#41 Lawrence, KS 11.9.19

Sanders Saunter 50k

Return to glory! After my DNF at the Hawk, I took time to recover. Had some Graston done on my hamstring tendons and started working on my strength. Also, hired Coleen and Leia as my coaches. I was on top of nutrition, the weather was ideal. I ran with Peter the entire race and finshed with my second fastest 50k of 6:26.

#40 Lawrence, KS 6.29.19

Night Hawk 50k

I took this one for granted. While I've DNFed it in the past, I've completed it many more times. I got behind on my electrolytes, and on the the third loop I felt miserable. I was running with Yvonne, and she calmed me down, diagnosed the situation, and at Lands End got me the electrolytes and nutrition I needed to spring back. I took a little nap, recovered, and she and I crushed the last four miles for my slowest 50k of 8:48.

#39 Whitewater, WI 6.1.19 (17 in 50, 50 NHC)

Kettle Moraine 100

Scott picked this race for his first hundo! The timing worked out perfect for me, in that this race would complete my portion of the New Hampshire Compulsion. Scott and I ran the race together syncing up at every aid station. Gorgeous trails! Aid stations every 5 miles or less, with professional-level volunteers. We had an amazing crew of Bob, JD, Peter, and Yvonne. We couldn’t have asked for a better race.

The start of the race was humid and still, then we had a thunderstorm come through late Saturday afternoon and turn the trails to sloppy, sloshy, slippery mud. The weather turned beautiful Sunday morning as our full crew ran us in for the last 7.6 miles.

Peter and I were lucky to get to run 2 miles with the former race director, Jason Dorgan, as he was starting the Fun Run - the last 38 miles of the course that you can start anytime after 5:50 pm. Fun swag and extremely well-organized event. 298 starts, 166 finishers, Scott and I were 117th and 118th with a time of 28:24:13. Tremendous experience!

#38 Meriden, KS 4.27.19

Free State 40 Miler

Great training run for Kettle Moraine. The weather for 2019 was perfect! The support from the aid stations was awesome. Bob and I ran a conservative 40 miler and finished strong. Scott and I had a chance to discuss the race a week later on our big loop long run. Huge Wyco Wolfpack showing at the race. I finished 6th with a time of 9:06.

#37 Olathe, KS 4.13.19 (45 NHC)

Garmin Marathon

Pacing gig for the 4:45 group. Beautiful day. Started a bit cold, but with no wind, it made for great running. The course was relatively flat, and I helped Bill get a new PR. This was his third year running the marathon and last year he finished in 4:48. We got him in with an official time of 4:43:20.

#36 Lawrence, KS 4.9.19 (44 NHC)

Pi Day River Rotation - Answer to Everything

My first win! That's right, I won this race. The Pi Day Race Series Answer to Everything is a same-day stage race involving the combined time of 3 races: a 5k, a marathon, and a half marathon. My combined time was 8:18:05. I owe a lot of it to luck and a little bit of it to starting slow. I'm a huge fan of taking the first 3-10 miles and just going easy and warming up.

Only 11 of us signed up to run all three races, and thanks to some purely nasty weather, only 3 of us started that third race after completing the marathon. My finish in each of the three races was mid-pack to back-of-the-pack, but my slow start left me plenty of gas in the tank to slow down the least for the last race.

#35 Memphis, TN 12.1.18 (43 NHC)

St. Jude Marathon

This was by far the most inspiring race I've ever participated in, because it was the first time I ran with a purpose beyond personal achivement. I ran to honor Amelia Meyer and raise money for St. Jude. Huge thanks to my 57 donors that gave $3,056!

Over 26,000 runners participate in one of the four races - 5k, 10k, Half, and Marathon. The race weekend managed to raise $11.2 million for St. Jude.

We had thunderstorms throughout the night before, and the start time was delayed twice. Once the night before, and once again in the morning. A light sprinkle remained in the air until about 20 minutes before the new 9 am start.

The forecast was for the temperate to rise to the low 70s by noon. What little training I had been doing was in much lower temperatures - 20s and 30s. But the heat is my friend. And I embraced the mantra of hydrating early and often. Which worked well for me. I had an awesome race finishing 9th in my age group and 254th out of 2,087 finishers. My time was 3:55:36.

The Course The course starts off down hill to the riverfront. Then pops uphill to go through the downtown and over to the St. Jude campus. WOW! That’s emotional. Volunteers, families, and patients out on the street cheering on runners.

We leave the campus and run towards the Memphis pyramid, and back down to the river front. And then head east out to some beautiful residential areas and to do a loop through Overton park. Then back downtown to finish and celebrate at a wonderful after party in Autozone Park.

#34 Shawnee, KS 9.30.18 (42 NHC)

I Double Ogg Dare You

Team Sparkle Productions (two crazy unicorns Coleen and Lei) hosted an insane timed endurance event where the goal was to run up and down the steep hill on Ogg Road as many times as you could in 6 hours. I was well rested off a strong spring and summer and had an awesome day, placing 3rd place male and 9th overall with 29.7 miles. Love the social aspect of this race.

#33 West Windsor, VT 7.21.18 (16 in 50, 41 NHC)

Vermont 100 Endurance Race

My first 100 miler! JD, Keith, and Scott crewed and paced Bob and me. Vermont is part of the Grand Slam of Ultrarunning and brought a huge range of elites and runners from all around the world. The race starts a 4 am, so we decided to take advantage of the free onsite camping and slept in the giant field next to the starting line.

When we woke at 2:45ish, the entire tent city was starting to come to life. The stars! The sky was clear, and there was no light pollution on this remove Vermont farm other than other runners headlamps. It was a stunning way to start the day.

Being a horse race at the same time, it’s fun to see the horse come along and pass you. They are so majestic and powerful. At the race briefing we were told the horses will pass you on the uphills, and you will pass them on the downhills. My experience was I only passed them when they took significant time in a aid station.

I had a great race for the first 60 miles, then I started having some stomach issues. Between 70 and 80, JD was pacing me and I really slowed down. Bob and Scott caught us and all four us crossed the finish line as the sun was rising for the second time. Finished in 25:31:34, 21st in my age group, out of 50 starters and 40 finishers. Watch the video race report.

#32 Lawrence, KS 6.30.18 (37 NHC)

Night Hawk 50k

Treated this as a training run for Vermont 100, so Bob and I ran 7 miles prior to the race. Coleman joined us for that pre-race loop. Catch his weather forecast on the video recap. As I was wrapping up the first loop, a thunderstorm rolled in. As I came into the main aid station, the volunteers were struggling to keep the cover from blowing away and to keep the food and supplies dry. They also let us know they weren't letting us back out on the course. I started to get the shivers, so I went to my car and got a dry shirt and my rain jacket. After about 20 minutes, it let up and they let us continue. I felt like crap at that point - bad headache and grumbly stomach. Dan and Coleman gave me some ibuprofen, tums and swift encouraging kick in the bum. I'm so glad they were there. I walked the next 3 miles, but kept moving. Stomach and head cleared up and ended up with a solid night race. Finished with Stuart Johnson in 7:55. While that's a new slowest 50k for me, it's still faster than my slowest marathon - Pike's Peak.

#31 Meriden, KS 4.21.18 (36 NHC)

Free State 100k

Free State earned the title of being my favorite race at Lake Perry for the simple reason of the Boondocks Aid Station. On the 50k and 50 miler loops there are only one aid station at Kimberly. But when Bad Ben increases the mileage from a 16 mile loop up to 20, he adds a second aid station, and because you do a brief out and back between the two, you hit both aid stations twice. That means you have 4 aid station stops on a 20 mile loop versus 1 aid station on a 16 mile loop. Huge difference. Especially when the added aid station is stocked with beer, pizza, sandwiches, burritos, and did I mention beer? The weather was near perfect. Light rain throughout the day and mild at night. I played with my nutrition only drinking water (and a little beer) and only eating real foods, mostly sweet potatoes and tortillas with humus and avocado. Ran with Bob for about two thirds of the race and finished in 15:27. Added another buckle to my collection.

#30 Blanchard Springs, AR 3.17.18 (34 NHC)

Day Two of 3 Days of Syllamo 50 Miler

Ran the entire day with Bob. Brutal day of elevation and glorious day of weather and stunning vistas. I face-planted hard, earned a few blisters, got a little dehydrated, and had the best time running. Bob kept us moving with scenes from "Star Wars" and persuasive argument to watch "Naked Lunch." Dan was incredible crew meeting us at every aid station, keeping us fueled and hydrated, and encouraging us to keep going. Finished in 12:59 with plenty of time before the sun set.

#29 Blanchard Springs, AR 3.16.18

Day One of 3 Days of Syllamo 50k

Fast and fun! The weather was cloudy and in the 50s, ideal for running. I had plenty of engery througout, even though I was saving myself for the 50 miler on the next day, and surprised myself with a new 50k PR of 6:07.

#28 New River, AZ 2.17.18 (15 in 50, 31 NHC)

Black Canyon 100k

Big-time race hosted by Aravaipa Running on the ancient Black Canyon trails. Gorgeous point-to-point that was extremely well supported (including portapotties at many of the aid stations). Out of the 435 starting racers for the 100k, 352 finished, and I placed 229 which was 163 for my age group and 1 for Missouri residents. I struggled with dehydration, but managed to troubleshoot, recover and finish strong. My finish time of 15:44:40 qualified for Vermont 100 and earned me a lottery ticket for Western States.

Psycho Psummer Run Toto Run

Heat and humidity are my ultimate ultra marathon foes. The 2017 Psycho Psummer Run Toto Run provided me the perfect opportunity to confront them face to face. This was the third time I’ve run this race. The 20-miler in 2014 was my first trail race as Bruce and I were prepping for Pikes Peak Marathon. I volunteered at the race in 2015 (which was super lucky because it was miserably muddy that year). Then I ran the 50k LY and again this year. The heat this year was the worst, leading to my finish of 7:40:48 - my new slowest 50k.

#26 Lawrence, KS 6.24.17

Night Hawk 50k

I first attempted the Night Hawk 50k in 2016. I decided to run it the morning of the race. I was trying to impress Chris by running an ultra between the times I saw him Saturday morning and again on Sunday night. That was the first of two bad decisions. The second was to quit the race after 10 miles. Sure it was humid, the bugs were awful, and I kept tripping in the dark, but there was nothing physically wrong with me. I was just mentally defeated.

About three days after dropping out of the race, I started regretting my decision. So I had 362 days to plan and prepare for the race in 2017. I wanted redemption! I conditioned myself by spending as much time in the humidity as I could. I tested using a handheld light instead of a headlamp to see if it reduced bugs to the face. It does! I ran in the dark to get used to tripping. I was ready. I redeemed myself and helped Brooke finish her first 50k. She has worse decision making skills than me, but she has truckload of grit. Finish time was 6:58:53.

#25 Lincoln, NE 5.7.17 (14 in 50)

Lincoln Marathon

Flat, fast and hot. First half is a loop, second half is an out and back. Paced with my buddy Bob for the 4:30 group. Heat got to me and I throw up as soon as I crossed the finish line with a time of 4:32:25. I hope they got a picture of that.

#24 Meredin, KS 4.15.17

Free State 40 Miler

What a crazy run! The weather in my first 100k attempt went from a risk of overheating to a risk of hypothermia. And while the mother of all thunderstorms caused my finish line to come 2 miles early, I couldn't be more proud of my race and thrilled with the experience. Big thanks to my outstanding pacer Ashley for keeping me moving and in high spirits during my third 20-mile loop. And what a pleasure it was to spend many miles with my new trail running buddy Rob. The record reflects a drop to 40. No buckle, no hat, no regrets.

#23 St. Louis, MO 4.8.17

St. Louis Go! Marathon

Fun course going through downtown St. Louis. I stayed at my sister Melissa's house and she and Korn (of Flying Pig fame) drove me down to the race and cheered me on. My mom and step-dad also came down to cheer me one. It was pretty cool, well except for the heat and humidity which made the race a tough one. I was pacing the 4:20 group and had a bad cramp in my foot the last four miles. Ended up barely finishing in front of the 4:30 pace team with a time of 4:31:30.

#22 Blanchard Springs, AR 3.18.17 (13 in 50, 24 NHC)

3 Days of Syllamo 50 miler

A group of 10 trail runners stayed in a two room cabin to participate in different stages of the 3 Days of Syllamo. My buddy Bob and I completed day 2, the 50 miler. It was my second 50 miler and by far the tougher of the two. Some serious elevation. Bob and I managed to make it just before the sun set in 12:15:04.

#21 Kansas City, KS 2.25.17

Psycho Wyco Run Toto Run 50k

Back on my home turf! The weather was fantastic, I started slow and got faster each loop. I set a new 50k PR of 6:32:34 finishing 77 out of 133 finishers and 159 starts. I was only lapped by Kaci Lickteig once.

#20 Overland Park, KS 11.13.16

Gobbler Grind

One of the most inspirational marathons I’ve run. As a pacer, I stayed with two first-timers and helped encourage one to keep pushing to the finish line. The course is essentially an out and back with a four-mile loop in the middle. I finished 148th out of 219 finishers with a time of 4:43:55. We split with the over 800 half marathoners around mile nine. It has decent variety and is mostly on paved trails. With a modest 480 feet of elevation, I think this is a course I could potentially set a PR on.

#19 Kansas City, MO 10.15.16

KC Marathon

My first repeat. I ran the KC Marathon in 2013. That running is still my PR. I paced this race with the 4:50 group - finished at 4:50:37 as the trail pacer. Beautiful day. Fantastic course and tremendous support. They close down the big streets and have some bands along the way. Would love to see more crowd support and some solid food snacks along the way. Finished 799 out of 1,249 total finishers. Check out my buddy Bob’s and my post-race recap.

#18 St. Charles, MO 10.2.16

MO’ Cowbell Marathon

My first time pacing! I was responsible for the 4:30 group. I crossed the finish line at 4:28:32. Within 90 seconds of goal! I was thrilled, but the feedback from our pacer coordinator was, “Next time, try to finish closer to your goal time without going over – no biggie, but something to improve on for next time.” Flat course with good variety of scenery. Two distinct halves. First half is through St. Charles and New Town; second half is on the Katy Trail. Took a fun road trip with my daughter across the state and stayed at my mother-in-law’s house which was only eight blocks away from the starting line.

#17 Lawrence, KS 9.10.16 (18 NHC)

The Hawk Hundred 50 Mile

My first 50 miler! Sponsored by the Lawrence Trail Hawks, the Hawk Hundred is a race with about 150 runners and three distances: a marathon, 50 miles, and 100 miles. The 50 and 100 mile races are run on a 25-mile loop of trails along the north shore of Clinton Lake in Lawrence, Kansas.

The sixth annual running of it in September 2016 was on the alternate rain course which was run on an out and back section of campground roads through the Clinton Lake state park. The Race Director, Sherrie Klover, was devastated to have to make the call to run on pavement, but the views were decent and the support was exceptional.

SWAG include a Hawk Hundred drop bag, long-sleeve t-shirt, and finishers of the 50-mile race received a hand-crafted mug made by Matty Mullins. I had terrific running partners on this race, Ashley and Emily. Both 50-mile veterans, they had entertaining stories and helpful advice along the way. Emily's back was bothering her, but she managed to tough it out through a 50k. Ashley and I crossed the finish line at 10:16 finishing 18 and 19 out of 40 finishers.

Check out our complete journey in my video race report.

#16 Kansas City, KS 7.23.16

Psycho Psummer 50k

Three Trail Nerds ultras in a row! Super hot and super humid. This race is where I fell in love with the ice bandana. I ran it slow and stayed cool managing to avoid hitting a wall. I ate plenty of solids, several 33 Shake packets, and took a S cap every 30 minutes.

Finished in 7:36 and placed 38 out of 59 finishers which was out of 85 starts. In the winter version I placed 72th percentile and managed to move up to 64th percentile. SWAG included a bottle opener metal, beer glass, t-shirt and a trucker hat to give me a complete Psycho Wyco set.

See how I conquered the brutal heat in my video recap of the race.

Rock on Lake Perry 50k

It's a little race in terms of runners, and a long race in terms of kilometers. My second ultra and another Trail Nerds race. I'm keeping it local this year.

The hills are gentle, the pine forests are refreshing, the lake shore is breathtaking, and the ROCKS! The rocks are hard, the rocks are big, the rocks are sharp, the rocks are mean. They beat at your feet from every angle, but worse of all they are constantly reaching up smacking your toes and trying to take you down.

Even if you don't face plant, the the amount of contortions you have to do to stay upright raise your adrenaline, twist your back, and take your breath away. I'm going to have to work some more on my core before I run this one again, which I will in the fall. This spring the course was shortened because of muddy conditions, and we did it three times instead of the normal two loops. Regulars said the shorter course covers the best parts of the course, but it is nicer to do two loops instead of the monotony of three.

Finishing each loop you pop out of the woods and end up in a field of waste high native grasses where a quarter mile of mowed switch backs take you up a steep hill to the finish line a Branded B Camp. I knew this hill from running the half marathon back in the fall. I told myself, I was only running that hill once, not three times, so I walked it the first two times.

Debriefing the race afterwards with my friend Dennis, he said, "I figured walking it wasn't any fun either, so I might as well run it." In long distance races the better times don't necessarily go to the fastest runners, but to the runners who stop running the least. I finished 19th out of 37 finishers with a time of 6:53:31. Dennis finished 18th and was 11 minutes ahead of me. I think there maybe some merit to his approach. Plus looking at the GPS data afterwards, that is only 60 of elevation. Come on!

#14 Kansas City, KS 2.20.16

Psycho Wyco Run Toto Run 50k

My first ultra! The Run Toto Run 50k is the winter version of the Psycho Wyco hosted by the Trail Nerds. The race is mostly on bridle trails at Wyandotte County Lake Park with 4,263 feet of elevation. For the 50k, you run the same loop three times. That can get a little boring. And there are many hills that are too steep to run. From the bottom of the dam, to the entry of speed-demon ridge is a 220 ft climb. That's like walking up stairs in a 22 story building.

The weather for February was unusually warm - 70 degrees - which is not something I could train for in December and January leading up to the race. I logged plenty of miles and did regular squats and lunges training for the race. It paid off. While I hit the typical wall, it came a little later around mile 22, and I had pretty fast recovery. My goal was 7:30, so I was extremely pleased with 6:55:58 which was 73rd out of 101 finishers.

What sets Trail Nerds races apart from others is the quality of the volunteers. Friendly, supportive and here's the real difference, knowledgable. Not only are they willing do anything for you, they know what to do for you. Many are ultra runners between events, and there is great variety of food that you can get at the aid stations.

The SWAG included an awesome hoody, a sweet medal with an actual spinning tornado, and most impressively, a finisher's trucker hat. Hope to make this race an annual tradition.

#13 Elkton, MD 6.20.15 (12 in 50)

Big Elk Marathon

A two-loop trail marathon on mostly single-track trails through the woods, Big Elk reminded me of running on the local paths at Wyandotte County Lake Park - hilly and muddy with plenty of horse shit, yet also tranquil and stunning with dells of ferns.

I twisted my ankle on a rock around mile three. It smarted, and while I was able to walk it off, the tenderness revisited me throughout the race. Miles 9-11 were my darkest moments. My ankle was bothering me, my knee started to ache, and I started playing with the idea of quitting at a half. We had the option to simply cross the half marathon finish line at the end of lap one and call it a day. Thankfully, I gained my second wind around mile 12 and stayed to the right in the chute to continue on for lap number two.

Around 19, my knee really started hurting, so I walked a little, ran a little, walked a lot, ran a little more. I was in one of my walking modes with less than two miles to the finish line when two other runners came along and encouraged me to join them. I did and managed to run the last mile and a half. That social support was exactly what I needed and a powerful example of being stronger together than individually.

Since it was a gun-timed race, the three of us all finished with a time of 6 hours and 43 seconds. I managed to finish 56th (out of 70) and 3rd in my age group. One of the benefits of getting older is my peers are finally slowing down to my pace.

#12 Las Vegas, NV 3.7.15 (11 in 50)

Red Rock Canyon

My wife and I were on a trip to Las Vegas in the spring of 2008 when we heard about the breathtaking views of Red Rock Canyon and decided to explore it. The main drive through the park is a 13-mile horseshoe. I was training for the Potomac River Run (#3 below), so I saw this as an opportunity for a memorable long training run. Gina took the car and her camera, drove ahead, parked, hiked and snapped some pictures while I ran to where she parked and refueled on water and nutrition. We repeated that leap frog approach for the full loop.

During that run, I learned that the road runs uphill to the summit overlook which is about 5 miles in and at an elevation of 4,771. The view is stunning, but the climb is relentless. I registered for this marathon in 2014, but a patellofemoral syndrome injury prevented me from actually running it.

With a small field of runners and no spectators, this race pushes the boundaries of endurance physically and mentally. Marathon Maniacs and 50 Staters comprised many of my fellow runners as well as a few locals who love Calico Racing and their well organized events. I finished 53rd out of 103 finishers with a time of 4:38.

#11 Nashville, TN 11.23.14 (10 in 50)

The Harpeth Hills Flying Monkey Marathon

I learned about the Flying Monkey when my friends Chris and Jennie moved to Nashville. I researched nearby marathons and instantly loved this race director's demented sense of humor. "Running is stupid." It's limited to 300 participants, and last year, I missed the cut off, so I volunteered at the race. This year I won the weighted lottery and ran. It was warm for November (low 60s), but rainy and windy. However, the real pain came from the constant rolling hills. The sign at the top of the first big ascent read, "300ft climbed, 3,300 more to go." I took an enjoyable pace approach to this race. After crossing the finish line in 4:32, I had the following exchange with the race director.

Bob Ardrey Marathon

My friend Jerry suggested this as his first marathon because it was close to home and would offer some small-town hospitality. It was my smallest marathon yet with just 26 finishers (one for each mile). At the 20-mile aid station, I jokingly asked if I could catch the leader. One of the workers responded with "There are four or five ahead of you." I thought he was teasing me back, until I finished sixth. I managed to get back under four hours with 3:57 on this flat course.

Pikes Peak Marathon

While technically an out and back race, up and down would be accurate. Going up starts in Manitou Springs and climbs over 7,800 feet to the top of Pikes Peak. The first five miles are pretty congested - you're only as fast as the horde in front of you. As you get above the tree line, the air gets thinner making it difficult to breathe. It can take experienced runners 30 minutes to go a mile at the top. I took a little longer.

Crossing the halfway point at the summit felt as triumphant as Rocky bounding atop the art museum steps. The weather was ideal, and the view was spectacular. Coming down the air gets thicker and every step gets easier, at least they did at first. Around mile 23, my legs turned to spaghetti. Thankfully, my running partner, Bruce, was there to keep me going.

Of course, it was his idea that we run the second toughest marathon in the world. Once we cleared the trail, we still had a mile to go on pavement into town. As we approached the finish line, the announcer called out our bib numbers, hometowns and names. Eight hours and ten minutes of running, hiking, walking and shuffling led to an exhilarating experience and an awesome sense of accomplishment. I'm pretty proud of my new slowest marathon time... and my strongest negative split.

Flying Pig Marathon

Coming off Disney, I was training hard for Red Rock Canyon running 5-6 times a week, 30-50 miles, and because of all the snow and ice, a lot of that was on the treadmill. All that running on a belt along with an underdeveloped VMO led to patellofemoral syndrome where basically my knee cap was being pulled to the side and was rubbing against my thigh bone. So I canceled Red Rock, took a break, and began strength training.

As I added the miles back to my weekly training, the pain came back. Canceling Flying Pig was less of an option than Red Rock, because my sister was running it as her first marathon. I was going to go to support her whether I ran or not. Four weeks prior to the race, I decided to take a significant break and let my knee heal completely. I focused on walking and strength training, but no running. If I was was going to make it 26.2 miles, I would have to rely on my established base.

The plan worked. My endurance suffered (I walked more than ran the last six miles), but I finished Flying Pig with no significant knee pain in 4:53 which beat my slowest finish of 5:30. Cincinnati is a great town, and the crowd support was fantastic. While in town, I managed to reconnect with a friend I haven't seen in over 12 years. His wife was running the Half Marathon, so I joined them and their friends for an evening of carboloading. It was delightful.

And best of all, my sister completed her first marathon! We celebrated at Moerlein Lager House with some beer, burgers, and ice cream.