You may find this surprising, but according to Run100s.com (my go-to reference for all things 100 miles) there are about 150 races in North America that are 100 miles in length. This is up about 50% from when I first started researching the distance 4 years ago. Heck, three of the races that I’ve done…
Digits: Year of 2016
Happy New Year! I love numbers with a passion that’s a little creepy. This leads me to track just about everything I can, especially running related. I have several spreadsheets that I use to track my running and cross training activities. I haven’t really done much with this data yet, but it’s nice to use…
2016 Year in Review
I’m not really the type of person to spend a lot of time reflecting on the past. I devote most of my attention to the present and looking ahead to the future. Thinking back on the year though, I’m filled with a deep sense of satisfaction. 3 for 3 Coming into 2016, my focus was…
Project 14Forty: 35 Mile Weekend
Note: In case you missed it, here’s where I explain Project 14Forty. So I chased yesterday’s meh 20 miles with a very enjoyable 15 this morning. For some reason, it ends up that way more often than not for me. My course was virtually identical to what I did a day ago, with a slight tweak…
Project 14Forty Update: Grinding and Chilling
Today’s was not a magical, fairytale run. There were no rainbows and unicorns. It was not a blazingly fast or effortless endeavor. This was one of those tough, workmanlike affairs. It wasn’t exactly a check-the-box off type workout, but it was close. And that’s really fine with me. Not every run has to be special…
Something Always Goes Wrong
I’ve learned a couple things over the past 18 months of running 100 mile races, but nothing more important that the title of this post. Maybe it’s the small sample size (5 races). Or maybe it’s my inexperience (same 5 races). Or maybe it’s just that with 100 miles and upwards of 35 hours of “running”, there’s more opportunity…
Moments in Time: 2016 C&O Canal 100
It’s 2am and I’m sitting in a chair at the Nolan’s Ferry aid station. Normally, this is not a good sign during the later stages of an ultra. Chairs have magical attractive properties (especially during 100 mile races) such that once your bottom touches them, it’s extremely difficult to extricate yourself from them. Luckily for…
2016 Fast and Furriest 5k Race Report
I think I’ve finally figured out the 13 stages of running 5Ks: Stage 1 (Mile 0.00-0.25): Oh boy am I running fast. This is fun. Stage 2 (Mile 0.25-0.50): Oh boy am I running fast. I wonder how long I can keep this pace up. Stage 3 (Mile 0.50-0.75): Oh boy. I think I might be running too…
Project 14Forty Update
It’s been a while since I’ve given you an update on how my training is going (OK, fine. I haven’t given you any.), so here goes. Things have started off very well. I have been able to get in all the long runs that were on my schedule except one. I had originally planned to…
Western States 100 Lottery
Western States is the oldest 100 mile race in the world. It has similar prestige in the ultra running world to the Boston Marathon, however unlike Boston it is open to anyone who can complete a qualifying race regardless of time. And there are many qualifying races that are less than 100 miles in distance. …