The first three of these photos are from a run in the Missionary Ridge area last week. The rest are from yesterdays jaunt up to the pass above Island Lake. I ran the Jemez 50 miler on Saturday, and being able to hike up to nearly 13,000 feet four days later felt pretty good. This was my first day of the year on the Hardrock course, and my appetite for this kind of terrain has not diminished. I'm looking forward to getting up high as much as possible between now and July 13th. Between the amazing views and lack of oxygen to the brain, it hardly even hurts! Yet.
Last weekends race was a blast. I got to hang out with some great friends, run a nice tough course, and get humbled by some big climbs. I was reminded that I am not fast. I want to be, and I am working on it, but the slow grind is still my forte. I also got to witness a beautiful first time ultra experience. A good friend jumped right in the deep end and did one of the tougher 50 milers around for his first ultra. Hell, he hadn't even run a marathon. When I saw him at the finish he had the thousand yard stare, and was hobbling with a trekking pole. Now, I don't want to see people hurt themselves, and I'm not a sadist. I just know what it means to me to achieve what I thought I might not be able to do. I'll never know what he thought, and exactly how it changed him. My guess is that it will turn a strong mind into an even more confident mind. The more I run ultras the more I feel there is value in the lessons learned. At first I thought it was just my escapist mentality of literally running away from the real world. Now I'm starting to see the lasting value of these experiences. Watching my friend gut out that finish made me feel just a little more connected, a little less alone in the crazy, modern world. I hope it means even more to him. Quite impressive, dude.
What is that girl doing in the last pic?
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