The weekend just past saw my 10 year old son Jason compete in his first fun run. It was a 3km run as part of the Run Melbourne festival with my wife also running the 10km the next day. The kids event is a family event where parents and guardians can run with the kids. There were kids of all ages being pushed, carried, walking and running, it was fantastic to see such fun being had around a healthy activity. The only danger was being accidently tripped by parents stopping abruptly or walking…

I was nervous about how this race would go. I’ve been at altitude for over a week now, but am only 1 week post Speedgoat...32 miles with 11,500 feet of climbing...and descending. I was actually surprised at how good my legs were feeling within a few days. Tuesday, I summited Mt Elbert, adding another 4500ft of climbing in 4.5 miles.

Climbing and summiting Mt. Elbert, at 14,500ft solo was a deeply personal experience. I don’t even know if I could…

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

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 achieve one’s highest possible level of performance on the…

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…