Eva Runs Through It

That’s it!  I’m done.  I’ve run all I’m going to run in 2013.  2,746 miles.  Reflecting back, there was a lot to run through—much good, my fair share of challenges, and some things that took my breath away.   The good is easy to recall.   My children grew and prospered.   I learned to love my job again .    I completed three 100-mile races.   I traveled.   I laughed HARD and often.   I opened doors that I thought were shut.   I learned from mistakes.   I deepened friendships to levels that I never thought possible.   I felt love and gave it in return.   I grew. The challenges, while not as many, were deep.   I lost loved ones, both suddenly and slowly.   My son needed surgery.   My daughter got a diagnosis.   I went through a July, which I would just like to simply erase from my life calendar.   I missed a finish line that I whole-heartedly wanted to cross.    And,...

So Roger sent me a text.  He’s registered for a race, but has a family obligation.  Do I want to take his spot?   Oh yeah, I do.    I’ve been itching to get to a starting line.   It’s been a rough month for me, and I really wanted to run through it.   I laughed when I found out the name.   Oh well, it cant be that bad. I got up around 6 am to head out to Rochester.   When I let the dogs out, I realized that it snowed pretty hard last night, and the roads were not cleared yet.   I decide to get going sooner rather than later.   The roads were brutal.   It took me an extra stressful hour to get to the race site.    THEN, I couldn’t find the start.   Seriously, I was in the park and could not find the start.   Uh oh, I giggled as I thought of the name of the race. The website clearly stated that you had to check in by 9:45 in order to start the 10 am race.   I peeled into the pa...

This was not an easy race.  Which is good, I didn’t want it to be.  I truly felt blessed to be ABLE to run this race.  To know that even though it would be hard, I would get to the finish line.  I knew that there was a good chance I’d come home bruised, dirty, or cold, and I did—all three. I count my blessings, because today, I ran for my mother-in-law, Thelma (Thel). Heaven only knows if she has weeks, days, or just hours left, but Thel’s ticket to heaven has been purchased…we are just awaiting the departure date. This beautiful woman was once a power walker.   It was not uncommon to see her around her neighborhood or along the path at Niawanda Park.   She was active until she couldn’t be. Advanced dementia is a horrible disease.   Thel’s conversation skills during the past few years are akin to one of those amusement park rides.   You know, the kind where you sit in a cart on a track.   The cart passes a switch that activates s...

I spent most of 2013 on the roads, prepping for the Double Buckle.  I assumed the training would do double duty and prep me for Oil Creek 100.  In some ways, it did.  I was mentally able to take on the challenge.  I knew what I would face.  I knew how to prepare and to execute.  What I didn’t know was how to beat that damned clock. I just didn’t train the trails enough.   It bit me HARD at Oil Creek.   I needed it to. Enter, Mendon Pond 50k.   It was my first race back on the trail since OC, and I was determined to nail it.   As is custom, I somehow annoyed Mother Nature and she decided to play with her weather machine.    We had a windstorm the day before with 60 mph gusts.   It was cold, and it was predicted to rain—hard.   AWESOME!!!!   If I was going to prove myself, I wanted something to work with.   Thanks Mom! This is a small race.   Not long after I got my registration materials, ...

So, the night before Oil Creek, I leaned over to Roger and I said, “if one more person tells me to ‘have fun’, I’m going to lose it.”  He looked at me, like I had lost my mind. It didn’t take him long to realize that I HAD lost my mind.  Oil Creek gets in my head like no other race.  I train hard for it, and it is in my mind during every race I do.  Heck, I even dream about it.  Have fun?  Not a chance.  I was obsessing about pace, and gear, and weather, and bears.  I was going to attempt the 100-mile distance, and KNEW I could get the job done in 34 hours.  The problem was that I was only given 32.  (Roger—you know you were out of your mind telling me 30, right?) The race started at 5 am.  Rog had been telling me to stay on his shoulder from the start until sunrise or AS1.  I stood right next to him, and lost him immediately.  Dammit.  I was worried (imagine that) about the condition of the trai...

Beast of Burden Summer 100 I LOVE the Beast.  It is as much a reunion of friends, as it is a running event.  It is a four loop (25 miles each) course along the Erie canal.  It is pancake flat and there is NO protection from the environment.  As pretty as it looks, it is tough and unforgiving.  It scares the hell out of me.  The first loop was fun.  I was battling some stomach issues, but I was able to stick to the race plan.  I started with my traditional cry.  I really don’t plan to do this, but I get myself so worked up during taper, that I’ve got a lot to let out once I can finally do what I do.  Jim and Marco know that once I say, “give me a minute”, that I’m going to take off and let loose.  I do my best mile splits during those times… During the second loop, the wheels fell off.  First I didn’t make the bridge.  Uggh—up and over I go, which is REALLY painful after running 26 miles.  Things we...

What a long strange race this was.   I had been stalking the weather report for weeks.  The temps were hovering in the mid 90’s with an index well over 100.  The final report said that the race would have a heat index of 110 and severe thunderstorms in the evening.   People kept asking me if the race would be cancelled.   I would give that that look, usually reserved for my son, when he tries to comprehend something non-literal.   ‘Ultra races don’t get cancelled, runners just have to adapt’ was my reply.  See where this is going…. So, on the road I go to Philly.  About four hours into my ride, I get a series of messages from a friend that the race is changed from a 24-hour race starting on Saturday to a 12-hour race starting on Sunday.   I’m annoyed that I hear this message from a friend and not the race itself, as by this point packet pickup is already underway. Okay—I’m mildly bugged, but I can a...