Road to 100k

 With the fact that I've been able to run and walk successfully all of two days, it might seem a be preposterous that I've just signed up for a 100k. More so, when I reflect that I only was really able to run maybe 4 solid months last year between injuries and illness. And even more so knowing I have an unreliable body that likes to fail periodically and sometimes loses the ability to eat. 

But, nonetheless, last night I signed up for the Tahoe Rim Trail 100k race. My very first 50k back in 2008 was the Tahoe Rim Trail 50k, and the highs I felt in that race have never faded. Last year, I backpacked in the mountains for the first time in Tahoe and ran Broken Arrow, and again felt the magic of that place. And so I've decided to be brave. Maybe a little foolish, or foolhardy as well, but life is short. There is no guarantee that I'll have another summer after this one for running adventures. To be honest, it's a leap of faith to think my body can hold it together the next 8 months to put together a solid training block. But, I'm ready to jump.

24 hours later, I can't stop smiling about having a loud, audacious goal on the calendar. The race has a 24 hour time limit, but technically I could count as an unofficial finisher as long as I finish by the end of the 100 miler race, in 36 hours. All I've got to do is keep moving. 

So, technically, my race training started yesterday. Right now I'm run/walking 2 miles in 3 minute intervals. And I'm going to build this base, brick by brick. The positive of starting over so many times is I've gotten better and better at it. I know I can't rush it, and I need to actually include strength training and yoga, and take care of my body on all the levels. Good fuel, good rest, good relaxation. 

I'm planning on a summer of adventure and am going to do everything I can to get myself there. Only 143 days to go!

6 Years at a Glance

 It's been ages since I've used this blog, another 6 years, and this writing style has fallen by the wayside. Nowadays everything seems focused on clickbait titles and selling a story, versus a place to share a journal about your life. On the plus side, I can start using this without thinking too much about an audience. 

The last 6 years have been bumpy, to say the least. I ended up getting very sick, getting a feeding tube, and then almost dying when that stopped working. And while I had a surgery that is offering a temporary fix, odds are that my issues will return in the next 4-5 years, 10 if I'm lucky. My two years of illness has also meant that I still struggle with multiple chronic health issues that add a lot of complexity to trying to be a runner, de-railing me, it feels like, every time I get started again. 

Yet, I haven't given up yet. I ran my first race post sickness in 2022, Rodeo Beach 1/2 marathon, and my first ultra, Quicksilver 50k in May 2024, followed by the Golden Gate 50k in November. Then, a freak slip at home led to a broken kneecap and 4 months off running (and on crutches for 2 of them). I recovered, rebuilt, and ran Broken Arrow 23k in July, felt on top of the world, only to be hit by a crippling Fibromyalgia flare, and subsequent gastroparesis flare, that sidelined me for 3 months. And then after 2 weeks of recovery, bronchitis and asthma flare. 

It short, I have been a mess. A less stubborn person would take it as a sign and just stop trying to be a runner. But I'm wildly stubborn. And I love getting to feel like a strong person, increasingly so when I have so many stretches where my body isn't my own. where I'm stuck in bed and can barely move and the easiest things are hard. The drive to feel that strength keeps me going.