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Signs

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Those living out their teen years in the 60s and 70s will likely remember the hit song by The Five Man Electrical Band, “Signs.” Les Emmerson, lead singer, reportedly penned the words after a road trip on Route 66 in California. In essence, it was a protest against billboards planted along the freeway and signs touting “do this, don’t do that” rules and regulations. To say the song challenged current culture would be an understatement. But is there value in signs? As a trail runner, I appreciate a well-placed sign that informs me of distance covered and distance that has yet to be conquered. Even when the news makes me hang my head at the enormous effort it will take, there is some level of comfort in knowing what to expect. Knowing lets me calculate time remaining, helps me manage fluid and calorie intake, and puts into perspective the additional effort needed to accomplish the task. Similarly, signs can be valuable on a trip down the highway. I can gauge when and where to fill up th
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100 miles and a buckle

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True confessions. The last 100-miler I successfully completed was in 2008 at the inaugural Grindstone, a rugged mountain race with a ton of climb and descent. Then and for the most part, I stopped trying. Running the long stuff was getting harder with each passing year. It was in 2021 that my Forest Gump moment of "I'm tired. I think I'll go home" caused me to pull out of Yeti 100 at mile 64. What a wuss. Near the end of December 2022, I decided to give a 100 another go. My training partner and I picked a race that seemed like a good fit with a generous time limit. Last month I stopped 14 miles short of 100 miles at the rain and rock-ridden Greenbriar 100 , a race erroneously touted as non-technical.  Within a day of waddling through my front door after the race, I signed up for the C&O Canal 100 as my redemption, slated to be held a slim month after the Greenbriar event. I was sick and tired of failing to achieve a 100-mile completion and the acquisition of a big
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85.8 is not 100

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It was supposed to be my comeback 100. Turns out, it wasn't. Again. (Heavy sigh) I wrote some time ago  about my Forest Gump moment at mile 64 of the Yeti 100. I quit, frustrated and tired. After 30 years of training and racing, I concluded that I had enough. I was done with ultras forever. That sentiment, however, didn't stick for very long. So I discovered timed races, drawn specifically to the 24-hour format. With no cutoffs and a seemingly less competitive feel, I completed and wrote about two of those events in the last year. The Black Mountain Monster and Buffalo Mountain Endurance Run  were my first attempts. I figured I would stick with that format for the remainder of my ultra career. And then came Kim Weatherford. I've known Kim, a women 25 years my younger, but never really spent much time with her before the end of last year. Kim did not start running until she joined a group from church in 2011. Those initial steps served to overcome inertia, building in inte
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A view from the front (seat)

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It was in November 2021 that Rachel Tillas took her first steps into the world of ultrarunning by competing in the MMTR 50. But it started in July of 2021 when Belinda, Rachel's mom, messaged to tell me Rachel had converted from the 400m distance run so quickly in high school to a marathon. But more importantly, as one of Rachel's high school coaches, Belinda thought I should know that Rachel had mentioned trying Hellgate one day. My response? "Alrighty then. She needs to start going with me to the mountains. This makes me happy." And to the mountains we went. I was the tour guide and Rachel my companion. She was bright and mature, contributing to great conversations despite the almost 40 year age difference. But soon enough, I did her no favors by asking her to join me on no more than a handful of other runs. I consistently held her young, spry self back. I was too slow to be any good to her. With colleagues at the hospital who ran fast, strong and long, I found mys
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A walk in the park and a pink finish line

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By the time I finish most races, I've figured out at least the first paragraph of my post-race story. This was one of the few where the story twisted in a big way by the time I finished the 3.5 hour drive home. But let's start at the beginning. With cut-offs harder to make and the felt-pressure to train oppressive, my first foray into timed racing occurred in May of this year. With no threat of being pulled from a race because I was too slow, my mantra became "Run a little, walk a lot." I was relatively happy doing that for about 22 hours and 50 minutes, stopping shy of 24 hours since I had miraculously clinched second place and would likely not have been able to complete another loop in the remaining time to add it to my total. So when my friends, Rick and Michelle Gray from TN, shortly thereafter invited me to run the last edition of the Buffalo Mountain Endurance Run , I signed up immediately. Knowing from experience that a lot of ground can still be covered by a p
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Hungry and struggling?

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  (An excerpt from The EveryDay: 366 Real Stories for Real People by   Rebekah Trittipoe)   Picture this. You are in the wide-open African savannah. Mountains rise across the plains, tall, wispy grass swaying as the breezes blow across the hot, dry landscape between here and there. A herd of elephants gather to the right, gazelles bound across the plain with antelope and barbary stags grazing nearby. Down by the watering hole, hippos wallow in the mud to fend off the heat, and crocodiles maintain their submarined pose in hopes of capturing unsuspecting prey. But across the way is that pride of lions laying in the shade of a particularly large baobab tree. The old wise males seem oblivious to the antics of the juvenile lion cubs, while the lionesses maintain constant vigil. The lions are near the top of the predator ladder, few other animals being much of a threat. The young lions have learned their hunting skills from the older lions. Speed and agility play in their favor. More time
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Excuses: Is there a lion lurking outside your door?

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(An excerpt from  "The EveryDay: 366 Real Stories for Real People " by Rebekah Trittipoe) It is 8:30 p.m., darkness has arrived, and I am sitting here on the couch having a conversation with myself. I did not run today, nor did I yesterday or the day before. I had been doing so well with consistency; six to seven runs each week. What is happening? Yes, my morning routine was messed up because I was Addyson’s taxi back to her mom. Then it was pressing work on a writing project, a phone call, volleyball practice, and prep for a meeting tomorrow. Then home, clean up the kitchen, unload the dishwasher, prepare supper, clean up, and head to Wal-Mart for needed items. And oh, yes, it is thundering and promising to downpour outside. How could I possibly squeeze in a run? Sounds like lame excuses to me. I should know. I excuse-make a lot! After I come up with the excuse, I rationalize away my decision to appease the inevitable guilt I feel. What a sorry mess I am!  Recently, I read
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