26 Days

26 days.  That is how long I have until I toe the line at my next 100 mile race, Pinhoti.  26 days to figure out what clothes and shoes I am going to wear, what I will eat, what other essentials I will pack...  

26 days seems like a lifetime when it is something you have been looking forward to for 8 months now.  If I were a spreadsheet person, I could tell you how many miles I have run in preparation, but I'm not, so let's just say it is a fair amount.  Miles that included an unfathomable number of parking towers and speed intervals.  Miles that included buckets of sweat (remind me not to train for an early winter race again while living in south Louisiana - what was I thinking?).  Miles that included quality time with some of my absolute favorite human beings because running a 40 mile training run together is the best way to discover someone's true character.  And,  I am happy to say that my suspicions were confirmed -  I have the most incredible friends.

These knuckleheads are pacing me.  Don't leave your phone with them or you will get back to this.

And this one is crewing for me.  I am in good hands, and there will definitely be beer.

So here I am entering my peak week of training, facing 75 miles or so of running in record heat for this time of year.  Seriously, all I can do is laugh about it.  I will wrap up this week with a 50 mile run on top of the levee on Saturday with a group of like-minded fools who actually get together and do this stuff for fun, then I get to taper.  I say that like it is a blessing, but I actually dislike the taper because that is when all of the self doubt and phantom pains set in, and miraculously disappear when you get to the race site.

What a tremendous blessing it has been, this training season.  Saturday will be my 5th ultra distance training run (any distance over a marathon - 26.2 miles), and in a strange way, while I am tired and ready to race, I am not in a rush for the training to end.  I decided early on in this training to embrace the journey, and I have.  I have actually enjoyed it, leg cramps and dry heaves included.

So 26 days from now I get to run a point to point 100 mile run on the trails in Talladega National Forest.  We will start at 7 am, and I will finish when I have covered 100 miles, whenever that is.  I am truly happy about getting to experience the 100 mile journey again.  I have completed the distance 4 times in the past, and every time I have learned more about myself and how I deal with adversity.  I can't wait to see what this race teaches me.  My 100 mile experiences have helped to form me in my personal and professional life more than anything else.  I remember telling a friend once when he was training for his first 100 miler, when asked about the distance, "It will scrape you to your core.  You'd better like what you find there."  I am curious to see what I will find there this time.

Happy Running, Y'all!

Edie

Finding My Way

For years now, I have told people that I don't know what I want to be when I grow up (I am 46).  Over the last 6 months to a year, I have finally figured it out, and things are taking shape.  On February 4th, I will host my first trail ultra as a race director, the Red Dirt Ultra in Kisatchie National Forest.  I have put on various shorter races over the years for different causes, but this is my first ultra (any distance over a marathon (26.2)).

I have been asked many times over the last few weeks if I am nervous about it, and I can honestly say "no".  This really does feel like the most natural progression for me.  I love the sport.  I love the people who choose to participate in the sport.  I love being out in nature.  I love my friends who are generously offering to give up their weekend to help our runners succeed.

Next Thursday, we will begin arriving at Kisatchie to mark the 31 mile course and get the aid stations set up and stocked.  Runners will start pulling in Friday evening for early packet pickup and I will get to meet these amazing people and reunite with old ultra running buddies.

Saturday morning, we will be out there by 4 a.m. to set up and be ready for race day packet pickup, then we will hold a short trail briefing and they are off at 6 a.m.  Over 80 runners will take off onto a dark trail to attempt to achieve something amazing, running either 31, 62, or 100 miles.  Over 1/3 of the field is made up of folks attempting their distance for the very first time.

This will not be an easy race. I have run the 31 mile loop quite a few times, and it is challenging but beautiful, and incredibly peaceful.  When the runners cross the finish line and I get to put their medals around their necks, or hand them their belt buckles for the 100 miler,  there will be no doubt in my mind or theirs that they earned it.

The journey to this point has been filled with angels, people stepping up to help and offering services for the race that I would have never considered asking for.  So many wonderful people have reached out to be a part of this race, that it is not just mine, but ours.  Everyone that will be out there running and volunteering has ownership in the success of this race.

I am so ready to officially kick off this part of my journey.  The starting line for the runners is the figurative starting line for this amazing chapter in my life, and I am so grateful for the people that I get to share it with.