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 …

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 …

Why do you run so much?

“Pushing your body past what you thought it was capable of is easy; the hard part is pushing yourself even further, past what your mind wants to let you. That’s what ultrarunning is all about; introducing you to a self you’ve never known.” ~ Rex Pace Running has been a friend of mine since I was about 12 years old. I originally took to running to “burn calories.” I wanted to achieve some sort of teen-tastic, unrealistic image of what I was supposed to look like. I was a 90-something-pound teenager with all sorts of destructive disordered eating habits. I remember hoping …

Dig From the Bottomless Well: 2017 Javelina Jundred Race Report

We were about 4 miles out from the finish line with about 45 minutes to spare in order for me to finish under 21 hours at the 2017 Javelina Jundred. I was in a dark place. John, my husband and pacer, was trying to pull me out of it. “Dig deep, Maria,” he said. “Your well of reserves is bottomless. Keep pulling from it.” Ms. Cranky-Pants wasn’t really feeling the guru session. “I’m at mile 96 of a 100 mile race. I AM digging deep,” I pouted. I might as well have stomped my feet, but at that point, I …

Lessons from a Hard Teacher: Vermont 100 Race Report

“Experience is a hard teacher because she gives the test first, the lessons afterward.” ~Vernon Law My Vermont 100 experience was a hard test. I’m trying to decide whether I passed or failed. When I grade my students’ work, I assess it based on what I want them to learn and how well their work demonstrates that they’ve learned those lessons. In the case of racing, these “lessons” come in various forms, and one way to assess a race is to think about the goals I set for the race. For Vermont 100, I had my usual tiered set of goals: A) “super secret” goal, …

4 Tips to Find Your Race Week Zen

When race week finally arrives, it’s impossible to avoid the jolt of excitement and anticipation as I make my final preparations to achieve the goals that have kept me moving through weeks on top of months of long, hard training days. It is possible, however, to prevent these race week sensations from overtaking my emotions in a way that hurts the execution of my race plan. As athletes, we should expect and welcome some emotional arousal. But, we need to be on guard against feelings of emotional overload, in the form of anxiety, over-stimulation, panic, or fear. Trust me – I’ve tried it both ways. The latter approach sucks …

2016 Infinitus 88k: My almost first time DNF

It was Dark:Thirty. I was somewhere climbing up the Mt. Moosalamoo Trail in Vermont, about 45-ish miles into The Endurance Society’s Infinitus 88k-ish race. Before I started this climb, the nice chap at the aid station informed me, “Just 2.5 miles to the summit of Mt. Moosalmoo!” He was so cheery. I was so dirty. He said that as if those 2.5 miles were regular old road miles, and not Endurance Society FUBARed trail miles. I knew better. I knew those 2.5 miles, while sounding so short and swift, would be long and tortuous. As I climbed this, amidst rocks and …

Daddy’s Girl

Seventeen years ago, our phone rang in the middle of the night. I didn’t hear it, so John wound up answering it. He came into the bedroom, “Maria…” I stirred. “Something’s wrong. It’s your mom.” I looked at the clock it was o’dark thirty – maybe 3 a.m.? I picked up the phone and all I could hear was my mother wailing, all of these whirling noises. “Your father died!” she managed to say between her sobs. I felt myself entering a vacuum where I could no longer hear my mother on the other end of the line. I could only …

Attitude of Gratitude: 2015 Javelina Jundred Race Report

[This post is my 2015 Javelina Jundred race report which is the narrative of my experience for this race. If you are looking for a detailed course overview that will be posted separately.] “It is through gratitude for the present moment that the spiritual dimension of life opens up.” ~ Eckhart Tolle Gratitude. If I only had one word, that would be the one to summarize my first 100 mile race. I’ve raced many times, and had many great experiences. Even still, there are a precious few races that have made me feel the way I feel now. Grateful. Joyful. Peaceful. I have …