"Well, YOU didn't just break the course record, and SHE didn't stay up all night crewing." This was my girlfriends response when I asked her why a delicious chocolate cake had not been baked in honor of my finish at the Hardrock 100. I was showing her a picture from Emelie Forsberg's blog. Emelie had baked a big chocolate cake for Kilian to congratulate him on his amazing, course record setting performance at Hardrock.
Mk was right. My jog around the San Juans was a bit over TWELVE hours slower than Kilian's! It was also true that MK had spent the weekend driving all around our beautiful mountains, just to wait around for my slow ass and give me the flavor of gel that I wanted. She had done enough. Undoubtedly her incredulous response also had something to do with my innocent little crush on Emelie Forsberg. What can I say, I've always been attracted to athletic women. She can run, she can ski, she can bake... I could be talking about Emelie or MK, so I've got nothing to complain about. Alright, I'll bake my own damn cake!
Emelie's cake:
Hardrock 100 cake
My cake:
I didn't get to taste the original, but I'd like to think mine was just as good. I would also like to think that, while I set no records, I enjoyed my time in the mountains just as much as Kilian. I don't have his talent, his sponsorship or his cute Swedish girlfriend. However, I can climb better than some, my crew of close friends and family was awesome, and MK has great legs and the prettiest blue eyes you've ever seen. The late, great Alex Lowe always said that the best climber was the one having the most fun. I think this is true for mountain running as well. When my pacer Leah and I pulled into the Engineer aid station amidst a raging electrical storm, or Dustin and I climbed above tree line in Cataract Gulch, bathed in morning sun, I might have been the best mountain runner in the world. I won't hold my breath for the Salomon sponsorship.
