I started these rankings a couple years ago. No race is exactly the same and since everyone looks for something different when choosing races, I thought I would give you my ranks in various categories. Two races get added to the lists this year (Greenbrier, Grindstone). I’m excluding NJ One Day and Capital Backyard Ultra…
2022 Grindstone 100 Race Report
This race has been on my bucket list for a while. I was originally signed up for the 2020 version, but well . . .COVID. One of the things that draws me to hundred mile races are the many different challenges you can expect to encounter along the way. I try to pick races that…
Dead Legs
Screw it. I’m just going to lean into this whole taper thing. My legs felt very tired after a completely chill 5 miles on Monday (and not my normal 7). Almost like I had just finished a hilly long run, not a typical weekday jaunt around the township. I’m guessing I never really let myself…
Back-to-back Hundreds
I’m now less than two weeks out from my next hundred and Eastern States seemed like it was just the other weekend. The five weeks between the two races is my shortest turnaround time to date. I had six weeks between races back in 2019 and seven weeks in 2016. In both of those cases,…
Eastern States 100 Splits
They say a picture is worth a thousand words. This post is for those people who think a chart full of numbers is worth a thousand words. There’s a lot to unpack here so let’s start at the end. Somehow I’ve managed to finish each race quicker than the year before. In 2016, I was…
2022 Eastern States Race Report
I am so grateful to the Eastern States Trail-Endurance Alliance and all of the volunteers who put on this amazing event. Every year I come back and it’s a little better than the year before. This year there was upgraded finishers jackets, “Wrong Way” signs on side trails, and cooler temperatures. Honestly, I’m fully expecting them…
Ten Years Ago. . .
On August 7th, 2012, Barack Obama was still in his first term as President. The Avengers was playing in movie theaters. Bitcoin was trading under $10. And I went for a 1.1 mile run. Ten years ago, my wife and I were training for our first half marathon. We had been running sporadically over the…
Know Your Why Not
To be successful in ultras, you need to know your why. Why do you want to run long distances? Why explore your limits? Knowing this why will help you push through the dark moments and reach the finish line. To enjoy ultras, I think it’s also good to know why you don’t do ultras. Acknowledging…
Paying The Price
There’s a cost to running ultramarathons. I’m not referring to registration fees. Or the trials of actually completing a race. I’m talking about the miles that need to be racked up. The workouts stacked on top of workouts. All of the training that needs to be done just to get you to the starting line.…
Eastern States Training Volumes
For a number of years, I’ve tracked the amount of miles and long runs that I’ve done heading into my hundred milers. These aren’t training plans or even training blocks per se. More a general description of my running volume leading up to races. First, let’s take a look at the 100 days before each…