next . . .

well, seeing as how this adventure has come to an end, i think i'll resume posting on my other blob.

http://slowrunner9.blogspot.com/

thanks to everybody who followed along and made comments. it sure has been fun to say the least!

dora

what went wrong?

''if you never did, you should.

these things are fun and fun is good.''

georgie has already mentioned a bunch of stuff, so i'll just add my two cents - for what it's worth. i got to the airport with no trouble and in tons of time - thanks wayne !!!! no lineup at the american counter - this will be easy - until - oh no - we need the address of the place you're staying in dallas . . . oh for god sakes! I DON'T HAVE AN ADDRESS !! i don't even have georgies' phone number !!! panic call to the wellness center and the lovely michelle managed to calm me down and get me the address of the super8 motel in huntsville. whew! crisis averted! thanks michelle!

georgie was waiting for me at the airport, and after a stop for pizza, some blue bell ice cream - a litre each - and a couple of wrong turns, we made it to his place. he was in the process of tidying up his house, and had arranged for a bunch of stuff to be stored in the garage. no problem except we had to get the garbage bins out to the curb (oh, sorry, they call them 'trash bins' in texas). and rather than try to move the foosball table, 249 pounds of weights, 3 bikes and an 8-sectional couch, we opted for dragging them all the way through the house and down the front steps. no problem! and oh ya, me and christine had wanted to get a traditional 'canadian' souvenir for georgie, so we opted for the ever popular beaver. it was to become our mascot for the rest of the week.

on thursday georgie had arranged for a few of his friends to meet me at his favorite friday night hangout - 'mexigo' - and a few - good grief - i counted at least 20 !! super nice people, and i especially liked crazy michelle and the lovely rachel. oh ya, and there was the 'handsome alfonso'. haha! check out the totally frightened look on my face!

we had planned on leaving around 8 friday morning for the 3 hour drive to huntsville. watching georgie trying to get ready was like watching myself! talk about A.D.D. and he never did find his headlamps!! we eventually got the truck packed, set the gps, patted our beaver for luck, and got on the road.

and of course, a road trip just wouldn't be complete without at least one trip to the dairy queen!

we made it to huntsville just after lunch and decided to check out the race start. it was located at the state park, just a short drive from the motel. upon entering, we noticed the aforementioned 'beware of alligator' sign and got yelled at by the park warden for driving too fast. oops! sorry officer.

race kit pickup was fairly uneventful, and we stayed for the pasta dinner. best part was the large serving of german chocolate cake! mmmm! after stopping at the napa auto parts store on the way back to get a flashlight for georgie, we hit the beds early in anticipation of a 4am wakeup.

race day


'what could go wrong?'
or should i say
'what went wrong?'

loop one

we started in the dark at 6am. temp was about 5* and most of us were in shorts. i was able to turn the headlamp off by 7. at one of the aid stations, this guy grabbed my arm and said, 'now i know where i've met you - transrockies 2008. i ran behind you for 6 days. you had that bloody doll on your back!' haha! texas - long time no see buddy! at one point, i started following this guy with strong looking calves who just plowed through the mud. found out his name was dan and he was from georgia. anyways, the first 20 miles went smooth and took about 4:15. only did one face-plant and i felt good.

loop two

stayed with my new friend dan for a lot of this loop. was eating pb and j sandwiches and roasted potatoes. i think about 2/3rds of the way around my feet started to ache. i got annoyed, and pushed ahead. when i finished the second 20 miles i was feeling like shit. i sat in a chair and pondered going back out. one of the many awesome volunteers came over and started chatting with me. he got me a grilled cheese sandwich and told me to really think about it before deciding to quit. my hips were burning and my feet were throbbing. i stayed there a bit longer and was almost ready to turn in my chip when dan came across the line. he yelled, 'hay sinister sister, get up and get going - you're tougher than that'. well, okay then. the clock read 9:15 - i had sat for almost 25 minutes - but i got up, stopped feeling sorry for myself, and tucked in behind him. thanks dan !

loop three

dan and i stayed together for almost all of this loop. it got dark with about 6 miles to go, so we threw on our headlamps. it was also getting chilly, so we added an extra layer. we were still running pretty good at this point. my feet actually hurt less when i was running. one of the aid stations started serving hot chicken vegetable soup - man that was good! i recall the section by the lake as being somewhat amusing! i was hearing not only peeper frogs, like we have up here, but these other frogs that truly sounded like they were laughing at us. and the other thing playing on my mind was not to step to far off the trail for a whiz, as there were alligators in the park, and i could hear rustling in the grass!!! we finished this loop (60 miles) in just under 15 hours, so that made it 9 at night. and, i actually felt better after this one. it was getting even colder, so we threw on some more clothes and headed back out.

loop four

after 20 minutes out on the trail we ran into georgie. he was about to finish his very first 50 miler! we both hollered and gave him big congrats! he was one happy guy! both dan and i felt okay up until the 3rd aid station. we then had a long stretch up a section of jeep road. he didn't feel like running, and i was getting really cold, so i just kept pushing. unfortunately we got separated and that was too bad. maybe it would have turned out different if we'd worked together. regardless, all i remember is getting colder and colder. my teeth were chattering and i was down to a walk. my feet were screaming at me and i was cringing with every step. so many thoughts were going through my head. do i quit, or do i try and keep going. lots of stuff played with my mind. i remember digger saying, 'pain is temporary, a dnf is forever'. stoopid digger! i thought of all my friends who just assume i can do these things. i thought at one point that i didn't fucking care what anybody thought. i was so cold. i wasn't having fun. i couldn't run anymore. it had been over 22 hours. i could maybe make the last loop by noon, but i'd probably have to walk most of it. i didn't want to walk the last 20 miles. i didn't come here to 'walk' a hundred miler. oh, thank god, finally, there's the line . . .

some will win, some will lose

some are born to sing the blues

but the movie never ends

it goes on and on and on and on.

'journey'

My Weekend with Wonder Woman

Why Wonder Woman ? Cause I wonder sometimes how lucky I am to know people like Kendra.
This young woman is a combination of tenacity, sensitivity, humor, encouragement and class !
I can't imagine a better 6 days than to share an experience such as an ultramarathon with Miss Kendra..... a true Wonder Woman.

I wish you all could see an injured ( feet ) Kendra suck it up and run for 22 hours in freezing cold, in the woods.... no complaints, no excuses, encouraging others on the way.

We both learned that encouragement from this band of 700 Ultramarathoners came in two words... " Nice Job ". It is efficient, heartfelt and totally on message. As you pass the toiling runners, there is no How are you.... looking good..... keep it up......good luck etc. It is simply a short phrase..... " Nice Job ". Try it when you run, at work or in the home... " Nice Job ".

Well, this whole endeavour had it's highlights as any experience normally does.... but of course when you're with Kendra... there is plenty of fun to be had. We learned to shout " SHUT UP " frequently... to the idiot in Valero Gas Station, to the nimrod that checked us in at the hotel, to the guy that was coughing on us the night before we left, to the fat slob that served us ( often ) at the Dairy Queen ! So if you really don't feel like listening to someone in the future just tell them to SHUT THE F UP !!!! and then laugh your arse off.

We drove by the most ominous prison in the United States and learned that if you " Kill someone in Texas.... we kill you ". Really spooky to drive by a capital punishment mecca... really, regardless of your position on execution Texas Style.

We learned to appreciate Rachel and Debbie for two reasons !

Kendra learned to gawk at the Handsome Alfonso.

I learned to gawk at Kendra.... and of course the giant statue of Sam Houston, whoever the hell that is !

We both got a laugh from a stupid Beaver gift shop called Buc-kees ! Kendra was delighted to buy a sling shot with a Moose on it for a special friend. I was delighted to buy my traditional chocolate covered raisins. I would have bought some traditional brownies, but the better half of the Knuckleheads wasn't there and I will save that purchase for another time.

George also Learned to gawk at the 300 lb guy who did the 50 miler..... seriously, frickin awesome !

We both learned to fall in love with the participants in the race...... the 300 pounder, the two 80 year old ladies doing the 100, the 78 year old guy that was eaten up with arthritis doing the 100, the " Ladies Man " reeking of after shave that you wanted to hate, but instead saw his grit and could only say " Nice Job ". There was the young lady who had severe facial burn scars smiling and laughing as she toiled..... The guys running with no shirt for 26 hours, the guy with the 3 inch back hair...... the guy that was gassed after 1 hour and limped in to the finish line 16 hours later, the Canadian couple that flew down the morning before the race and ran a sub 24 hour 100 miler..... the 24 year old Costa Rican girl with about 2 feet legs..... she must have taken twice the steps of others in the race, sounds stupid but think about it.

I was impressed by the absolutely beautiful girl from California that knew she was going to have blisters on her feet...... she brought her own smiley face bandages and sat at the aid station patiently as others lanced and patched her up before she again went on her way, uncomplaining and simply trying to do a " Nice Job ".

It is incredible to watch the determined plodding of head lanterned folks of all ages and occupations in the totally dark woods at midnight. Slow or fast doesn't matter.... they are moving forward, in pain and totally uncompensated, unrecognized and totally happy !

I really am not trying to be dramatic..... I wanted to share a bit of insight with our readers.
It's downright emotional seeing the slice of humanity ... white, black, American, Canadian, European, Mexican etc. pursue a stupid belt buckle, quite alone but yet quite a part of a special family of runners.

Next stop..... Pike's Peak Marathon on August 22nd. I hope that those reading this will join me and Wonder Woman !!

let's take the elevator

well, it's over. georgie is the true hero of the weekend. he pulled it all together and completed his first 50 miler! what a machine! as for me, i only managed 80 miles. my feet were screaming after 40, and i actually sat there for 20 minutes before heading back out. struggled through 40 more and finally decided to pull the plug. my body won out over my brain.

so we're both really stiff! but, we stuffed ourselves with mcdonalds and dairy queen today and are now watching the super bowl. will post more once i get back to canada.

am having a great time!! georgie is a blast!!!

if you kill someone in texas, we kill you . . .

a few highlights so far . . .

well, we're here. we got registered and had our pasta dinner - complete with german chocolate cake! mmmmmmmm !! got together with some of georgies' friends last night at 'mexigo' restaurant and met the handsome alfonso - photo to follow!!! drove to the race start and happened to notice a sign that warned of alligators in the park. oh for god sakes???!!!! we came afraid of snakes and wild boars, and now we have to worry about fucking alligators!!! made a phone call to freddie (other half of team knucklehead) so georgie could call him a 'panty waisted, toe sucking ex-knucklehead hombre' for not showing up to run with us. oh ya, almost forgot - did some shopping at 'buc-ee's beaver on the way to huntsville!! hilarious!

so, race starts in less than 12 hours. some last minute packing for tomorrow and we're off to bed.

'what could go wrong?'

done!

okay - got the clients trained. moose managed to unlock my pelvis a little - ow - but thanks - it feels a lot better! had a short visit with homey while he was laying on the chiro table having his calf electrocuted - mooooo - stoopid calf!! wish he was coming with !! and then back to the treehouse to load up my stuff.

hehe - just kidding! am leaving the dions at home!!! good one derrick!

so, as you can see from above pic, i'm done packing! with 40 minutes to spare! just have to shower and wait for wayne to get here. next step - the stoopid airport! i'm more freaked about that whole kerfuffle than the actual run!!

thanks again for all the hugs and 'good lucks' and 'have funs'. hopefully i'll be seeing crazy george in about 9 hours!!

'what could go wrong?'

and so it starts . . .

well, it's 9:02 on tuesday night. i just got home from work, and am farting around on the computer. i should be packing. i have to be at the gym tomorrow morning for 7 to train doctor joe. i then have an hour to get over to see the moose for some last minute muscle tweaking before i leave. back to the gym for a couple more clients - little-short-and-cute, and mr. satin pants - and then finally home to the treehouse by hopefully 11:00. wayne's picking me up at 12:30 - SHIT! - I HAVEN'T EMAILED HIM YET! better go do that.

okay, i'm back. where was i . . . haha, georgie has already emailed me once to remind him of my flight time. ARGH! i haven't done my timesheets for this week yet! stoopid paperwork. better go do that. this is what i have set aside to pack so far . . .

OH!! before i forget, HAPPY GROUNDHOG DAY!!! especially to moose - he LOVES groundhog day! wiarton willie DID see his shadow, so we will be blessed with 6 more weeks of winter. stoopid rodent!!

oh yaaaa! JUST as i was leaving the gym tonight i spotted one of my very favorite redheads stretching in the corner. i dashed over and insisted he give me a 'long may you run' for good luck! after looking at me a little strangely, he managed to figure out 'what' i was talking about, and give me a 'palm five' and a 'long may you run'. thanks gordo!!

alrightee, it's now 10:05 and the above picture of the pile on the table looks pretty much the same. i DID manage to shave my legs - sheeeeeeeeesh! when was the last time i did THAT???? anyways, haha, check out the cool pic the captain sent me. this was in response to me hoping to find a rich texan while in dallas . . .

and hay! before i forget - big thanks to everybody wishing me luck this weekend!! it means a lot!!! will try to add more tomorrow before i leave!

(how am i doing so far trailman?????)

and you all wonder why i go crazy before a race

check out the emails i've received over the past couple of days . . .

from georgie on sunday . . .

'of course i can't find your plane reservations . . . you get in around 7pm on thursday, right? (i actually get in wednesday at 6:20pm.)

it gets better . . .

'send me your reservations again every hour on the hour so i don't lose them . . . btw, i have them somewhere . . . but this is easier for a slug like me. is the race this week?'

not race related, but quite amusing regardless . . .

'do you have the grammy award show in canada?' yes georgie, and we all live in igloos too!!!

and this one's good . . .

'on second thought ya better rent a car (to get back to the airport) cause i'll probably have been helicoptered out at mile 33, which is when i will have keeled over from deep anxiety attack cause my car will be 200 yards from the end of lap two.'

and one more . . .

'kendra . . . the weather here in texas has been absolutely horrible . . . inches of rain . . . grey and cold. if the rocky raccoon was this weekend, it would have been impossible.'

and finally, a really cute one from my sexy fast running friend ali . . .

'hey kendra, just been looking on the rocky racoon site after reading your blog. now i can not see your entry on the list and they are getting close to their limit. now i know you are super organized this time, your blog says so, (and the blog doesn't lie), but have you forgotten to enter or have you changed your name or am i blind?'

ask me how much i panicked when i read that one!!!

anyways, the next time someone asks how i get before i race, i'm going to make them read this!!!