Was Gonna, Why Bother and #GSD

I’m attracted to doers, the kind of people who approach life with an attitude to get shit done #GSD, no matter what the challenges may be. I have limited tolerance for the “was gonna” mindset. This mindset leads to stories that begin with: “I was gonna do [X thing] but [insert bullshit excuse here].” This mindset may also lead to a lot of empty talk about what a person plans to do, yet those plans never get executed. In the failure to try to pursue goals, a “was gonna” mindset presents reasons, excuses that seem perfectly valid. However, I believe …

This is Who I Am: Tahoe 200 Endurance Run Race Report

“There is something magical about running; after a certain distance, it transcends the body. Then a bit further, it transcends the mind. A bit further yet, and what you have before you, laid bare, is the soul.” – Kristin Armstrong “Repeat after me,” the Race Director of the Tahoe 200 Endurance Run, Candice Burt called through the megaphone. “If I get lost… hurt… or die… it’s my own damn fault.” We dutifully repeated her words, half laughing, half hoping we didn’t get lost, hurt or die. I don’t remember how the race actually started—a word, a sound, a collective heart beat—I …

Today Got Me Thinking About Freedom

When I started my run this morning, I felt as I had during all of my runs from the past 3 weeks. Thanks to moving from sea level to about 6000 feet in Colorado, my lungs work what feels like triple time. I am sluggish and slow. My rating of perceived exertion (RPE) is much higher than normal, for both the pace and the heart rate.  This morning, a bit frustrated with the slowness, I decided to throw in a few 1 minute pickups to at least get some turnover happening in my legs. The first one felt truly like …

NJ Trail Series One Day: Just Put One Foot in Front of the Other

The orange-yellow glow from the street lamps turned us into a sepia-toned tableau. The air from our mouths froze into a cloud. It was as if we were each frozen in time and space. And, yet, with each moment that passed, we moved – even if imperceptibly – just putting one foot in front of the other, along the 1 mile course that wound through the Sussex County Fairgrounds as part of the NJ Trail Series One Day race. It was O’Dark:Thirty. We had been going around for some time now. How long? I don’t know. I had long ago …

Journey to the Impossible: Reflections from Ironman Lake Placid 2018

Nine years ago, John and I spectated our first Ironman Lake Placid. At that time, I had just finished my first handful of sprint distance events and one olympic distance event.  I had NEVER seen an Ironman race before (not even Kona on TV), and had only a functional understanding of the distances. Sure, I understood how they added up by the math, but I didn’t quite get how it was possible for the body to actually go 140.6 miles (you know, we all don’t like to drive that far 😜). Even though I had already finished a few marathons, I …