Tag Archives: North Face Endurance Challenge Series

North Face 50-Miler – Freedom Run

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“She was born to be free, let her run wild in her own way and you will never lose her.” ― Nikki Rowe

On Saturday, April 9th, I ran my 4th 50-miler in DC. This was my 3rd time running the DC North Face Endurance Challenge. And for the first time in a very long time, I went into a race without a goal. As I started running ultras, I became more and more focused on goals (if that’s even possible for my obsessive brain) and the pressure of meeting these self-imposed goals started to get to me. Race after race, I would put myself through moments of despair and self loathing that I would come out wondering, why am I so mean to myself? I was afraid that I was heading towards being burnt out so I re-evaluated my goals for the year and frankly, they are pretty aggressive. After taking a look at the big picture, I realized that I needed a freedom run. I needed to toss out the goal of setting a PR and let my spirit and my heart run free. And so I did. Continue reading →

2016’s Race Schedule – I Think I’ve Got It!

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So, after the fiasco last month of trying to figure out what 100-miler to sign up for and be able to qualify for Western States, I think I’ve finally got it figured out.

Here is what my schedule looks like so far:

  • January 16th Phunt 50k
  • March 19th HAT Run 50k
  • April 9th North Face Endurance Challenge – DC 50-miler
  • June 11th – Laurel Highlands 70.5 miler (WS qualifier/on wait list)
  • July 9th – Mount Hood 50-miler (in the lottery)
  • September 23rd – Mountain Lakes 100 (registration in February)

Continue reading →

North Face Endurance Challenge DC 2015 50-Miler Recap – Stupid is as Stupid Does

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Saturday, April 18, 2015 marked my third 50-miler race. I died a thousand deaths on that course on that hot humid day. Okay, so I don’t have to be so dramatic about it, but this was a tough one for me. I did everything wrong, and I knew I was doing it wrong, but I did it anyway. Stupid is as stupid does. I don’t understand why I couldn’t get my head in the game, perhaps it was because that I had such great runs after less than stellar training that I thought I could get away without proper nutrition, hydration, and pacing during the race. It’s a 50-miler for Christ sake…you HAVE to be diligent about all of those things. I wasn’t, I got lazy, perhaps cocky, and I suffered. Continue reading →

Back to Training – And it Feels Oh So Good!

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It’s been exactly two weeks since I completed the JFK50 miler. Going into the race, I swore that I would take off of running and start back again in January. I was burnt out physically and mentally of non-stop training over the past…well geez…I guess it’s three years now. I was content with giving it a break and was looking forward to it. Continue reading →

North Face Endurance Challenge 50-Miler Training Weeks 4 – 6 Part 1 (The Marathon)

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Can the title of this blog post get any longer? I really have to find a better way of doing this. Better yet, I really need to find the time to write more often. Apparently training for an ultra marathon takes up a lot of time, and this is only a 50-miler. I can’t imagine the time I would need to put in to train for a 100-miler. I’m going to try and capture everything in a 3 part series for weeks 4 – 6: The Marathon, The Half Marathon, and the Last Long Run. Continue reading →

North Face Endurance Run 50-Miler Training Week’s 2 – 3 (The Good, Bad, and Almost Ugly)

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Has it really been two weeks since I last blogged? I can’t believe how fast this is going. I’ve also realized that my “weeks” are mis-numbered, so I’m actually heading into week 4.  The past two weeks has had it’s ups and downs. I’m finding it hard to keep up with the training schedule and my asthma had decided that it doesn’t want to play nice. Continue reading →

50 Miler Training – Week 2 con’t: Sole of the City 10k & Run on the Race Course

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I’ve got 54 days until race day. It took a little bit of time, but I’m finally getting a little bit more comfortable with being on my own with training. I guess it’s because so far, I’ve been fortunate enough to have training runs with my friends. I originally had 13 miles scheduled for this past Saturday and 6 miles Scheduled on Sunday. Since I had previously registered for the Sole of the City 10k, I had to work a couple of miles in before hand. Kendra had planned on getting in 16 miles that day for her Delaware Marathon training, so we figured we’d get in 10 before the 10k. Unfortunately, we only got in 6. We spent too much time having fun and taking pictures like this one… Continue reading →