Life in a Day

2014 Canadian Death Race Photo

Everyone who is truly dedicated and passionate about something has a story.  This is mine.

 May 2016 was a defining moment in my life. I can actually pinpoint the moment everything changed.  I was in Cooking Lake Provincial Park, east of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, running the blackfoot Ultra Marathon.

 I was in the 50K distance.  The race consisted of 25K laps with about 2500ft of undulation per lap. It was wet, and the course was muddy.  I wasn't feeling it, but put up a time just under 3 hours for the first lap.    Coming into the pit stop, I wasn't feeling it. I can remember thinking;

 'I'm an idiot.  This running thing isn't for me.  I can't stay healthy enough to train effectively.  Towel time buddy.  25K is good.  Most people can't do that.'

Reluctantly, I headed out on the second loop. To my surprise, my legs held up.  In fact, they felt pretty good.  I had dropped eleven pounds for this race (I was 188 at race time), and I felt lighter.  The clicks disappeared, and before I knew it, I was 10K out.  I caught up to the leader of the 100K event (started 4 hours before us), and paced him for 7K.  We talked, and it felt good.  Everything hurt.  But it didn't matter.  Something had flipped inside me. 

 

ColdWater Rumble 2017

Over the course of the summer of 2016, I would successfully complete 6 ultras, and drop to a respectable 160lbs.  I will eventually write about the experiences of that summer, but first, a few observations.

1) I learned the principle of 'go slower to go faster'.  If you want to run 100 miles, you have to get used to championship distances and times.  I would aim to go out for 4-6 hours on my long run, and walk. I would save as much in the tank as I could for the last hour or two.  This helped me cut way down on injury, and helped with the weight loss (another post for another day!).

2) You will always be sore and tired. It will hurt...a lot!  I'm never sure if my running got better, or my threshold for pain did.  Either way, I've learned the pain is an ever present companion, and I can count the great runs I've had with no pain on one hand.  Every great run, every PB, was unexpected, and birthed with pain.  Understanding that has pushed me past what I though was possible. 

3) Running is a gift.  I'm constantly in awe about what my body can do.  Every mile I grind is pure joy, because I'm fortunate enough to be able to run/walk/crawl it. Enjoy the process.  It's not just about 'bibbing up'  on the weekend.  It's about the quiet morning runs, the loud group runs, the run ins with wildlife, it's about the small things equaling the big thing.  I used to tolerate training runs, now I anticipate them.  They ground me.  Everything is spiritual, it just took me 33 years to figure that out.

As I finished my last lap of the Blackfoot 50K, I came in with a 2:30 second lap.  Almost 30 minutes better than my first lap.  My wife wasn't even there!  I was too quick!  Driving the 6 hours home from that run, I knew everything had changed.  That's why I love ultra marathon.  In one day, the entire ground of your being can shift.  Life in a day they call it.  I found it.  I hope you can find it too.

As always, may your feet be quick, the trails feel flat, and your body not chafe.  Keep Hammering!

Canadian Ghost Runner