR, but close and I felt like I was running well for a January 50k.  Thought I had 5 miles left of pushing to the finish... only to be told by aid station volunteers that we went 9 miles off the 50k course.

Kyle Pieatari, esquire, spoke with the volunteer, who radioed the RD Justin Ricks and we were given two options: run 9 miles back to get back onto the 50k course, or continue on the 50M course for a chip time.  We gladly continued on our merry way on the 50 mile course.  I immediately slowed down by 3 minutes per mile, realizing that I had not trained for running 50 miles, nor had I paced myself for 50 miles.  Kyle wasn't ready for 50 miles either, but his legs didn't seem to mind as he quickly gapped me even further.  I know his race at Western States is quite a ways off, but I expect a solid performance from him there, podiumish?  He has two top ten finishes there so far.

I couldn't for the life of me remember any possible place where we missed the turn.  Turns out an aid station volunteer accidentally sent us the wrong direction out of the previous aid station.  I probably would have been more upset if I had another race coming up soon, but I didn't.  Nothing to save my legs for so instead of hammering for 5 more miles to the finish I shuffled for another 24.  I ran a 7:19, finishing with the 3rd fastest 50 mile time, but I was not the 3rd 50 mile finisher as the 50 mile racers started an hour and a half before us 50k runners.

Graham took 9th overall in the 50k and Cory gutted out a cramp ridden race to finish solidly (they were sent the correct direction out of the aid station to stay on the 50k course).  While Cory and I didn't really have the races we expected, we all had a good time on our weekend trip to Moab and it was a good first step for San Juan Solstice training as we're all signed up to run that magic loop in June.

Sponsor shout outs:

VFuel:  I started of the race with a gel mixed into my little water bottle, and popped a gel every 30 minutes, until I ran out.  At which point I grazed at aid stations.  My stomach was solid all day.

Drymax:  My Speedgoat socks were perfect.  Just thick enough to keep my toes warm in the early morning and no blisters or hot spots at all.  I have been using this model of socks for years and have absolutely no reason to ever change.

Julbo:  The Aerolite's were super comfy and the photochromic lenses adjusted well from dim morning light to bright reflection off the slick rock.

2017 Ouray 100 - Race Report

The top of our first climb into Silver Basin.

I don’t seem to like running more than one hundred mile race per year.  While I’m sure I could finish more than one in a calendar year, it is hard, maybe even impossible to get two top-notch performances out of a body at that distance.  The only problem with this is that after a years time the lessons you learned from the race tend to fade from memory.  But this year I dropped at Hardrock three weeks before racing the Ouray 100.  While I wish I could have finished Hardrock (race report here) and Ouray, getting significant 100 mile experience weeks before Ouray without killing my body by running the whole 100 miles at Hardrock ended up working well for me. 

Following Dan Metzger down from Ft. Peabody, which is directly above Imogene Pass.  Stormsa brew'n.

I was able to stay calm during the early miles of Ouray.  I made sure to take in sufficient calories and relaxed at aid stations a couple times early in the race to keep my mind from going into a frantic race mode.   I enjoyed the insane views.  I even brought my phone to take a picture at the top of each of the 14 climbs along the course.  I saw bears, deer, an eagle and was buzzed by a bat in the perimeter trail tunnel.  In true San Juan fashion, we were dealt sunny skies, rain, hail, thunder and rainbows.

After hours of rain, hail and thunder, the clouds broke at the top of Corkscrew Gulch.

With 41,000’ of climbing and 41,000’ of descending over 102 miles, there wasn’t a whole bunch of runnable terrain.  I hiked up 99% of anything uphill and shuffled slowly down steep, wet, rocky trails, frequently using my poles during the majority of the descents.

 

Dinosaur tracks at the top of the Silvershield Trail.

Thanks to my wife, Elissa, for the help at aid stations, and to all the helpful aid station volunteers, including last year’s winner, Avery Collins.  Jeason and Annie Murphy took good care of me the Ironton aid station, as did Megan Hicks at the Crystal Lake aid station.   Kim Wrinkle was out there encouraging all of us at multiple aid stations, sneaking in some good photos.  I would also like to thank the RD, Charles Johnston, for not having the sense to put on an easier race.  Approximately 30% of the starters finished this year, which is a huge increase from last year’s numbers.  He has an appreciation for accomplishing things that are difficult.  If you ever peruse his Facebook feed you’ll see pictures of  his projects which consist of things like broken down motorized equipment and non-functional musical instruments – items a lot of people, myself included,  steer clear of.  But Charles appreciates uneasy challenges, true challenges, ones you take on without knowing whether or not you can complete it, and he offers up a grand test with this race.  Thanks Charles.

Sun setting on the Reds.  Photo taken halfway up to Richmond Pass.

Congratulations to everyone who dared to start this difficult race and kudos to the 20 finishers (http://www.ouray100.com/tracking).  It was inspiring to see the first female finisher (ever) of this race, Melissa Beaury, move well all day and night, and part of the next day to finish 5^th overall.  Thanks to Matt Smith (2^nd place) and Kevin Sturmer (3^rd place) for pushing me throughout the race.

Crossing the finish line with Penny.
pc: Kim Wrinkle

After failing to tough out Hardrock, I wore these reminders of a couple brave young men that I was fortunate enough to meet through working as an RN.  What they've been through is way tougher than anything I'll have to endure, especially silly little races.  Seeing these bands throughout the race helped me stay strong and reminded me of a couple remarkable families.

Sponsor Shout Outs:

Julbo:  My Aerolite’s are the most comfortable glasses I’ve owned to date.  The photochromic lenses adjusted perfectly all day through sunshine and dark skies. 

VFuel:  I drank a lot of Black Cherry Cola drink mix early in the race and put down a lot of Peach Cobbler Gels all the way to the end of the race.  Those, with a little real food mixed in from aid stations, kept my stomach super happy for 30+ hours.  Didn’t get nauseous once!

Drymax Socks:  I started the race off in the Lite Trail Running socks.  After hours of rain and soaked feet, I changed into a dry pair of Lite Trail Running socks at mile 42.  My new socks were soaked again before too long, but regardless, they worked perfectly.  No blisters after 30+ hours on the trails, with wet feet for the majority of the race.

2017 Hardrock 100 - Race Report

Hardrock, soft mind.

My training leading up to the event seemed pretty solid.  I spent a good amount of time at higher elevations, lots of steep miles while running and while hiking with my daughter Penny on my back.

Leading up to the race was different this year.  I wasn’t hanging out in Silverton for a couple weeks leading up to race day, which was kind of nice.  I missed seeing a bunch of friends like I have the previous two times I’ve run this race, when I did stay in Silverton prior to race day.  Now I live in Ouray, one mile from the aid station at mile 56 of the counter-clockwise course.  I didn’t have to take weeks off of work to head out and acclimate.  My friends and family came to support me, and we got to hang out in my house.  This was nice and mellow compared to the buzz in Silverton leading up to race day.

The race started and everything seemed to be happening as expected.  Then G.I. distress reared its ugly head.  I felt okay leaving Grouse Gulch with my pacer, Graham, ran most of the first half of the climb, then felt horrible for the second half of the climb, feeling dizzy and tired.  I puked at Engineer Pass and slowly ran down to Ouray. 

Not tough enough.  Chamoun helping me out at the Ouray aid station.
pc: Erik Schulte

I needed to sit and eat a bit, regroup.  Suddenly I got really cold even though it wasn’t cold out.  I laid on a cot, was covered by a couple sleeping bags, but kept shivering for quite a while and was breathing fast.  My blood pressure was taken and it was a bit low.  Eventually I was able to eat and put down four bowls of chicken noodle soup.  In hindsight I didn’t spend much time at aid stations before Ouray, and probably wasn’t taking in enough calories up until this point.  Most of the calories I did take in were from drinking Tailwind from aid stations.  This worked well for a while, but I think 12 hours of drinking sweet liquid put my stomach over the edge.

After hours of feeling like crap on the course, then lying in the aid station for an hour and a half or so, my mind became progressively pessimistic.  I began to justify dropping:   I really don’t think I could make it up to Virginius Pass (I bet I could have), I don’t want my wife and friends to drive to Telluride and be stuck there for hours waiting for me since I would obviously be moving at a snails pace (they kept telling me not to worry about that), if I dropped I could be in bed in minutes and I would get to wake up with my wife, daughter, friends and parents at my house, and spend the next day with them. 

My wife talked me into walking out of the aid station to see if I would snap out of it.  My pacer, Erik, and I trotted up Camp Bird Rd.  I was feeling a lot better than when I arrived at the aid station.  I was much more clear-headed.  When we’d stop to chat with runners passing me I would unintentionally start falling over a bit and catch myself with my trekking poles.  I used that as another excuse to drop.  So after a couple miles of whining up the road I finally threw in the towel and turned around. 

The other two years I ran Hardrock I also went through times of feeling absolutely horrible, and really thinking that I there was no way I could make it, but somehow I did.  That’s what Hardrock is all about.  Pushing through the misery and surprising yourself by being tougher than you thought you were, doing more than you thought you could.  This year, with my warm and comfy bed a mile away, I dropped.  Mentally, I couldn’t rationalize pushing through misery for another 20 hours or so.  Looking back I wish I would have.

                                                            

I had the good fortune of being selected to run the race, back in December of last year, and not a day had passed that I hadn’t thought of Hardrock.  I trained 7 days a week most weeks.  Adopted a new diet, read a book and many articles on training.  Thousands of people want to run this race every year, I was lucky enough to be selected in the lottery, but I blew it – mostly by not soldiering on.

Fortunately, I can take the fresh sting of this embarrassing situation and try and learn from it, by racing the Ouray 100 in 17 days.  But first, I get to crew and pace Elissa at the High Lonesome 100 in the Sawatch Mountains, wahoo!