"You can't beat death, but you can beat death in life, sometimes."

Reading Amy Rosenbaum Clark's fabulous article All in the Mind in April's Upper Midwest Trail Runners newsletter this morning, I was reminded of a quote I read in Travis Wildeboer's 2013 Barkley Marathons race report The 60-hour day that Andrew Thompson, the 8th finisher of the Barkley in 2009, said to Jonathan "Jonboy" Basham on their drive to the race in 2010 before Jonathan became the 9th finisher of the Barkley,

“You're entering a tunnel Jonboy,” said Thompson, “and there is no way out other than the other side.”

That's how you finish an ultra; you go into a tunnel and you don't come out until the finish. Come race day, after all the training is over and your kit is packed, it's all mental. During these events, that old mantra, "This isn't hard. This just is," constantly flows through my head. Though recently, that's morphed into everything: "It's raining. That's just how this is now." "My feet are wet. That's just how they are now." "My legs hurt. That's just how they feel now." Somehow, accepting my current conditions as they are with the mentality of, "So what? This is how it is now. Keep moving," really helps me keep going through that tunnel to the other side.

This mentality has seeped into every other aspect of my life. Life's hurdles and challenges that once seemed so daunting don't seem so big anymore. These events have taught me so much about life, about myself, about what's truly important.

I don't often remember my dreams, but thinking about that triggered memories of mine from last night. In my head, I was deep into loop 3 of the Barkley with a few faceless others, scaling a wall onto a thin ledge high above the valley, too extreme, too dangerous, even for the Barkley, watching the clock, knowing it was time to leave the others behind and keep going through that tunnel to the other side.

These things we do are fantastic. We're choosing to live life, to cheat death. How can we not laugh, smile, and giggle the entire time?

"your life is your life
don’t let it be clubbed into dank submission.
be on the watch.
there are ways out.
there is a light somewhere.
it may not be much light but
it beats the darkness.
be on the watch.
the gods will offer you chances.
know them.
take them.
you can’t beat death but
you can beat death in life, sometimes.
and the more often you learn to do it,
the more light there will be.
your life is your life.
know it while you have it.
you are marvelous
the gods wait to delight
in you."

— Charles Bukowski

2013 barkley marathons

(in honor of laz, the completely sane and charming race director of the barkley mararthons, this post is absent capital letters)

buckle envy

"you do realize that the losers in the barkley lottery are the ones who get chosen, right?" -laz

i spent a large portion of my weekend glued to the twitter feed #bm100, a feeble attempt to feel "out there" from afar.

there's a record amount of media covering this year's barkley marathons, from ny times articles to a documentary to facebook pages to twitter feeds to functioning (gawk) real-life web pages! for good or bad, more details are available than ever before. i've read it all. the race has consumed me. i've written about this thing i desire here and here.

2013 did not disappoint, as laz, the idiot king, conjured up another doozy. rain. fog. mud. cold. carnage.

the conch blew at the respectable hour of 8:04am, and an hour later, at the lighting of a filtered camel, 35 brave souls ventured "out there."

21 made it out for loop 2, but only 5 survived to leave camp for loop 3. (in contrast, the 350-mile iditarod trail invitations in the brutal alaskan winter amazingly had 48 finishers out of 48 starters this year--different races entirely, but still)

the barkley bugle

the 5 that left for loop 3: travis wildeboer (unsupported superior and long trail fkts); nickademus hollon (22-year-old ultra boss, badwater finisher, arrowhead finisher, hurt competitor, 2-time barkley fun run alum); the abbs (bev and alan, tough mfers and multi-time barkley fun run vets); and one of last year's record 3 finishers, jared campbell (barkley alum, hardrock winner, and nolan's 14 buff).

earlier in the day, jared came in first from loop 1 like a boss in the ultimate direction sj ultra vest and euro-capris, more than an hour before travis and nick and 2 before the abbs, making it look easy.  

euro capris, barkley-style

but it's never easy. on lap 2, the barkley happened, and jared reportedly lost 7 hours off course and was the last of the 5 to leave camp for loop 3, just minutes before cutoff. 

laz and the infamous, now-secret results book in camp

nick hollon was the first to finish loop 3 for his third consectuive fun-run finish in 32:56:15 (seconds fellas? for the barkley? really?). travis wildeboer finished loop 3 just under an hour later, in 33:50 (thereabouts), and the two left together for loop 4 at 34 hours and change, less than 2 hours under cutoff for a loop 4 start. 

as the pace slows in the later hours of the barkley, the suspense grows with everyone eager for another runner to appear back at camp. the downtime is never quiet, though. this year, western states rd craig thornely (aka, lord_balls), crewing the abbs, kept laz busy, discussing race management, perhaps? to think what laz would do to western states is frightening. 

jared broke up talks of making western states more "barkley," coming into camp as 2013's third fun-run finisher at 35 hours, but the 7 hours lost on loop 2 had taken it's toll, and with one hour to leave camp for loop 4, he voluntarily tapped, refusing to continue (rtc). just like that, the alum were none.

the abbs were next into camp, finishing the fun run in 39:09, over the 36-hour limit to continue onto loop 4. they don't make them any tougher though, with alan's 4th fun-run finish in 4 tries and bev's second fun-run finish, making her quite possibly the toughest woman on the planet.

loop 3 page count

rumors filled the air that, on the top of rat jaw on loop 4, travis and nick were in good spirits, laughing and singing, seemingly taunting the course.

rat jaw at day

nick came in from loop 4 at 46:50 with travis just 5 minutes from his heels, but travis turned it around quicker in just 13:13, getting out of camp 5 at 47:09 and choosing a forward, final loop 5. nick left camp 5 minutes later for his backwards loop 5.

nick getting his loop 5 page from laz

travis prepping for loop 5

in the end, nick made it back to camp in 57:41, becoming the 13th finisher of the barkley marathons, the 14th barkley finish (brett maune has two finishes, 2011 and 2012).

nick flying into camp for his loop 5 finish

lap 5 page count

at camp, nick joked about going out for another loop, but when laz offered to let him hit the "easy" button, he refused, opting for "no" instead.

travis finished loop 5 an hour later at 58:41, becoming the 14th barkley finisher, adding to the barkley's rich history of thru-hiking/peak-bagging alum.

travis coming into camp for his loop 5 finish

the fifth and final touch of the yellow gate

lap 5 page count and a well-deserved smirk

really, the only non thru-hiker alum are jared campbell (even though he's done nolans 14) and nick hollon (i'm not sure about mark williams). it seems the right kind of crazy for the barkley is that which can manage a small amount of hurt for a large amount of time without completely losing your shit. the mental aspect of the task seems bigger than the physical, surprisingly, and it takes a special kind of nut not to crack.

epic indeed.

travis wildeboer and nickademus hollon, barkley alum

telling stories in front of the yellow gate, "no shit there i was"

brett maune, jared campbell, john fegyveresi, travis wildeboer, nick hollon, and laz

with "frozen ed" furtaw, the first official finisher of the 3-lap barkley marathons

someday i'll get there. until then...

unending unease
another year of comfort
still yearning to fail

*the pictures above were taken from others and are used here without permission. to those i borrowed from, thank you. to those that want their's down, no worries, just ask.

Ultimate Direction Signature Series Scott Jurek Pack Review

As a self-proclaimed ultra-blog junky, I’ve been following Anton Krupicka’s blog for quite some time. If you’re familiar with Tony at all, you know that for years he’s preached a minimalist running philosophy, "stripping down the amount of gear to the bare essentials," usually just a pair of shorts and a couple gels. Even for long, 50+ mile training runs or FKTs (“fastest known times” on “known” routes), he just grabs a handheld to refill in mountain streams and stuffs a few extra gels in his modified shorts. I know he’s ventured more into the mountaineering sport of late, but still, putting his name on a pack begs the question, did Tony K sell out?

I mean, it's a rather large philosophical change. Don't get me wrong, I love packs. I've been using my Salomon Advanced Skin S-Lab 5 pack for the past year-and-a-half with only few complaints. But Tony K pitching a pack?! That came as a bit of a shock.

In any case, I’ve used Ultimate Direction's handhelds for years, so I was pretty stoked when they announced that they were developing their Signature Series line of packs, even if I was a bit skeptical of Tony’s involvement.

THE LINE

If you’re not familiar with Ultimate Direction’s bottles, their main differentiator is the cap, or specifically, in Ultimate Direction’s case, their “nipple.” No kidding, there’s a nipple on the top of Ultimate Direction bottles.

The various nipple stages

They are so nipple-ish, in fact, that my friend, Ben Bruce, nearly refuses to use the bottles from sheer nipple-embarrassment, whereas they happen to be my favorite feature. The objective of Ultimate Direction’s new Signature Series line of packs seems to merely be placing their nipple-bottles in the correct anatomical position with a comfortable pack. No kidding.

The "Scott Jurek" Nipple Placement

This correct anatomical placement is accomplished with three Signature Series models, named after their designers, from smallest to largest (the packs, not the designers): Anton Krupicka; Scott Jurek; and some guy I’d never heard of (which merely speaks to the relevance of the intended use of the pack to my “sport”—his name happens to be Peter Bakwin, but I’d still never heard of him).

Now, keep in mind that I’ve only tried the Scott Jurek model, but the differences seem fairly easy to explain.

The AK Race Vest

The Anton Krupicka pack seems to be for folk that don’t actually want a pack, but merely a way put nipples on your chest (or bottles on your chest, instead of your hand or your waist). It’s billed as a more minimal pack than the Scott Jurek, which it is, kind of.

The SJ Ultra Vest

The Scott Jurek pack is billed as the more typical ultra pack, but really, the only difference between this and the Anton Krupicka pack is a bit of carrying capacity. When it comes down to it, the Scott Jurek vest is also very “minimal,” you know, for a non-minimalist piece of gear. I’m still not sure if you could fit all the UTMB requirements in this guy.

The PB Adventure Vest

The “I don’t know who you are” (Peter Bakwin) pack is billed towards FKT through-hike guys. Think FKT on the John Muir Trail, the Long Trail, the Superior Hiking Trail, or the like. I’m really not sure how big this thing really is or whether it’s realistically too big for a UTMB pack or if this IS the UTMB pack. I’m not much of a fast-packer, though I’d like to be. The only through-hikers I know (aside from my new donut-running compadre Jake Hoffman and planned SHT FKT-attempter and TCRC bigwig Kurt Decker) of are Barkley guys (Brett Maune is kind of ridiculous, btw). I’d actually love to get my hands on one of these to try out.


THE COMPETITION

With apologies to Nathan and Camelbak, prior to Ultimate Direction's Signature Series launch, my pack-of-choice has been Salomon's Advanced Skin S-Lab 5. I've had the Nathans HPL #020, the Camelbak Octane XCT, and the Salomon XT Wings 5, but none compared to the Advanced Skin S-Lab 5 in any way.

Pros:
Low profile--fits well under a jacket
The fit is perfect--my first wear was 103.3 miles, shirtless, without issue

Cons:
Runs hot--really traps in heat in warmer temps
Clasps can be difficult to snap on and off
Sharp gel edges eventually rub through the front-pocket material
Filling, though easier than other bladders, is still a challenge, especially when the pack is stuffed full

THE REVIEW

My first thoughts of the Ultimate Direction pack, unwrapping it, was that it was very light (7.5 ounces without bottles), much lighter than the Salomon Advanced Skin S-Lab 5 (10.5 ounces without the bladder). The material seemed much more breathable, and hopefully won't trap as much heat in, though it's damn cold out in Minnesota in December and January, so I won't know about that whole "trapping heat in" until much, much later. At least it feels like this pack won't run as warm.

The bottles, combined, hold 40 ounces of water, 10 ounces less than the standard capacity of the Salomon pack. If that's an issue, you can always throw another handheld in the back or even slip in a bladder, as the pack has interior components to hold the bladder and route a hose. One issue with the handhelds, though, is that they protrude out too far to realistically put a jacket on over the pack, which, in the extreme cold, can be a problem, as one of my favorite things about the Salomon pack is that it fits close enough to wear under a jacket.

First Run

My first run with the pack was a 20-mile run around the lakes in Minneapolis, and boy did I get some looks. "Hello! My eyes are up here ladies!" A few people even stopped me to ask what kind of pack this was, which had never really happened before with a new piece of gear.

For the run, I filled one bottle full, another half full, slid them into their pouches, threw two gels in two of the four pockets next to the bottles (four gels overall), tightened the elastic strings around the bottles, and took off. The first few miles, I hated this thing.

First issue: The bottles were bouncing something fierce. The half-full bottle tried jumping out of the pouch every so often--the faster you ran, the worse it got. At a 10-minute pace, they were OK. At a 7-something pace, they were completely awful. I was ready to empty the bottles out of sheer frustration until, at a stop light, I realized I could stretch the elastic cord over the top of the bottles to better lock them in place. Just like that, the pack was saved. Night and day difference, really.

Second issue: I lost two of the gels in the first mile of running, one from each pocket. Apparently, with two gels in a pocket, the lack of friction between the gels causes one of the gels to catapult out. It happened in each pocket I had gels in. One gel per pocket worked fine, though, and I didn't try three. With four pockets, one on each side of each bottle holder, this doesn't seem to be too big a problem.

The good: This pack is ridiculously comfortable, very easy to get on and off, the buckles are adjustable and extremely easy to adjust and clasp, bottles are ridiculously easy to fill, and the storage capacity at the rear is pretty darn good, actually, with the SJ vest having separate compartments in the main body of the pack. For the first run, I had a second, warmer pair of gloves and a shell stashed away in one pocket and my emergency baggie (toilet paper, tums, tylenol, advil, s-caps, band-aids, and tape) in the second. Everything cinches up quite well. Nothing bounces.

Later that night, though, a third issue developed: My back hurt something fierce. One bad thing about the bottles up front, when there's nothing else in the back, that's a lot of weight pulling where most guys aren't used to having weight pulling. Easy solution though, either even it out with weight in the back, take some weight off the front, or a bit of both.

Second Run

My next run with the pack was 16 miles at Afton State Park (just steer clear the groomed cross country tracks) with my brother and Jason LaPlant. For this run, I put one bottle up front and the other in one of the pockets at the rear. Again, no bouncing at all, and what do you know, no back pain! Another benefit: It was darn cold out this day, near-zero temps, but I had water all day, whereas the hose on my brother's Camelbak froze up within the first half-hour of running. The nipple on the bottle up front started icing over a few hours into the run, but I was always able to unscrew the cap and drink open-mouthed. After a few hours, I switched it out with the full bottle at the rear, which, being out of the wind and close to my back, stayed ice-free.

First bottle up front

Second bottle in the rear

RECAP

All said, I really like the Ultimate Direction SJ Ultra pack. Most mid-distance runs (12-20 miles), I end up just putting a bottle in the back and taking a drink when I stop, leaving the pockets up front for my phone or whatever else. I like having that "just in case" gear along, especially on remote runs in the cold, and not ever having to fumble with a bladder or hose has really been nice.

Pros:
Comfortable
Light, and hopefully cool
Hassle-free, easy on and off
Bottles don't freeze-up in the cold

Cons:
Limited water capacity
Back pain with all the weight up front
Bottles protrude too much to wear under a jacket, and bounce when not strapped down

I'm not sure if this will replace the Salomon pack in my arsenal, but I have found myself using it more than the Salomon pack lately. As to whether or not Tony K sold out pitching these packs, I have no idea, but I like them.

Next up, I missed at the UTMB lottery, completing my year of lottery failures, and I've got a Goofy story to tell you about.

New Custom Blog Header!

I logged onto my Facebook yesterday to find that John Storkamp had updated Rocksteady Running's Spring Superior 25k/50k race page with new content, including a FANTASTIC custom image of yours truly gracing one of the headers!

Jennifer Pierce snapped this picture at 2012's Spring Superior 50k heading into Oberg on the way back to Caribou Highlands. I remember saying hello to her as I ran by. Her husband, Zach Pierce, is usually behind the lens, but he was running that day, and Jen is quite the photographer in her own right. 

Incidentally, 2013 Spring Superior opens on January 15th. Remember to register early! The race is a fantastic one, and it will fill up early. The Superior Hiking Trail is gorgeous, and the race brings you from Caribou Highlands in Lutsen south on the trail to the top of Carlton Peak before turning around and heading back. 

What most amazed me, though, was how much John took Jen's picture and ran with it. He's quite the graphic artist, and does quite a bit of design work in addition to his second-to-none race directing in the fairer months (Zumbro, Spring Superior, Afton, Fall Superior, etc.) and his own racing, including pulling sleds for hundreds of miles in the winter (3-time Arrowhead 135 winner, 2013 Tuscobia 150 winner, also running 2013 Arrowhead on January 28th and the 350-mile Iditarod Trail Invitational on February 24, 2013) as well as running every other race distance known to man in the fairer months (see his UltraSignup/Athlinks).

Check out Jen's original pic here:

And John's voodoo magic here:

I'm still blown away at how great this picture is, and not just because the runner in the picture is so darn good looking. Many thanks, John! Plus, it's always neat to see yourself on one of your favorite race websites, too. For me, this is just neat all-around!

Oh, last bit of news! I just ran a half-marathon PR today, and got to meet Frank Shorter at the Disney Marathon Expo on Thursday! More on those later. 

Lottery Luck

I have no lottery luck.

This may sound like I'm whining, but at this point, I'm actually kind of amused. You'd think that there wouldn't be so many other "crazies" out there that this would be a problem, but let me tell you a little about what I have to go through to run in the events of my choosing in this "sport" of mine.

For 2012, I registered for two lotteries: Western States and Hardrock. My odds for getting into each were low, I don't recall the exact numbers, but less than 5% per (probably much less). Being the hopeful optimist, though, I imagined the nightmare of getting into both races, and how delightfully fantastic that would be. When the lottery days came and went, I felt deflated. It wasn't as though I actually thought I was going to get in, I knew the odds, but I hoped, and I lost.

Thus far, for 2013, I've registered for 5 lotteries: HURT, Western States, Hardrock, the Barkley, and UTMB. In short, so far, I've missed HURT, Western States, Hardrock, and the Barkley. The UTMB selection looms.

According to Run100s.com, there are 110 100-mile races in North America. RealEndurance.com has ranked a majority of these races from easiest to hardest, each having a percentage with respect to Western States, which is arbitrarily set at 100%.

According to RealEndurance, the "easiest" 100-mile races in the states, in order, are:

82% Keys 100, Key West, Florida
82% Heartland 100, Cassoday, Kansas
82% Umstead 100*, Raleigh, North Carolina
82% Iron Horse 100, St. Paul, Alabama
82% Boulder 100, Boulder, Colorado
83% Lean Horse 100**, Hot Springs, South Dakota
83% Rocky Raccoon 100***, Huntsville, Texas
87% Vermont 100, West Windsor, Vermont

*Wesley Rolnick, you're on notice.
**Made sure to get this far down just to make Jordan Hanlon's 2013 Race Schedule look "light."
***Misty Schmidt is a rockstar Sawtooth finisher now, so I can't give her crap.

In contrast, the 3 "hardest" 100-mile races are:

270% Barkley Marathons, Frozen Head State Park, Tennessee

"Meaningless Suffering Without A Point. The entry procedure is secret. There is no official website. This is not the official website. It is not listed on any calendar. You have to email the race director on a certain day of the year. The race will fill up on that day." RealEndurance 

159% Hardrock Hundred Endurance Run, Silverton, Colorado

"The Hardrock 100 connects or passes near the old mining towns of Silverton, Lake City, Ouray, Telluride and Ophir. With a total elevation gain of approximately 33,000 ft and an average elevation at near tree line of 11,186 ft, the Hardrock 100 peaks out at over 14,000 ft on Handles Peak, one of Colorado�s 14ers." RealEndurance 

128% HURT 100, Honolulu, Hawaii

"A very tough, multiple lap (5) course on muddy, rooted and rocky single-track trails in a mountainous rainforest. Nearly 25,000 feet of ascent and descent." RealEndurance

A little lower on the list is:

111% Superior Sawtooth 100, Lutsen, Minnesota

UTMB isn't ranked on RealEndurance, though I imagine it'd compare to Hardrock.

So, for the record, my five lottery entries this year include Western States, the grandaddy of them all--the race that every other race is judged against, and then 4 of the most difficult 100-mile races around. Fun stuff, eh?

Now, my lottery luck.

The Barkley

In my last post, the 2013 Race Schedule, I wrote,

"There's a monster of a race that I'm toying with the idea of signing up for, and looking at the remaining lotteries and open registration dates, August and September are still a bit in flux." 

That "monster" is the Barkley. I was being coy, ambiguous on purpose, trying to drop a hint without actually coming out with it, and I don't really know why. This came up with a non-running friend tonight, after telling him about the "race" that "only 13 runners out of about 900 have finished within the 60-hour cutoff," and it prompted me to really try and figure this out.

I think I'm embarrassed, maybe even scared, to admit that I'm applying to this "race." With only 35 entrants per year, who am I to think that I should be selected to run the Barkley?

I say it on this blog all the time, that "I'm still trying to become a runner," and I'm absolutely not kidding. In no way, shape, or form do I have this running thing down pat. All my times are pedestrian, complete middle-of-the-pack times, and I'm learning new things ALL. THE. TIME. For instance, I just recently realized that I hadn't been using my glutes enough in my running to actually get anywhere "quickly." (Watch this fantastic instructional video on natural running by Dr. Mark Cucuzzella, Director of the Natural Running Center.) It's insane how much I'm still probably doing wrong, but hey, I love learning about it.

So, why am I embarrassed about publicly admitting that I'm applying for the Barkley? Because the entrants to the Barkley are, for the most part, complete STUDS (or STUD'ettes), and I'm, well, me.

For example, past entrants of the Barkley include:

• Brett Maune, current John Muir Trail FKT (Fastest Known Time), current Mount Whitney FKT, current Barkley CR (Course Record) holder, only ever 2-time Barkley finisher
• Jared Campbell, 5th-ever finisher of Nolan's 14, 7-time Hardrock finisher (5 sub-30 hr finishes, first place 2010)
• John Fegyveresi, Appalachian Trail, Pacific Coast Trail, Badwater finisher
• Blake Wood, 17-time Hardrock finisher (first place 1999), 14:51 Rocky Racoon 100M, 2nd-ever Nolan's 14 finisher
• David Horton, former Appalacian Trail FKT, Transcontinental Crossing, former Long Trail FKT, former Pacific Coast Trail FKT, 4-time Hardrock finisher (first place 1992, 1993), 17-time JFK finisher (first place 1995)
• Cave Dog Ted Keizer, former Long Trail FKT, current Colorado 14ers speed record, numerous other Mountain speed records
• Mike Tilden, 3-time Hardrock finisher, Badwater finisher, 1st-ever Nolan's 14 finisher
• Jim Nelson, finished Nolan's 14 2:09 above 60-hr cutoff
• Flyin' Brian Robinson, Hardrock finisher, first to hike Appalachian, Continental Divide, and Pacific Crest Trails in same year
• Andrew Thompson, former Appalachian Trail FKT
• Johnathan Basham, former Colorado Trail FKT, Long Trail FKT, Hardrock finisher
• Eric Clifton, 20-time JFK finisher (4-time winner), Badwater winner, 13:16 Rocky Raccoon 100M

And this is just a few! There's more. It's just completely sick.

Now, I don't consider myself in the same universe of athlete as these amazing people. Why on earth should Laz (Barkley's RD) let me into the Barkley? The simple answer is that, based on my bio, he shouldn't. As stated above, I'm a middle-of-the-pack runner. I've never gotten into, let alone finished Western States, HURT, or Hardrock (though not for lack of trying). I've never through-hiked a single trail (though I have a strong desire to take out the Superior Hiking Trail SOON). But I want the Barkley. I want it... badly.

Thoughts of the Barkley haunt my dreams. It’s consumed me. It terrifies me, and because of that, I need to do it. There’s this saying,

"We stopped checking for monsters under our beds when we realized they were inside us." 

The only way to stop this unending unease is to look under the bed and make the nightmare my reality. I'm not afraid of the dark, of the nightmares, of what's hiding under the bed, but maybe I should be.

Bukowski said that,

"We are here to laugh at the odds and live our lives so well that Death will tremble to take us."

Consider my applying for the Barkley as doing my best.

I guess I've realized that it's not my job to question whether or not I should be selected to run. My only job is to apply.

2013 Race Schedule

The bad news: I struck out again at Western States and Hardrock. It's an ongoing theme for many, many more people than just me. 

The good news: My 2013 race schedule is a bit clearer. Cross Hardrock off my list, as well as any other Rocky Mtn and Grand Slam Races this year--well, kinda.

So yeah, about that good news, things are still pretty murky.  

There's a monster of a race that I'm toying with the idea of signing up for, and looking at the remaining lotteries and open registration dates, August and September are still a bit in flux.

The Flux

I challenge any ultrarunner to watch the TNF helicopter coverage of the 2011 UTMB and not want to run that race. You'd have to hate sugar and freedom to see that and say, "meh." And because I know that ultrarunners love sugar and freedom, every ultrarunner should want to run UTMB.  

The issue: UTMB takes place Aug 30, 2013. Registration opened Dec 19th and runs through Jan 8th, with a lottery on Jan 20th (if necessary--and it should be). Ok, by itself, that's not an issue, but if I can't run UTMB in 2013, I kind of want to run Leadville on Aug 17th and then Superior three weeks later on Sept 6th. Leadville is a first-come, first-serve registration event for the last time this year, which means if I want to run it, and I want to know that I can run it, I need to sign up for it this year, and sign up early, weeks before the Jan 20th UTMB lottery, but winning the UTMB lottery likely means no Leadville OR Superior for 2013. Do you see the quandry?  

Yes, there's a chance that the Leadville registration slowly fills and that I'll be able to closely monitor it and maybe even hold out until after the UTMB lottery, but that's all a bunch of crap, because last year (from what I can tell) the race sold out in 3 days. 

Further issue: Leadville costs $275 and I'm not sure there's a refund policy, which means that if I get in to UTMB, that $275 Leadville registration would be like a donation do the UTMB gods. That'd be all fine, well, and good if the profits from Leadville's race went to the trail, but no. I imagine Lifetime Fitness isn't the greatest trail steward out there (please correct me if I'm wrong).  

Further further issue: UTMB isn't easy to qualify for. There's a selected list of races that award points towards qualification, and the race requires 7 points from 3 races. Superior awards 4 pts/per, and you can go back 2 years. I guess, if I don't get into UTMB and run Superior in 2013, that, with my 2012 Superior, will get me the points I need for 2014.  

The Known

My good friend Jason LaPlant got in to Western States, and unless he shoots me in the foot, I plan on heading to Squaw Valley with him in to pace or crew, whatever he wants from me. I'm uber excited to just go and experience the Western States vibe, and getting to run on the course, either before or after the race, or pacing during, will be an adventure! But, Western means no Black Hills this year, which means no Gnarly Bandit attempt for 2013, which I'm fine with. I'd much rather be at Western helping my friend go sub-30.

The Calendar

So, tentatively, the calendar looks like this:

Goofy Challenge Jan 12 & 13

Zumbro 100 April 12

Chippewa 50k April 27

MinnesotaIronman 100-mile Bike April 28

Superior 50k May 18

Kettle 100 OR FANS 24-Hour June 1

Western States June 29 (Pace/Crew)

Afton 50k July 6

SpeedGoat 50k July 27

Leadville 100 Aug 17
UTMB 100 Aug 30

Superior 100 Sept 6

Bear 100 Sept 27

WildDuluth 100k Oct 19

JFK 50 Nov 16 (May 1 Reg)

Non-Races

There are other runs I'd like to do sometime, too, like the R2R2R, the Zion Traverse, some time at Yosemite, the Grand Tetons, in the Sawatch range, or the San Juans. I'd love to spend some more time on the SHT, too. I've got big eyes for this stuff. Hopefully I get to wet my lips with at least some of it.