We Are Family

One of the greatest things about my experience in 2010 riding the LT 100 was all the fantastic like minded people that I met. I was sure that if I came back and did the ride I would be disappointed after such an amazing experience. Well, magnify that by 282.4 (the number of miles I need to cover to be a Leadwoman). The fellow Leadman competitors that I have had the privilege to meet and get to spend time with are all great people. 

We have only done one race so far but the camaraderie out on the course was immeasurable.  Sure we are all here for ourselves and our own goals but we all want each other to be successful as well. Everyone out there is there for a personal reason but that doesn't mean that we have forgotten how to by caring empathetic human beings. During the marathon I was relieved to see and hear that each of my Leadman friends were doing well. I wasn't able to rest easy until we were all across the finish line safe and sound. 

There are lots of athletes around but the Leadmen are a special group. We don't just get to run or bike, we are doing both. We need the fitness to do the 100 miles on a bike and turn around one week later and do 100 miles on the run. Our training is different than a single sport athlete. Things we do seem crazy to even people who are crazy enough to run 100 miles above 10,000ft. It is great when we can coordinate some group training and I have been fortunate to do it several times.

First trip up Hope Pass with Fellow Leadmen Chris and Swamp

Night run after the marathon with Pitbull and Swamp

Hammer fest on the 100 course with Catherine and Pitbull

There isn't much time for socializing and just hanging out when you are training for Leadman (unless you are Co Scotsman who does the majority of his training in the coffee shop) so most of our socializing is done on the trail. 

"You discover more about a person in a hour of play than in a year of conversation'. 

On Saturday while I was out training on the 100 mile run course, this happened to my ankle

 Not exactly what you want your ankle to look like a week out from a 50 mile Mt bike race. Peoples actions speak volumes above words. Yesterday I had 5 different Leadman competitors drop by to help me with walking the dog, visiting me, brining me ankle braces, dropping off ibuprofen, offering to get groceries for me, providing me words of wisdom and just checking up on me and keeping me company while I convalesced. I feel very blessed to be part of this group of people. We are not competitors we are family and although we all have individual goals, we are all in this together. Thanks for being in my Leadman family to Chris, Andy, Catherine, Willie and Stephen. I hope our family keeps growing and on August 18th we are having a big family reunion at the finish line! 

40 is the new 20

When you turn 40 they (not sure who 'they' are and why 'they' are experts on this) tell you that it is the new 30. That may be true, unless you enter the world of ultra running. Here being in your 40's and beyond as a woman is even better than you could imagine. These woman are rocking it out. My last 50km had a woman in her 80's running! How many 20 year olds even do that?

Last week 40 was an important number to me. Not because I was turning 40 years old, no that ship has sailed. It was because I was doing a 40 mile training run. Now if you would have told me a year ago that I would be doing a 40 mile training run I would have laughed at you. If I met someone who told me that they went out and did a 40 mile trail run for training I would have been in awe. Well, now I can look in the mirror and be in awe. Not because I think I am awesome or think I am doing anything extraordinary but because I am slowing taming the monster. What once was super scary and really unfathomable is becoming my every day reality. I am slowing chipping away at it, one mile at a time. And guess what? I am having so much fun!

A friend asked me why I am doing this. It's not an unusual question, but usually if someone asks there aren't enough words to explain it. I guess it is because I enjoy working towards something that seems out of reach. Making a plan and executing it and being flexible enough to make adjustments. Testing my limits and finding that they are so much further than I could ever imagine. I'm sure my limits will be stretched extensively from now until the finish line of the Leadman competition.

A year ago 20 miles was a long training run for me. Today 40 is the new 20:)