My watch died before midnight, so I had no idea what time it was. The moon had disappeared somewhere behind the canopy of trees and I was now heading down what seemed like a long steep trail to the Weaver Creek Aid station. I was still being attacked intermittently by gnats. I felt like I was descending into the depths of the earth....or possibly hell. It felt surreal to be going down, down, down in the dark depths of the forest. This was some of the trail, only now it was pitch black....…

My goals for the night: Stay steady, get in and out of aid quick. Eat more food, use caffeine at dusk and dawn. As the sun began to set I began to feel a little lazy. I popped 2 pieces of caffeinated gum and continued to eat bites of sandwich and drink water. The thick green canopy was starting to glow with the sunset, and the bright orange orb was visible…

I chose this race for the sole purpose of getting another Hardrock qualifier. This was definitely the hardest qualifier I have done. We started at noon on Friday. The temps were already in teh low 80s with high humidity and almost no breeze. My goals for the first day, 1. Keep heart rate down and feel “too good” at the top of the climbs 2. Run the…

This race is directed by Chrissy Ferguson. Need I say more? She is a powerhouse and puts on top notch events. The MANY volunteers were awesome. The weather was extremely challenging, with almost constant rain, very heavy at times, wind, and temps in the low 50s. I don’t know how they kept from freezing to death waiting…

Sitting at Grouse aid station, mile 59, I see that line again. I see it in front of me, kinda like a mirage. Imaginary, but real, tangible but elusive. Like the end of a rainbow or the floating heat waves off of a hot highway. You squint to see it clearer, drawn to it. You want to chase it, touch…

Warning, this is almost longer than the race itself.....above PC @ Charles Danforth.

After 14 hours of driving, I arrived in Sheridan WY on Wednesday evening before the race. My two pacers/crew, David Newman and James Reeves, right picture…

This was a “training through” race. My big race is Bighorn 100 in 4 weeks. The goal was to have really good focus in this race, to do well, but not go out too hard and have to recover much in the days following the race. I need to be able to put in another week of high mileage, quality work for Bighorn after…

Tulsa Area Trail and Ultra Runner’s (TATUR) Snake Run is timed event. There is a 3 hour and 6 hour division. The goals is to run as many miles, all on single track trail, as you can in the time allowed. The course is a 3.75ish loop, with 1 smaller 0.5 mile optional loop to run around. The course is relatively…

A whole different experience this year and a nice platform for next year’s training….

I checked in with friends and hosts Ashley and Michael on Thursday evening after arriving in San Francisco. We headed to the pre-race event at Equator Coffee. It was exciting to see the elite…

This race takes place in the North Phoenix community of Cave Creek. Flagstaff has already cooled down to evening temps in the 40s, so the car’s outside temperature reading of 90 as we rolled into the area made me a bit nervous. I had also downed a yummy frozen custard treat about an hour before that was now making me a bit nauseated.



We arrived a bit early, so I took off to do a little pre race warm up. My goal race is now The North Face Endurance…

Yup, I'm gonna do it. I'm going to Giants. Tor Des Geants, that is. It's a 200+ mile race following the Alta Via 1 and Alta Via 2 around the Italian Alps. There will be 24,000 meters/78,000 ft of climbing...and descending. It is a single stage race, meaning there is no designated down time for rest. You rest as much or as little as you need, but the race goes on. We have 150 hours to complete the course. There will be "life bases" every 30 ish miles with cots and showers and hot food.…

I’ve been running for years, (like 23 of them), but only started my true love affair with running 4-5 years ago when I sought Eric Orton to coach me to my first ultra marathon. At that time I didn’t “love” running. I ran for years for fitness and to keep my weight in check. I do not look like the lean female…

I’ve always admired adventurous women. Women who were out there, doing what they love with passion and grit, seeking to inspire other women to do the same. I also use “she” to 

motivate me to get out the door on days when the warm covers begged me to stay, when I had been up 3…

Having never been to San Francisco, I can’t imagine a better way to see it for the first time than running across 50 miles along the….ahem...Northern California coast line. I would be staying with friends and had intended to drive from home in Arizona. In my brain, which has long since looked at the state of…

I had no plans to do a 100 this year. 2 years of Leadville training and finishes, kinda finished me on the hundred mi distance for what I felt like would be a year or two. Last year my goal was to complete all of the US Skyrunning Ultra races. I did all but one, mostly high altitude, all very difficult courses. I fell in love with mountains and the 50 -100k…

This race takes place North of Utah’s Zion and Bryce canyons, in the seemingly remote and beautiful Tushar Mts. I had never heard of this range prior to signing up. I completed most of the US Skyrunning ultra races last year and fell in love with racing these types of courses. I have had the opportunity to see more and cover more terrain in 1 day than most will see in a lifetime. I am blessed. Because of the love and support of my husband and children I made it to this…

I was feeling really good going into this race. Very nervous, but good. This would be my first race of the year, my first race after a few months of living and training at higher elevation. I was anxious to see how my racing would change, if I would feel different. I remember thinking when I ran Leadville in 2012, “someday I want to be able to run UP mountains” I was frustrated because all of my uphill “running” in the mountains reduced me to a slow hike. I could not…