Spokes

Checking in. The day before the big event in Carson City. Best race bibs ever! Laying in bed the night before the race I could feel my left hamstring pulsating with a throbbing pain. Like a dull toothache, the hamstring injury I sustained in May would not let go. It made no difference to stress about it however, as I was resolved to toe the line and see how the race unfolded. My running mentor and friend Jason Romero told me to just focus on each aid station and have the goal of completing the race while adjusting to pain one step at a time. 102 Miles and 20K feet of climbing in less than 35 hours. That was the goal. Elevation Profile of Tahoe Rim Trail 100 Earlier that evening, I had run through the race plan with Julie and Laura, covering each segment of the race and things I would need along the way. While 100 miles of planning can be daunting, I knew once I passed along the plan to Julie, all I would have to do is focus on running. I had a light dinner consisting of a...

Hearing what sounded like a crashing tree I looked behind me to see him falling in what seemed like slow motion towards the ground. His trekking poles splayed out and he hit the ground, knuckles first, spraying fresh blood on the dirty trail. “Crap man! Are you okay? Do you want me to grab the first aid kit,” I yelled out in genuine concern mixed with a little bit of shock. “Ha! First aid? Shut up man and just keep running. I don’t need babied,” he hollered back with a joking tone. We were only 8 miles in to a 50K run when he went down behind me. This was my first time guiding for Jason Romero, a legally blind and accomplished ultrarunner who I met a little over a year ago. In 2017, I heard Jason give a keynote address at a regional Goodwill luncheon and fundraiser. He spoke about his degenerative eye disease diagnosis in his teens which eventually left him legally blind. Now in his 40’s, Jason has accomplished a host of ultrarunning feats including being the first an...

Standing in the early twilight hours of the sunrise at the Gould Community Center I was thankful that I could join the other 285 runners at the starting line. My heart issues a few weeks prior cost me some valuable training time and had me wondering if I’d be able to race. Once I got the green light from the cardiologist to run, I had five solid weekends to get some vert in and a small taper before the Never Summer 100K . It would have to be enough. Never Summer 100K is a 65-mile race in State Forest State Park in Northern Colorado. The course takes you through the Never Summer Mountains and skirts the southern edge of the Medicine Bow Mountain Range. The race has over 13,000 feet of vertical gain and most of it takes place over 10,000 feet above sea level. Simply put, this was one of the hardest 100K races in the country. Elevation Profile of Never Summer 100K I was fortunate to be racing with several other athletes I knew well including my good friend and legendary ultrarun...