Thru Endurance We Conquer!

 Grand Mesa Ultras. Last year I jumped into the 30k for fun a few weeks after Silverheels and had a great time. This year, I decided to bump up in distance to the 50 miler and use the race as my final long effort before the Tabeguache. That was the plan anyway. But how frequently do things really go to plan? Not this time! Watching the weather the week of the race was nerve wracking to say the least. July had been a very active monsoon month, with drench downpours and flash floods. Race kept flipping between nice and more of the same. With fingers crossed for nice, I packed (or so I thought) for more of the same. Besides, the race was at over 10,000’ - even with nice weather, it could be cold up there. Turns out my packing was a little scattered and there were plenty of things that I forgot to bring that could have been useful. We took the scenic route up - Land’s End Road to the edge of the mesa. And then we meandered around the mess for a bit, exploring. Might as well! The sun wa...

 The first “real” race of the season and the only really runnable race planned. That meant a double whammy of having to blow out the cobwebs of not racing in months and having to focus on being able to run hard for 5+ hours. No power hiking - just running. Times were fast last year and I wasn’t feeling like I was capable of running those kind of paces. Add in Sasha’s recent dental work and that she wasn’t really eating much yet and I wasn’t very focused going into the race. I definitely had some imposture syndrome going on - as well as a decent bit of self doubt. I hadn’t run that fast in many months. It was also my first time doing a big race in years. Or at least a big race that didn’t have wave starts!  Running into the unknown - not sure of what the miles ahead would bring Photo: Eszter H I’d done plenty of recon on the course, running most of it over the course a few long runs. That didn’t mean I was confident in my ability to actually run fast. On my first run, I’d taken...

 Right after my eye surgery, I'd thought I would use my rollover credits for the 50 mile at the new Kessel Run Ultra that Mad Moose Events was hosting out at the North Fruita Desert. Seemed like a good plan - roll from the Hanging Flume 50k right into the 50 mile training. But when I was plotting out the training plan for that I realized how silly it would be. I might have the fitness in my legs for two back to back hard efforts, but I didn’t have the recovery time I though I would need after Hanging Flume. So that plan was nixed and I decided to use my credit for Bears Ears in 2022. I still wanted to be involved in the race though, and I had the weekend off… A quick message to Denise - do you still need sweep help for the race? The answer was a quick YES! And there I was. I love sweep! It’s a long day some times, but so much fun and so rewarding. The original plan was that I would run out to where the 50m/60k split from the 20 mile course and then sweep from there to the Sarlacc s...

 It's easy to declare to the world that you want to try a new route on a long trail. It's another thing to actually set all the pieces in motion for that run. There's a lot more then just heading to the trail head, pressing start on the watch and running. Especially for a route that has not been established yet. That's one of the things that's drawing me in instead of tackling an existing long route. The planning and preparation component of the attempt are what makes it fun. Every day you have something new to look forward to. Every map is a new bit of knowledge to add to the data base. With that said, I don't think I'll be ready to take on the trail next year. That was my original hope - that I would run Silverheels this year (and hopefully finish!) and then be able to turn my attention to the trail so I would be able to take it on in 2022. But I don't think it's realistic. There's far too much that we don't know. I know the start and the f...

After moving to Grand Junction, doing the entire Triple Crown of Moab made perfect sense. Drive 5 hours total, I race, Nick gets to ride his bike and it's a fast, fun weekend trip - unlike from Colorado Springs. It's three of Mad Moose Events' Moab races - Dead Horse Ultras, Arches Ultra, Red Hot and finally the Behind the Rock Ultras. For the ultra series it's two 50ks and one 50 miler - doesn't matter which of the races you chose for the different distances. You can do two of the first three, but everyone has to finish with Behind the Rocks. Of course, I had to go and make things difficult with my version of the Triple Crown.  Instead of being smart about it and picking the fastest race for the 50 mile, I went off "which race will have trails I don't want to ride?" as my criteria for picking my longest race. Makes perfect sense to me! But maybe not the smartest for the racing aspect of the series.  Dead Horse - this would be one of the 50ks. Why? Bec...

Now that Nick is finally here in Grand Junction, we've been able to do some fun exploring weekends. Lots of miles running and riding. One of the adventures I've been eyeing is the kinda thing that takes those long weekends of learning the trails and roads. With that in mind, there have been more then a few times where Nick has kicked me out of the van and I've run to the final destination. No better way to learn then actually running! The first day was just an out and back while Nick rode with the guys. The first section of trail, and what might be the busiest chunk. My goal was to turn from the Loma Trailhead to the Salt Creek bridge and then back. I wanted about 20 miles and the Koko was the kind of terrain I needed for that day. Lots of runnable miles, but with some good climbing. As expected, it was quiet on Mary's out to Pizza Point. I met a few mountain bikers, but not to many. That stretch was also really fast - after the initial climb, a gradual downhill with ju...

There is something about the Rainbow Trail that just draws me in. In 2018, it was a spur of the moment 50k that found me running under a canopy of gold, among a community of runners that really spurred my rebirth as a runner. In 2019, it was (almost) the culmination of a dream year with all the highs and lows that come with a 100 mile race. This year? Maybe a titch of redemption with a lot of learning involved. Redemption from Silverheels - saying that I could go out and run 60 miles hard and feel good afterwards. Learning is always a given at these events - from all aspects, mental, physical and preparation wise.  There is also something about Music Meadows that calls the wind. All three years it's been windy. This year, the wind kicked up about 1:00, gusting around the parked cars. Guess that good night of sleep before the race was not going to happen! It was a restless night, listening to the wind and wondering if I was really ready for the upcoming miles. Soon enough, it was ti...

The Super Half Marathon is usually my jam on that first Sunday of February. An early season test of fitness, speed and sometimes adversity with the weather conditions! This year was a return to the Game Day 5k - for a variety of reasons. I knew after my crash that I wouldn’t be ready for a half marathon I would be happy with. I also wanted to put my focus on the 6 hour race the following weekend and running the Super Half might have taken a bit too much out of me. And there was this little thing called work! The 5k was a great compromise. I’d be able to work, still run a hard race and support all my friends. But that meant I had to run a 5k! Even before, when I was really fast - the 5k distance was my least favorite. All in from the gun, very little time for strategy and so easy to make a mistake with pacing. And that was when I was healthy! I was definitely regretting my choices when I ran over from work. A 5k without any speed work or training was sounding more and more painful. ...

Three weeks after a 100 mile race, I had no idea what I would feel like going into the final race - Indian Creek 55k. Would I have recovered enough to run happy the entire way? Or would it be a death march from the start, with my legs rebelling against the idea of running? I knew I'd be okay for a few miles and that I even had a little speed left after the prior weekend's Neilson and Fall Series events. But a 3.2 mile race is a far cry from a 35 mile race and I was honestly concerned about how I would handle the distance. So what does any good runner do when faced with a question about how recovered they are? Focus on the costume contest instead of anything else! Yes, my goal was to win the costume contest - heck with running fast. I'm not sure when I came up with the idea for my costume, but it was shortly after Last Call. John had gone over the legend of SilverHeels during the pre-race meeting and I'd done some reading of my own. Could I pull it off? Could I come up w...

When I was younger, racing marathons all over the country, I knew what mattered. The numbers on the clock when I reached the finish line. That was the point, the goal and that was what mattered for running. Sure, we did plenty of marathons where the time was of lesser importance - some of the smaller, crazy races like the Delaware Trail Dawgs Marathon. But back then, if I wasn't going for time, I still had an eye on the placement. Running under 3:10 was common, as was placing in the top three at marathons around the country. Speed and the “glory” that came with it was my primary focus and I thought that was the ultimate goal for running. But in the greater scheme of things, was that really what mattered? When people asked about the marathons and the 50 states, what was your fastest time was always glossed over. People wanted to know what my favorite race was. They really could not care about the times I ran. They wanted to know about the courses, about the towns and how we manage...

The trail looked different in the dark. I knew it would - the soft shadows from the setting sun had long vanished, leaving only the hard angles from my headlamp. The climbs faded into the night, the summit a distant dream in the darkness. Even the rocks littering the trail disappeared into the dusty ground, only to reach up and grab my toes. And the cold. I knew it would be cold, but the bone chilling frozen damp of all the creek drainages was taking a toll on me, mentally and physically. Twenty four hours ago, I could not have imagined all that was going through my mind as I slowly marched forward to the next aid station. I didn't need to be out there in the dark, suffering like I was. I could have dropped down to the 100k and been finished hours ago. How long would it take me to reach Colony Creek, let alone Music Meadows? And then I still had the climb of Music Pass to face. I'd wanted the "real" Colorado 100 mile experience and the trail had been more then happy t...

The runners usually take all the glory at Ultra Races. They are out there, working through the miles, struggling against the distance and the time. The stories of success and failure are written about time and time again. But the runners are only one small part of a successful ultra event. The whole event is much more then just the runners. Some of the parts are hidden - behind the scenes work from the race director for permitting and emergency management plans. Others are more visible - from the smiling faces hand out bibs in the morning to the volunteers scattered across the miles and the crew and family there to support the athletes. It’s a machine of many parts that when they come together create a wonderful experience for all. The loneliness of waiting for runners in the early morning hours Photo - Jamie Reichler The Whole is greater then the Sum of the Parts. That was the theme of the Sangre de Cristo Ultras this year and it was on full display throughout the entire t...