ITUS Finisher

At last I sit down to write up my reflections on an amazing year! This year was long and luscious, run after run I settled into my Ultra Running self. Each race provided a foundation for the next -- in more ways than building endurance and strength. My foundations came in many different packages, bravery, courage, confidence, support, weakness, willingness, the fight, the effort, the unyielding desire to more ever forward -- I grew fierce with each step. If you were to ask me "How did you do it, right out of the box?" The short and simple answer is DESIRE -- I wanted it period... that is clear, yes I needed to be committed, steadfast, I had to push hard and not give up, I had to believe, I had to take a bite out of each race and tell myself "YES YOU CAN." I never once doubted myself (at least not for long) I couldn't, there was no time for that I had to keep moving, keep believing despite bumps and falls along the way; I had to fuel my desire! The longer answer to how I made it through all 8 races is both simple and complex, like all other things in ultra running, SUPPORT.

I had people who cared about me and my running, and this crazy thing I decided to do -- I had support even if I did not have a full understanding of why the hell I was doing this (thankfully I do not need that). I have a son who looks up to me, watches me, learns from me and imitates me. I have a family who I want to make proud, I had people relying on me to finish and to finish strong with a tale to tell. The love and support fueled my desire, when I was out there all alone begging for the strength to keep moving, the faces of my family and my fiends flashing in my mind, the thought that they were at home, or at the next turn cheering me on, waiting for me, believing in me. I did not want to let anyone down!

It is a mere three weeks since the final race of the ITUS -- this picture above shows without question my joy, my deep sense of completion and total elation! Since the finish line of the Foothills Frenzy I have felt a shift in my spirit -- a sense that I have a deep grasp on what I am capable of... When it comes down to it, be it running, raising a child, being a strong, loving wife, a quality friend, a good human and/or a great teacher; it all comes down to desire, if you want it... go for it. I have never believed so much in personal drive, commitment and the fact with all it takes is YOU to decide "I want to ________.", than I do right now. The ITUS was this crazy amazing gift, beyond my strong legs, powerful heart and propelling arms -- the ITUS provided me with a new lens to see more clearly the potential in all of us. I have and will continue to encourage and hopefully inspire other people to seek something wild wonderful and seemingly out of reach -- when people tell me "No way can I do that..." My reply is simple, if you want it, you most certainly can and I can prove it! I saw some absolutely amazing runners out there on the trails -- people who refused to give up, people who were on a mission, who wanted to cross the finish line for reasons so personal, so profound, that words cannot explain -- go to a finish line and see for yourself, PEOPLE ARE POWERFUL! To tie all this up and move on to the next run, the next race, the next adventure I will share the top five things that I learned my first BIG year of Ultra Running; 1. Trail Markers are a sign of hope and purpose especially at night. 2. Encouragement and support are essential on the long run, generally manifesting in an awesome Aid Station or an amazing crew. 3. It does not have to be fun, to be fun. 4. Power-hiking a lethal weapon in conquering 100 miles! 5. Riding the epic waves of emotions during a long race is both empowering and humbling.

Foothills Frenzy 2013

The cherry on top, the frosting on the cake. The Frenzy is a perfect way to top off a fantastic season of ultra running. Jenny the RD and all of the volunteers run a solid event that provided this year a 100% success rate, NOW THAT IS VERY COOL! The day started out much like the previous 7 race mornings this year had, I woke at 3:30, rose at 4:00 -- took some time to eat, stretch and drink. During my drive to the race start I was struck by how confident I felt, I am getting good at the race thing I thought. I was not nervous but rather just plain excited to run and to see some friends out on the trail. Upon arrival, I was warmly greeted as I pick up my race bib, I wandered around, gave and received hugs, exchanged smiles and felt a deep sense of peace.

I felt like I was among family, an ultra rad family. After a beautifully sung anthem it was time to run. We headed out fast as the level of excitement was palpable. For the first time this year I had a very good idea of what to expect course wise -- this was my first repeat. As we traversed up into the foothills I watch the bouncing headlamps ahead and behind and could not help but smile -- we lite up the hill side with passion, enthusiasm, commitment and hard work! The moment was perfect, the trail conditions comfortable, I felt good. I soon realized that my climbing legs were still really tired from Standhope, tight hamstrings and hips. I had come into the Frenzy thinking "Hmm it would be great to PR this race." At around mile 12 I tossed that idea and decided to have fun and not try to kill myself out there. Early in the year, I learned that you should never ever change the game plan in the middle of the game -- a PR was a game changer. Back to plan number one -- finish strong, have fun. Since this was number 8 I wanted to run well and top off the ITUS with a smile. Up and down and all around we went, I ran hard down the hills and climbed to the best of my legs ability. I knew the last 5 miles would be a push and I knew that those last 5 miles felt like 10, so I ran them hard, passed several runners and caught a glimpse of the finish line before I knew it.

The Frenzy finish was multi-layered! Super happy to have crossed the Frenzy finish line and perhaps even happier to have crossed the ITUS 2013 finish line. But that is another story.....