Wow, what happened...

to the last two weeks? Some success, some disappointment, lots of laughs with friends and family.



Team InknBurn

Rio del Lago 100 was a bust. I ran a great race (I mean GREAT) until I got lost in the dark on the way back to Cavitt School. Shelli had dropped behind early on in the race and had become so dehydrated that crew member Art eventually pulled her from the race at Cool Fire Station. That left me alone in the dark on an unfamiliar course which typically would not pose a problem except that someone(s) had sabotaged the course by pulling ribbons! Luckily I was a) with Carmela and b) I had grabbed my pack complete with survival gear so apart from getting mad at the time eaten up by my mistake, I was going to be OK (even if I had to hunker down for the night). Carmela and I had to push to get back to the school to make cut-off. She recovered and went on to finish, I did not. I thought I wasn't going to make cut-offs so dropped at Hazel Bluffs, deciding to save my legs for JJ100 on Oct 23.

The following weekend I volunteered at Chimera 100K/100 mile. I worked packet pick on Friday, helped pack supplies into storage tubs labelled for each aid station, hung out by the campfire at Blue Jay with friends Jody, Leonard, Janet and Sam then slept in my car. Race morning I was up at 4 a.m. to help with runner check in and load supplies for aid stations into transport vehicles. I swept the first 20 mile loop with Art and Shelli, then headed up Main Divide to captain the Trabuco Peak aid station. It was Shelli's birthday so we celebrated with laughs and birthday cake while she drove runners and pacers up and down Main Divide like a demon. Good times and a very successful race thanks to Jody's hard work.

However much I love to run in the wilderness, it is very cool and rewarding to volunteer at a race. To hang out with friends, make new friends, encourage and help other ultrarunners and sleep on a cot under a clear starry sky. Truely amazing! I am very blessed to have a husband and sons who may not always "get it" but understand sometimes Mom simply needs to be in the mountains.