Now, before I start this post at all, I really want it to be more 'telling about', rather than 'advertising' - I hope that it ends up coming across as such. On the one hand, I hate (in other forums and sites, thankfully) spammy, adverty posts... on the other hand, a lot of you guys here have asked me about the progress on my book, about my journey from non-runner to fledgling ultra-runner.

I'm hoping that this will be interesting to at least the guys who've…

Wow, what an amazing race! I arrived in Snowbird Utah on Wednesday, 7/16/14. The race was Saturday 7/19/14. I arrived with a bit of illness, but seemed to come around in time to race. I ran into some superstars of the ultra world including Ellie Greenwood and  race director and speedgoat Karl Meltzer the day before the race.

I came to Snowbird solo, knowing no one. I met up with a wonderful group of individuals…

I am again on the Road with work & will be until about the end of November. I'll be away for 10 days then home again for 2 weeks before going away again as I complete a maintenance project for Kmart at all their stores in Queensland Australia.

The work will take me all over the state from the Gold Coast where we are now to Cairns  which is 1,900km North and across to Mt. Isa in the West some 1,300 km from Cairns. This trip gives me the opportunity to run in some amazing places,…

I wrote this in reply to a runner that had been struggling with injury and now dealing with fear of re-injury limiting her. I thought I'd share it with you to generate some thought and discussion. We all struggle with fear and injury.....

Fear is normal....embrace it, it is supposed to be there when you are stepping out of your comfort zone. I have had intermittent trouble with IT pain and plantar fasciitis and have still been able to accomplish some amazing things over the…

“Disappointments are to the soul what a thunderstorm is to the air.”

~ Friedrich Schiller ~

Wyco is making me Psycho!

This is going to be a tough one to write so where do I start? Like so many previous plans; yesterday began with confidence and good intentions and leaving my watch at home so I could take the day as it came. I…

Hello All,

I completed the Stowe 8 Miler this morning in 1:10:02. I thought I was using good form through-out the race (good foot strike).  After looking at the pictures my wife took toward the finish line, I was heel striking!!!  Arghhh!!!  

I just received the slant and wobble board last week.  I look forward to working to success!!

Patrick

A little while back, I wrote a blog post about how I got started running earlier this year — about how it all began with getting my dog more exercise, and how I fell in love with our sunrise trail runs together, building up to longer distances with faster times.

It was a blog post filled with…

I believe an effective “peak” in fitness first starts with a well thought out training plan and more importantly, a prioritized race schedule.  This all sets the stage for the peak process, making your run fitness as race specific as possible. Peaking is a mysterious art and for many reasons, it is just not easy to…

Hay is in the barn...so to speak. Now it's time to cruise in to Speedgoat. This morning's run was perfect. 45 min, low heart rate zone. 5:30am with sun just starting to rise, fog, and hues of pink and blue bouncing off the wispy clouds above. Gravel crunching under my feet with each rhythmic step. Ahhh...

I fly to Salt Lake City next wednesday and on to Snowbird Utah for Speedgoat 50k 7/19. 

After more than five weeks of almost no training at all (due to a very prolonged virus infection) I was finally able to pick up my training again. I also went on a one week vacation with my family to the Swedish mountain and managed to get two runs and one hike up a mountain done. 

The Swedish mountain are fairly old and therefore do not have very sharp peaks. They've been rounded by the glaciers during the ice age. One would think that this makes it easier to run but it also…

Today was a tough day. I love that picture coach posted, I didn't see it 'till after my run. Rugged, beautiful mountains pictured with  the phrase, "don't confuse difficulty with failure". I had to chuckle, because today...I didnt. Was it a preemptive post? Did he know today would be hard or coincidence? I was thinking about my run as I drove home. Analyzing my effort and feel out there, my HR and how it correlated with effort, terrain, etc. It's a 90 min drive and I always…

Hi All! I know that most of you will be excited about the Jackson Hole Run Camps this week, but I wanted to maintain the discipline of sharing my Foundation Program weekly reports.

Well, Week 6 went great and I stuck to the program perfectly. My long run at the end of Week 6 went great and I felt good after 140 minutes run. I started Week 7 enthusiastically and after Day 3, felt a 'twinge' on the left side of my right calf muscle. I decided to take a couple of days off just to…

By Katie Rosenbrock for The Active Times

What if someone dared you to sign up for a 100K ultra marathon right now? Would you take on the challenge or completely dismiss the idea?

I would tell that someone they were crazy.…

A bit of a storm arose. I had to sit down with my mother in law and her son/my husband and confirm her diagnosis of cancer today. Her doctor is out of town, and well it is a small town. I see patients every day. I have divulged a grim cancer diagnosis to many, but never to a family member, to a second mother. The trail ahead is a bit frightening, and the weather is stormy, but I see tracks in the trail where others have…

The Big Horn 50k was more then just a race.  We set up camp in the high mountain meadows about 20 minutes from the race start.  Here there are meadows full of wildflowers and a ton of wildlife. We saw a bear, herds of elk, deer, moose and pronghorns.  There is also incredible fly fishing for the fishermen in my family.…

Yesterday I completed day 6, Week 3, of Phase 2 of the Strategic Running Foundation and as part of this session I completed an 18 km trail run, well 16 on the trail, 2 on a concrete footpath that is jam packed with steep inclines and declines, off camber sections, and long up hill sections. It's an out and back run so it's 9km out and 9km back along the same track and for me every time I run it I know I've had a run by the time I finish. I first did the 16km trail run 18 months ago…

Pursuit. If I had to sum up what made this last weekend's race so amazing in one word, pursuit would be it. I suppose it means different things to different people, at different times too - sometimes the metaphorical pursuit of an ideal or goal is a great thing, sometimes the pursuit of the runner in front of you can drive you on.

Sometimes, being chased by a horse is exactly what you need on a blazing Saturday afternoon.

Last weekend, I went with Clare (my…