While it’s easy to convince ourselves that only super humans can climb the Seven Summits and complete Badwater Quads (584 miles back and forth from Badwater Basin to the summit of Mount Whitney), the endurance athletes we met at the 2nd annual National Endurance Sports Summit (NESS), hosted by Team U at Princeton University, reminded us that when one has…
Category: Ultra Running
Grits, Guts, and Determination: Leadville Trail 100 – A Crew Member’s Perspective
Leadville – The Town We arrived in the town of Leadville late Thursday afternoon. A Florida flat lander, I was apprehensive that the altitude was going to wreak havoc on me. The town of Leadville, where we were to stay pre and post-race, sits at 10,200 feet, which is the highest altitude of any incorporated city in North America. I…
Badwater 135 – Going the Distance
Pre-race check in smiles. For me, Badwater 135 was a race whose magic didn’t fully set in until a few days after I finished. Perhaps it’s because I had so much fear and doubt going into the race—what if I failed? What if one of my crew mates or myself got sick? What if something happened to my dad? I…
Crossing the Brooklyn Bridge and other adventures in and around Manhattan
The pre-story to this race is a tale within itself, as I only gained entry to the race—I had been waitlisted along with Chip— a week prior to the event. Aside from the short notice, I was going to be in Death Valley training for Badwater 135 up until Tuesday of that week, when I was to fly home to…
Keys 100 – The Little Bag’s Journey
May 17 – 18 2015 Sometimes things in our lives are inextricably tied together. For me, the Keys 100 is tied to my mom, both in the flesh and in her passing. I will never forget that first year I ran the Keys 50 in 2011. I felt in my being that my mom was passing, that the end was…
Badwater Salton Sea: A tale of hummus, break dancing, and the many uses of hotel rags
Sometime in March, we began to consider Badwater Salton Sea. We, being Bonnie and I. We would discuss it, and then forget about it. Life was hectic. We were all training for Keys 100, which occurs10 days after Salton Sea, and well, we already had so many race and travel plans for the year. But then as with most race…
Badwater Cape Fear 51.4 – take 2
In 2014, I signed up for the inaugural Badwater Cape Fear 51.4 in the same manner I climb on board for any other ultra event: a new location + beach = fun weekend. I was in! Soon the word was out amongst my Florida ultra buddies, and before we knew it we had gathered a group of 10+ runners and…
The Journey to Badwater 135
“Pain or love or danger makes you real again….” ― Jack Kerouac, The Dharma Bums We often aspire to the things that inspire us and take us out of our comfort zones just enough to evoke fear in us. Some wish to climb Mount Everest or bike across America; others want to build a corporate empire. I am a believer…
Icarus Ultrafest – Saturday in the Park
Saturday, November 15, 2014 I was tired; I had finished a 100 miler a week earlier. There was a part of me that wanted to sleep in, but as soon as I arrived at 6 am at Snyder Park in Fort Lauderdale, I knew I was in the right place. I saw a lone 6-day runner make his way around…
Alive and Kicking: Javelina Jundred 100 Miler – Take 3
Often, it feels like the last few years have been a mishmash of nonstop work, races, rushing from planes to meetings to class, logging long hours at the computer at night to keep up with everything, and then runs pre-dawn. I struggle when it comes time to drop everything, pack up, and head to a race, and yet I do,…