The LYLAS Podcast
If you know what LYLAS stands for, then this podcast is for you! Two besties since middle school turned moms and psychologists dish on "the good, the fun, and the yucks" of life! We're tackling all things mental health, "mom balance" (whatever the hell that is), transitions in life (divorce, career, aging parents, parent loss, loss of friendships), self-care, travel, healthy habits, raising kids, and allllllll the things us midlife mamas are experiencing. We hope each week listeners feel like they just left a good ol' therapy session with their bestie! We'll dish on all the tips and tricks to keep your mental health in check and enjoy this thing called life! Meet your life's newest cheerleaders-- Sarah & Jen! LYLAS!
The LYLAS Podcast
The LYLAS Podcast, Season 4, Episode 68, "Running Down a Dream, Race Recap"
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Our story isn't just about running; it's about life's unexpected plans and the power of love and connection. Through a surprise reunion with friends and a meaningful race experience, we delve into the importance of shared experiences and personal growth. Reflections on a transformative weekend and the joy found in unexpected support from loved ones remind us of the broader design of life's journey. As we set new goals, we invite you to connect, share ideas, and find inspiration in the bonds that support and uplift us all.
Please be sure to checkout our website for previous episodes, our psych-approved resource page, and connect with us on social media! All this and more at www.thelylaspodcast.com
The West Virginia Trilogy Race
Speaker 1Welcome to LILAS . If you grew up in the 80s and 90s , you probably know what LILAS stands for and , by default , this podcast is for you . Ladies and gentlemen , that's right .
Speaker 2Ladies and gentlemen , welcome to the podcast .
Speaker 1Woohoo , excited to talk today and to recap the race of the century . But we're going to recap the race , but real quick . Before we get started , I wanted to shout out I didn't mention this to you when we got on here earlier , but today would have been my dad's 70th birthday .
Speaker 2Aw Happy birthday dad .
Speaker 1Happy birthday , dad , isn't that crazy .
Speaker 2Yeah , that is really sweet . Aw , hopefully you'll see a hawk .
Speaker 1I saw two eagles last night at the football field , which was pretty cool , and I've seen a bunch of hawks lately . Dad's sweatshirt on Aww Marines probably the thing in life he was most proud of , besides my brother and I Member of the United States Marine Corps , as he should be proud of that . Sometimes when I wear the sweatshirts , people say like thank you for your service , and I'm like , oh no , it's not me , it was my dad , you know , um , but I do love wearing it because I I don't know I love wearing his sweatshirts . It's one of the few things of his that I have no , that's sweet .
Speaker 2I didn't know you kept it . Yeah , I'm sure it's really comforting . Then it is multiple ways . Oh well , that is .
Speaker 1So you're going to celebrate with cupcakes tonight , then , right , yeah , we'll celebrate with something and blow out some candles and my daughter will say now who's Papa Dave ?
Speaker 1And my soul will be crushed a little bit , because every time she says that I'm like , oh you know , check and reconcile about his death , but that will always be hard your kids not meeting their grandparents yeah , um , if you've lost a parent , you can probably identify with that , especially if they passed before your kids were born . Um , so that's why we celebrate today , because at least , uh , it gives me an excuse to talk about him , as if I don't talk about him enough , and as I say that I'm , he's on my coffee mug too .
Speaker 2Oh , how sweet .
Speaker 1This was like a father's day gift . I got him when I was like 10 and he kept it and somehow his picture hasn't faded after all these years . I don't put it in the dishwasher . I can't see it . It says no dishwasher please . I put a label on it . Of course you did . I'm like I will kill you if this , if this mug fades . My husband knows it's like the one mug that doesn't go in the dishwasher .
Speaker 1That and the lilas mug . I also won't put that one in there . That's my number two favorite mug that's great .
Speaker 1Oh , that's so sweet , labeled and all labeled and all labeled and all oh yeah kind of fitting though , because I felt my dad so much last weekend when we were in west virginia for the race , uh , and there were so many signs throughout the whole weekend and I just thought , you know , kind of fitting , but here we are talking about it on what would have been his 70th birthday . You know , at a full circle everything always kind of comes back . But I want to start , because most people don't know what we're talking about , the race the big kahuna , the one that you've been training for .
Speaker 1We've sort of mentioned it in previous episodes , but give us um a synopsis of what the great race is wow , well , it's been on my vision board , I guess guess Still is . Which we'll get to that Right right , Still on the board .
Speaker 2It's a race that I fell in love with , probably , like I don't know 15 years ago . As a ultra distance runner , you're always looking for the next race . You know , and maybe that's just what you do too , whenever you like to run or whenever you participate in something , it's always or or a goal oriented person . It's always like what's next , what can I do ? Yeah , um more . And you know , I'm a trail runner and I live in a state where that's , you know , embraced , and there's a lot of cool terrain to kind of do this type of thing on . And I had been doing just various ultras , you know , which are over 26 miles of 50k is 31 miles and that's my favorite distance to run .
Speaker 2And I came across this one as part of the West Virginia mountain trail runners . It's a club . They put on a series of races each year and I was going through the whole tour you know , the whole season of races and came across this one that takes place every year in October , called the West Virginia Trilogy , and it takes place at the highest point in the most rural location that you can literally hold a race in West Virginia it's Bruce Knob and it's an encamp . So you get up on top of this mountain and you have to camp there , and by camp I mean in your car or in a tent , because there is literally no place within 35 , 40 minutes that you can get to . If you want to stay in a motel , not a hotel , and this is even one that is like locally owned above a gas station , then you're talking like 45 to 50 minutes away . If you want to stay in Airbnbs , again you're still going to have to drive about 30 minutes , and so this is like you're roughing it on top of roughing it .
Speaker 1Yeah , and I don't think I really understood the remoteness of it . Like when you were originally telling me about it , I was like , oh , okay , cool , there's like these quaint little towns and so no , no , there's like one gas station with like two pumps every 45 minutes . Like the remoteness , I cannot specify enough , like how remote this was .
Speaker 2Yeah , yeah , so right , and , like in most places some in West Virginia , you are going to come across a town that has like a grocery store , you know or something . But here in that section of the state where that race is held , there's not like you'll drive by unincorporated towns that have like three houses in them and then that's it . So if you don't get gas , then good luck . You know , um , if you don't know , electric cars in this part of west virginia , you're not going to get anywhere . Um , no , hybrids in this part of west virginia you're not going to get up the mountains , like you're not going to get to these places .
Speaker 2And so , yes , it is an extremely rural location that is at this mountain experience center , and so basically they have yurts and people that live up there almost year round , because the geological landforms , the area , the sky gazing , like all of these things are very unique to this kind of section of the world , and people from like Baltimore will send their students up there for a week to go camping out in the wilderness , where they have to learn like survival skills or just experience nature in a different way . And so they held this race up there , and the race can be brought broken into three sections , two sections or the full trilogy . And the full trilogy is that you run a 50K on Friday that has about 4,500 feet of vertical gain and you cross about 30 , a stream close to 30 times and this is like a mountain stream . So we're talking like freezing ass cold , like cold plunge every time you go through the damn thing .
Speaker 1And 50K for all of us not ultra marathon runners is like 31 miles , right , 31 miles .
Speaker 2And then you have time cutoffs that you have to meet on each of these races before they allow you to finish the race because they're so long and the terrain is so challenging . On Saturday , then , if you're a full trilogy runner , runner you get up and you run a 50 miler and that has over 8,000 feet of vertical gain in it , and then the next day , the mountain top of the mountain . The first descent then you have is up a trail up to the top of the highest point in West Virginia , with a headlight on , because it's still dark whenever you start , and you have to meet time cutoffs on this one too in order to be able to pass to the next section . You technically have 14 hours to finish the race , but if you don't make it to the first time cutoff within like six hours and 50 minutes , then you're pulled at that point because they don't anticipate you being able to make it all the way to the finish .
Speaker 2Yeah , this course doesn't get easier as you go through it . Able to make it all the way to the finish . Yeah , this course doesn't get easier as you go through it . It maintains this level of difficulty all the way through it . So there's no easy section . Even if you look at the vertical profile , you're like oh , it's a downhill . No , ma'am , no , that's not a nice like soft dirt downhill .
Speaker 1That's all , rock all rock very technical and you're having to like watch your footing so you don't twist an ankle out in the middle of nowhere , Right .
Speaker 2And then the next day you wake up and you run a half marathon , and so that is the full trilogy . As a runner , you can select to do one , two , whatever your combination is of the different races , but the goal was to run all three in one day all three over the weekend Because you had done parts of it before .
Speaker 1Right , you had done the 50K , you had done the half marathon , you just had never tackled the beast of the 50 miler .
Speaker 2I tried it once and strained my Achilles on that 50 miler and so I could not even finish . Yeah , yeah and . But I recovered from that and it's never bothered me since .
Speaker 1But I had tried it one other time and literally like the Achilles was 100% like boot , strained , like Aaron Rodgers and a thing for a little bit so so your train and your training started when I know you announced it around like March or April that you were going to , that you had signed up , but when did you actually start like legitimately training for this ?
Speaker 2Um , probably like a year and a half ago , like whenever , whenever we started the podcast and I started really kind of getting back into running and doing things like that . It's always been the goal , like that is always fun . It's every time I run . That's the goal Every time I run . If I run today , you know if I ran every day .
Speaker 1All right , so just for context too , cause this won't come out , obviously , right after , but this was October 13th that weekend . Today is October 18th . Yeah , okay , so you're training for this and you announced it that you are going for this goal that you've had for so long .
Speaker 2The full .
Speaker 1I'm just giving some backstory here so that people can sort of follow along with with what happened . So I was obviously inspired , because you're running all the time and I'm just like damn , she's got all of these health issues and she isn't afraid to like push her body . And I was obviously we've talked about this like struggling with just like my body gaining weight and not being able to lose it . And so one day I got really fucking fed up and I went for a run in my three-year-old shoes and got horrible blisters , couldn't run a mile , was breathing heavy , you know the whole way , cramping side , stitch the whole nine . And came home and my husband's like all right , if you're going to run , let's go get you some like real shoes , real socks . Like let's do this .
Speaker 1And so I did and came home and I posted like , went for another run , posted about it and a girl we had met at the meditation retreat we went to the Chopra retreat in March reached out because she had been running as well . She could kind of just start it . She's like we should sign up for a race . I was like , yeah , let's do it . And she was like , what about that race Sarah just posted about and I'm like , oh , no , no , no , no , no , no . I don't do ultra marathons .
Speaker 1I did one half marathon a decade ago and I was like I'll never do this again . I hated . I got to mile 10 and I was like I hate this , I absolutely hate this . And , um , and had trained properly for it and everything hated it . And she was like , well , what if we did the half ? You know she's coming from Texas . I'm like you realize there's elevation , all these things . She's like what if we did the half ? So we signed up right there on the spot and decided right then and there we were going to keep it a surprise and just show up . Now , mind you , we didn't realize like how remote this was . We literally just went and signed up thinking that , like this is just like a casual half marathon race , like all the others around the country , having no idea none what we are about to get ourselves into . So I just wanted to set that stage before we get into , like the actual day yeah , actual weekend .
Speaker 2Sweetest surprise ever too .
Speaker 1And you were genuinely surprised , like I could see it in your face . You had no idea . Oh no , you knew I had been running and training for what you thought was a race . That is in Charleston , and you did you have any concept that Allie had also been running and training for something ?
Speaker 2I saw I would see like that she would post on like her Instagram and stuff like that and so like . Whenever I would see you run , like the day that you did that 12 mile run , I was like hey , great job , and so anytime . I saw you guys doing it , I was like that's awesome , like keep it up , or whatever . Um , just because I knew that was something like that you guys were pursuing , you know , and yeah , I mean , if anybody's got a goal , I'll always be your biggest cheerleader , you know , it really doesn't even matter sometimes what the goal is , which is probably somewhat questionable , but I'm on your team , right ?
Speaker 2You know we're going into war . Great , let's go . Yeah , here we are , let's go . And so I had
Remote Trail Race Adventure
Speaker 2no idea . And so for me to even provide you with any more information than what you asked about , about like the remoteness of it , I couldn't do it . You were like well , where are you going to stay ? I was like , well , I've always slept in my car . That's where I'm going to sleep is sleep in the car . And you're like okay , but no , that's what you do . You sleep in the car , yeah , and totally .
Speaker 1And I remember that conversation because that was meeting us . I was bringing my kids and I remember you saying something like this is like out in the middle of nowhere , jenny , like it is so remote . The closest town is like 40 minutes away , and like that was the moment where I was like bro , what are we going to do ? Barb , ain't a camper not going to catch her ass in a tent or sleeping in a car ? Not going to catch her ass in a tent or sleeping in a car ? So I had to find . I found a little cabin about 35 minutes away from the race site that we were able to stay in , but that was , and I knew Allie was coming all the way from Texas . She's not familiar at all with West Virginia .
Speaker 1At least I'm from the state and like you know , like I don't know , like that , to me that would have been much scarier , coming from Texas and not knowing anything about it and finding my way to this incredibly remote location .
Speaker 2Yeah , where your GPS isn't . So if you're sitting there like , oh , you have GPS , it'll work , no , don't work . No , west Virginia does not have the normal amenities that other places do . So if you're like well , how did you find it ? Virginia does not have the normal amenities that other places do . So if you're like well , how did you find it ? You have to load GPS up on your phone whenever you have Wi-Fi and then hope that it'll stay . Or you know , my husband was going with me this entire time and he was a true weekend hero .
Speaker 1We'll talk about his role in some of this stuff too .
Speaker 2Absolute best at the aid station 100% supporter . Absolute best at the aid stations 100% supporter . We had a detailed , like physical hand map with directions as to like turn . You know you're gonna reach a hairpin . Turn . Go left like this is your directions . Folks , like this is not like you know , go a mile and a half out this road . We give physical directions in West Virginia to get to places because your mileage may or may not work Even on your car it could be different and so we had to send you guys that kind of information in order to get there , or Jeff did .
Speaker 1Yeah , because you didn't know and I had told Jeff , like six months ago , and so he like , anytime you're feeding him information , he's forwarding it on to me , and then I'm forwarding it on to Ali and you know , same thing , I had printed all the directions off . I'm like you're going to see a white church turn left , like all the things . I had Google Earth , the shit out of this to like know exactly where all the turns were . Because you know , I knew GPS wasn't going to work , like there was no Wi-Fi , there was no cell service , like my , my Apple watch wouldn't work , my apps wouldn't work , like nothing worked . It is a no fly zone . Yeah , literally , literally a no fly zone .
Speaker 2Yeah , yeah . So just kind of put that in your head , folks , and picture that as to where picture this right .
Speaker 1So you get there , you . Uh , friday is the 50k . Yeah , tell it , walk us through the 50k . How'd you feel ? How was your blood sugar like ? How did you do on that first day ?
Speaker 2well , um , we drove up on thursday just to kind of set up camp , because , again , we're camping in our car . So we had an air mattress , we had a nice comfortable foam sheet , you know all of the things . Cooler , I had to prepare my own food because , you know , as you know , I don't eat gluten . I have celiac , type one , diabetes , stuff like that , and so , and you don't change things on race day . So whatever you're used to doing in your life , you don't change them just because you're in a different setting , no matter what . It is like shoes , socks , fuel , all the things . And so I had everything packed and prepared .
Speaker 2I have ran the 50k several times so I knew what to expect . And , again , that's my favorite distance , and so I don't bulk , like , not like bulk , so to speak . But I don't get to a point where I want to like , you know , figuratively like kill myself and just die , like I just want this thing to end . I don't get like that on that distance . On a marathon , yes , especially on a road marathon at like mile 20 , I'm like what the am I doing out here ? But that doesn't happen there , and I think that this just because for me , trail running is just the terrain . I don't listen to anything , because you have to listen for deer , you have to listen for other runners , I have to look for a bear . You know what I mean . Like I have to be so in touch with the environment the entire time that , even from like an intention kind of standpoint or from a mindfulness standpoint , it sucks you into it .
Speaker 2So , especially whenever you're doing these things as a runner on your own , um and so on the 50 K day , um felt great , Didn't have any , the weather was perfect , it was chilly to start , um , and I had time goals written out for Jeff so that way he would know about whenever I would be running into the aid stations and he was allowed to be at , I think , two that day and I had two time cutoffs that I had to meet in order to be able to continue to run and my first time goal to meeting was at 930 , rolled in right at 930 . You know , um , at that time everything was again great and fine . It's tough terrain . The first part of that 50k is about what we ran in the in the half and then after that we really start like some huge ascents , and by huge like these are unrelenting mountains that you have to climb . Um , that will take like 30 minutes .
Speaker 2Like it's not like a short , you know what I mean kind of jog down right , and it's also technical and so at some point you're using your hands . You're kind of most people will have poles to kind of say yeah , a lot of people had poles to use up there . I would kill myself easily on poles you know what I mean .
Speaker 1You would trip over them and they would like impale you , I would easily get in a belt .
Speaker 2I'd look like a spider on ice skates . It just wouldn't be a good thing . But anyways , and so at that point , after I met him and that was like I don't know , nine , 10 miles in that's . Whenever it really starts to get pretty technical and we have a lot of stream crossings , like I said about , like probably like 20 to 30 , and they're not like tiny little creeks like we're talking , like I'm wading across mountain water with no rope , and then there's a waterfall , literally a waterfall . Um , and again , you know , you're not changing shoes , you're . I mean , some people might like the halfway point or whatever , changing shoes or changing socks , because what's the point ?
Speaker 1you know , right , you're gonna get wet again yeah .
Speaker 2Yeah , two minutes . It's going to happen again . You don't dodge things whenever you know it's just going to continue to happen . But no , that day was perfect . It felt great . I saw them at aid station 27 . The 27 , no , was it 27 miles ? I forget what it was . I think it was close to that . I had three miles left , had to go through a beaver dam that was pretty deep , coming all the way up through the mountain , finished right at I wanted to be finished at like 3.30 , pulled in at 3.35 at the finish line .
Speaker 2And you know I'm always running straight to Jeff because he's the person that I know is there , always running straight to him . He's always right , there , has everything I need . He had the camera out , all kinds of stuff . Race directors are there to shake your hand at the end , and so you know I run up to him , shake the race director's hand , jeff and I give a nice long kiss and I you still hear people cheering and I'm like , well , this is odd . Like what the fuck ? You know what I mean . Like I know that , like my , the race director and some other friends are here , but then I look over and I see you yeah , and I literally go .
Speaker 1What the fuck are you doing here ?
Speaker 2like screamed it had no idea about anything . Other run owners were sitting there on the lawn just like what the hell confused yeah race directors confused , because I immediately start crying and like , yes , run to you and put my arms on you . And then I see bringing joely and jack and jeff and barb there and I'm like , oh fam , I am absolutely like . I don't even . I've never been in a state like that my entire life . I've never felt what I felt in that moment , ever in my life . It was just , oh my God .
Speaker 1It was such a cool moment and I have to say what was weird you didn't obviously know this , because you had just run 31 miles but like my legs were shaking so hard when I reached over to hug you . I think it was like . I've thought about this . I'm like why was I shaking ? I wasn't nervous , I was . It was , I think , just the adrenaline from it all . Right , I had just driven like 10 and a half hours and we get up there , you
Trail Race Community Camaraderie
Speaker 1find it and you're like hallelujah . And then we had been hanging out for a couple hours because we got there about one , and so I think it was just like the adrenaline of the moment of watching you cross the finish line and then seeing your reaction . I mean my legs I felt like I could have just like crumbled . Like my legs just like were so wobbly . I felt like a deer that had just been born or something Like . It was so weird how my body responded in that moment . You know , it's interesting how like and like I felt like I had no control , like my legs were just like blah , blah , blah . And Allie said the same thing when she surprised you . She was like I don't know why I'm shaking so hard and I was like I did the same thing and I think it was just like the months of like anticipation built up , and then it was like it was here , like I finally got to like fulfill the surprise that I had been , you know , trying to hold on to , and so it was so special and I think you know what started is just like hey , let's find a race . Hey , let's surprise Sarah .
Speaker 1You know , it became so much more than that over the course of those six months , and something that's always been important to me and what I kept thinking of is I want her , I wanted you to see that like I'll show up for you , like people will show up , like we love you so much , we'll go the distance .
Speaker 1People will show it . Like we love you so much , we'll go the distance , we'll find the most remote location in West Virginia just to support you . Because I think that's important , that we show that to the people we love . Like I know how important that is for me to feel like somebody will show up for me . You always show up for me and I wanted to return that favor because you have done it over and over and over and over again for me . So that's what I mean when it became so much more than just a race , you know . It became so much more than a training program or a surprise . It became more about like showing people . I love that . I will always show up for them because they show up for me .
Speaker 2Well , you did . I thought you had like cried all your tears last weekend . Nope , nope , it's been . It's been a week Right , yeah , yeah .
Speaker 1Yeah , but it was such a fun surprise and it was so fun to also like show my kids like this is what you do for people you love . And it was important for me for them to be there for a selfishly because I wanted them to see their mom run 13 miles and they know , that I've never identified as a runner and how hard it is for me .
Speaker 1You know . I want to show them that like we can do hard things , yeah , physically , mentally , all the things , and part of that is living that in front of them .
Speaker 2Yeah , no , and I totally agree with that . I mean , whenever Cameron was little , he used to come up there to that same race whenever he was that age and you know he was at a golf tournament that weekend , but he would always come up and watch and see that too . And that was actually um the last thing that he said to me whenever I talked to him before we lost cell phone service is , is that uh , is that we can do hard things , cause that's something we always say back and forward to each other .
Speaker 2Um , you know , and it to each time you say it . I think it can conveys different meaning . Um , but it is a real important thing , I think , to show kids that you know . And Sweet Jack was sitting there with his recorder playing Eye of the Tiger .
Speaker 1Every single person as they crossed the finish line . He played Eye of the Tiger for them . It was A . I could not stop laughing because he's learning the recorder . Okay , it's not like it's yeah , but it's like I mean literally imagine being out in the middle of nowhere , uh , this mountain , and they have . I mean it's , it's rustic , right , and they got , and so people are coming and you got this one kid almost out there like he was playing taps . You know he would start and I mean people had the biggest smiles on their face and how many . I mean most people knew what he was playing , which was also hilarious , um , but it was , and it was all him like . He was like mom , I got this idea , I'm gonna play . I had the . It was the only song he knew I'm gonna play . I had the tiger as they come across the finish line .
Speaker 1I'm like , do it yes it was so sweet , it was so cute , so cute .
Speaker 2Oh yeah , sweet Jack , sweet Jack , yeah , so you guys were able to hang out there on the mountain for a little bit after we finished . Get a feel of the land , stuff like that . Yeah , see and live and breathe .
Speaker 1And the community is so special and I think that's what my husband , my husband , has always identified as a runner . I mean he would say that he loves running . He grew up his mom's a runner . He grew up , you know , in races . She's been race directors for several races and stuff like that . So that's like he loves , he really loves the energy that a race community brings and but it is special like that . That group of people , I guess , because it's so rugged and you know , these are like warriors , these people are out running a hundred miles , almost a hundred miles , in the weekend , and everybody was just , you know , everybody was so nice and so welcoming and it wasn't like , oh you , you've never done an ultra you know there's nothing , none of that , none of that like judgment .
Speaker 1It was just like oh my gosh , we're so glad you're here . This is amazing . Yeah , everybody knows Sarah . Like you know , it's a pretty small community , would you say , like less than a hundred people .
Speaker 2Yeah , I say that you know the bigger distances that you run , especially in the terrain that you run in , it becomes a tighter and smaller community and you know so much . Of this too is that whenever you're out there , you're you're running your own race , but you're also there to help other runners , like trail runners . Don't leave a . You know what I mean . If somebody's hurt , we're not focused on . Oh , I got to get past my mirror . You know what I mean . I got to get my time in .
Speaker 2No , we're . We're very different type of , and I've ran marathons . I'm not saying that . It's just there's a difference between the things and it is a tight grip kind of community , especially like whenever you spend a weekend and you're all having the same , like you have communal meals , we're all washing our own dishes , we're all having race meetings together . All of our families that are at our aid stations are crewing all of us , not just you . You know , like my husband before , I would roll into an aid station would be like fixing tater tots or filling up people's you know what I mean water and this isn't .
Speaker 2He's not even a volunteer , this isn't his job , you know . But it's just what you do whenever you're out there with other people , and even whenever you pass other runners . It's not like you just ignore them on the trail , it's like , hey , good job , you know , keep it up . It's always about encouragement and support and , you know , just recognizing that you are doing something that is very unique and challenging and different , no matter what distance , it is the fact that you're out here in these elements doing it . We honor that you know what I mean and honor you for showing up for it . So , and it's a fun community , it's always a party too , like it's not , like there's no egos at the yeah , it's always a party at the end of the race , I mean yeah , I mean there was like like kombucha with alcohol in it .
Speaker 1There was a keg . I mean , like these people , not only are they pushing their bodies to run these incredible distances , but then they're coming back and there's recovery in it too . Right , they just got a Theragun out , you know , like the whole , the whole shebang , but they're , like you said , like we never stayed out there , we never camped out , but like you could definitely tell that there was like a very communal , like you know , party kind of atmosphere , yeah , a vibe about it . Um , so , walk us through the second day , the 50 miler , the beast that arguably you were most concerned about .
Speaker 2Yeah .
Speaker 1Always yeah , so walk us through what happened that day .
Speaker 2The fifth . First is not the distance . The distance I can do . You know what I mean . I have no doubt I've never ran that far , but I've ran 41 miles before I finished Highland Sky several times . That's 41 miles , Also in the same general region , about an hour and a half away from that , but still in those other mountains that we don't have on my side of the state . So , and I had plenty .
Speaker 2If you just look at the time , in order to finish that race it would have been time of total 14 hours . You have a 6 am start , you have till 8 pm to finish . But the issue with that race is fair in that it has very strict time cutoffs . And that is again like I said , because if you the idea is , if you can't make it to this point by this point in time , you're not going to make it to the next section of races in time , because it doesn't change , Its difficulty is mirrored . It's not that you're even running the same course twice . There's like one out and you have to run one section of it again to get to the next aid station . But it's just the difficulty doesn't change . The difficulty and the terrain are the same no matter what , and so that's the point of it , and the first aid station that you have to get to is at mile basically 25 .
Speaker 1And you have six hours , basically a marathon . You have to run a marathon and then you get to go to an aid station .
Speaker 2Right , you run a marathon and then you have 25 more miles to go . Um , so , after you just ran , 31 , the blessing and the curse that I have with my body is I don't get sore , so it does not matter . Um , I , you , you feel a little like I felt a little heavy , like in my quads , but I don't get sore , so it's no , it's not an issue for me to get up and run every single day or to have big distance or to do some type of activity . So , mechanically , I am a hundred percent great .
Speaker 1Well , you had trained your body to do this . I mean , you're running basically like a marathon a day , or close to it , towards the end of your training . And so you know , your body , at this point , is quite used to the distance .
Speaker 2Yeah , it's used to distance . And then I do a lot of yoga and I do like upper body , mostly like weight training and stuff like that , because trail running isn't just about your legs You're carrying a pack , you know it's also your auxiliary muscles that get used because you're having to balance on certain trails , all the things . So morning started out beautiful weather again . Great . You start at 6 and up on top of the mountain you have about two hours before it hits daylight so you're using a headlamp .
Speaker 2One challenge I have is that I am technically not allowed to drive at night . Ever legally I'm not allowed to drive at night . My eyes are just too bad , I have a horrible sickness and whatever else . So anyways , I just see blurbs of light instead of actual things , and so that's a little bit of a challenge . But since our first descent was spruce knob , I'm not running up that hill anyways , and you don't do that in trails at all .
Speaker 2So you know that just added to the element of the day and it was pretty quick as we were coming down that backside of the mountain before we come into the first aid station , which is one that's very remote and my husband was not at , but my friends were there , you know , time was just taking longer to run these sections of trail . And again , even though if you look at like the vertical profile , it looks like it's downhill , it is not . It is not . It is all huge , moving , unbalancing rocks that you are trying to get down . Or even if it looks like it's straight , because this section of the forest was a secondary forest , so they cut all the trees down , and whenever they cut all the trees down , all the rocks that are underneath of that then become your path , and so they're not flat rocks , they're jagged rocks , and then they're also covered in frost rocks , and then it's also 16 miles of those rocks before you get to the first aid station .
Speaker 2And you know , at that point , whenever I'm running through this , it became clear that I'm not going to make it to Jeff in the time that I had thought that I was going to and that I need to do as much as what I can right now in order to even get to him at all . And so you're having to push yourself to its absolute max the entire time , you know . So you climb up to the very top of this peak and then you start the ascent and then you think it's going to end there for a minute , and then , whenever you know that it's not going to A , that probably takes a little bit of a mental toll on you , because then you're just kind of like shit . You know what I mean . But then it's just a constant push , so it's no .
Speaker 2There's no time in which your feet aren't on the gas . And then on top of that you have a sweeper that's following you right , Cause they got to take down the flags . We're in a , we're in a big time forest here , so so we had to take , you know , the sweepers following you the entire time . So you're getting chased while you're running down a mountain as fast as you can , but there on that very first section , I went two and a half hours without seeing another human . Two and a half hours without seeing another human .
Speaker 1Which I mean .
On-Trail Preparedness and Accepting Risk
Speaker 1You know I had lots of questions . I'm like you're type one diabetic . What if your blood sugar ? Or you know what , if you have like an episode while you're out there ? Right or what if something happens Like what do you do and are you prepared for those types of , you know , spontaneous things that could happen ?
Speaker 2Yeah , I mean I carry . I mean my pack has about six pounds of six to eight pounds of fuel in it and insulin , so I'm always prepared for any type of diabetic episode for the most part , and if it drops low then I always have , like I said , sugar , all the things I need to bring it back up . If it gets high , I have insulin , but that is a different beast in and of itself , because the reason why it would get high on a run is if I'm becoming dehydrated , and that also is an issue because our aid stations are about 10 miles apart and so whenever I train , I train not to have water for 10 miles . So that way I can , you know , theoretically make it . But I have two packs of water , so I have like 32 ounces of water on me , but still , climbing up some of those mountains , you're drinking water or you're doing it in order to yeah , an altitude .
Speaker 2So you're doing it and so you know . Then that becomes a factor , and it was a warm , it was starting to get to be a warm day that day too , and so , in addition to becoming regularly dehydrated in my head , I have to think that if I do become dehydrated , my blood sugar is going to then start to spike and then I'm really going to be .
Speaker 1You know what I mean and then you're going to start on the yo-yo train yeah , and you don't need to be on that um .
Speaker 2But then on top of that , you know , if you I don know if you fall down and sprang your ankle and I've been on trail runs before where people have fallen and gotten like compound fractures where their bones are actually sticking out you just have to make it to a human being , you have to make it to the aid station . So no matter how you get there , you're going to have to make it to the aid station and even if the sweeper catches you , they don't have a way to get a hold of emergency crews .
Speaker 2Yeah , and they don't have a way to get you . So the best option that they have is to know about where you're at on the trail and then for them to get to the next aid station to then tell people but there's not an ATV that can get to these places .
Speaker 1Right Like , we're like talking , like if you watched any of that disaster stuff that happened in those rural western North carolinian areas . A mule might be able to get to you right . Yeah , these towns very much remind me of , like the towns that were hit by helene hurricane helene very similar , just mountain towns right ?
Speaker 2yeah , you're not . I mean good luck also finding a mule or horse , because they're not right right , so basically down in the valleys they're not right .
Speaker 2So basically , down in the valleys , no , so yeah , so those things could happen . But then again you just it's assumed risk . You have to assume all the risks that can happen to you at that point and then just say I'm going to accept them . And that can be hard for your family or for your friends or whatever else .
Speaker 2I mean , I remember whenever we were driving out there and my parents never , I mean whatever , they don't ever really say this kind of stuff but you know , my dad was like don't kill yourself out there , please don't die , jeff , make sure she . I'm like would you shut up , like I get what you're saying , but also , but also yeah . And then he was like , well , it wasn't that I didn't have confidence in you , it's just that it's high risk . And it's like , yes , you're like , have you met me ? I guess I don't ever think of it that way , but I guess that it is Sure . So , yeah , those are all the things that also are a part of that whole process . So , but you just gotta you accept them and then you're able to move with them .
Speaker 1So you're saying , at some point you realized you weren't going to meet your time cutoff .
Speaker 2I wasn't going to meet my time goal to meet Jeff . I knew because I wanted to make it to the aid station about an hour or so before it closed . And then , you know , as I was continuing to run , I had no idea how many people dropped the first day . So , the very first day of trilogy runners , we had about like I don't know like 40 , some people that had signed up to be full trilogy runners 45 people . Well , only 20 showed up like the next day to run . So there was a huge drop rate . But I'm not paying attention to stuff at the finish . You know the start line . I'm just making sure my watch is working . You know what am I doing . And so there were only like 20 of us that were out there , and so I had no idea like where people were at on the trail , and you know . And then the sweeper starts to come up into you and so you know you're at the back of the pack at that kind of point . But I'm like I'm keeping like a relatively okay pace , you know .
Speaker 1Yeah , because I want to point out that you had I saw your timeline that you sent to Jeff you had built in like buffers to give yourself extra time so you weren't like pushing it . You know , as far as your planning goes right , you had goals to give yourself a buffer of like an hour and a half to two hours so that you wouldn't miss those time cutoffs .
Speaker 2Right , but the trail was just different . You know , I hadn't ran that trail in over like 10 years and the only part of it I ran was the very first part and I didn't remember it being like that . And no matter what I did , no matter how fast I ran , no matter what parts I tried , there was just no way that I could have done it any differently . And so whenever I finally got to him um , at that aid station cutoff , I was passing people um that were a mile away from the aid station that were elite athletes Like I'm not just , like we're not hobbyist runners , you know what I mean . Some of those people are actually like paid to run , like they have sponsors I don't , obviously , but they do and they were a mile . They were like at that point , like two miles ahead of me , which is like 40 minutes , like 20 or so minutes or something , and they had just left the aid station 20 minutes ago and they were like super , I mean in shape , like hardcore some of them , like still active duty special forces , like Navy folks or like in the different branches of the military , like they are hardcore people that do hardcore shit all the time , and we're like a mile ahead of me and whenever I got to Jeff , it turned out to be like 20 minutes past the cutoff .
Speaker 2And whenever I got to him , he had said that whenever he arrived at that aid station like around like 1115 , I had wanted to try to be there by like 1130 . He said like only six people had come through and that everybody that I had seen within that time period had just left like 20 minutes ago , but most of them had gotten there like at 1210 , 1215 , 1220 . And then they stayed at the aid station for like 20 minutes debating whether or not they wanted to continue on , and that the last person that made it into the aid station made it in there at like 1246 and had to turn around and get out because it closed at 1250 . And so it was that tight of a crunch in order to get there and that was tough . That was not the moment at that moment that you wanted to have . It's still . In many ways , it's still not the moment that you wanted to have .
Speaker 2It's still not in many ways . It's still not the moment that I wanted to have . Yeah .
Speaker 1Because , as Jeff said , he was like he feels she feels like she's letting everyone down and she's let herself down . You know he's like . But one thing he said that I thought was so beautiful is you know , it was just he and I . We were talking later that evening and he was like you know , what I'm most proud of is that she hasn't made one excuse . She hasn't made one excuse other than to say I just couldn't do it . I just couldn't do it , I might not do it .
Speaker 1And he was like you know , he was like I'm most proud of her just owning that Right , because so easy to be like . This happened or this , or you know , I'm dealing with my blood sugar , whatever . You could have made a million excuses , but you didn't . You were like I just couldn't do it . I just couldn't do it , yeah .
Speaker 2I mean , no , I made it . People were like how are you going to make my this is non-medical advice , by the way but I just was like my , me and diabetes have a conversation . I have a relationship with it . I don't consider it's like an entity to me . Yeah , we're friends . I was like we're just not going to talk this weekend , like you know what I mean . We're going to pretend like I'm not and you're just going to .
Speaker 1We're just going to we're just going to pretend .
Speaker 2We're just going to pretend , and it I mean everything was fine , the weather was fine , that was
Unexpected Reunion at Cozy Cabin
Speaker 2fine . I just could not run what I needed to run at that point in time in order to get there , and that's just what it was . And so I think , and even in talking with people like the race director the next day or that night or whatever else , if I want to do that , I can can't train here , I have to train there . I have to , but that requires other sacrifices that I would have to make in my life in order to be able to do that , because it's four and a half hours away , um , and I don't know the trails over there that well , so I'm gonna have to . You know what I mean , buddy up . You know what I mean , adam , you're willing to come run with me , whatever , but it's going to take a different level of training , even than what I was able to train here , because this is not going to get it done . So , and that's a different level of like planning and acceptance too . You know , if you want to make it to this next point , are you willing , then , to make the sacrifices that are needed in order to make that happen ? Because that's going to be a bunch and a lot of ask from a lot of people to make that Right , but again , it turned out to be bittersweet .
Speaker 2And so you know that the little book I read every day to penny and are read aloud to penny days yeah , I know , god bless her . Yesterday was one of those days . I forget what , the exact way they word it , but it's like you just have to accept the everything is happening in this moment as it should , because that is the basic design of the universe in order for it to make it happen that way . You know like , yes , everything in god's plan is , and so , therefore , questioning what has happened in this moment is not , you know what I mean , it's what's destined to be Right .
Speaker 2So the beauty in all of that was that , had I finished that race where those people that were running with me that I passed , they all finished at like 7.50 , 7.45 pm , like right at that eight o'clock cutoff . So there I mean that told me that . You know what I mean . It was still going to be a push even then . But had I finished then , I think that in my heart I still would have been feeling like I don't know that , um , a level of sadness , or because I wouldn't have been able to spend time with you . You know what I mean . Because at that point , like eight o'clock , I'm finishing a run . I'm not driving out to the cabin . No , no , no .
Speaker 1And maybe that's some like unfair pressure that we put on you . No , no , because you weren't . That wasn't part of your race plan and this was a really important weekend for you wasn't part of your race plan and this was a really important weekend for you . Um , I hadn't thought about it from that perception , but like that probably was , um , like pressure that you weren't prepared for .
Speaker 2I don't know , I've , I don't , maybe I don't know . I just know that I had I finished that run , then I would not have been able to spend time with you . I would not have been able to spend time with you . I would not have been able to spend time with Allie who you know what I mean Flew across the country .
Speaker 1From Texas . Surprise you yeah .
Speaker 2I know God love her and I mean bless her heart . I mean , if you're from , if you've never driven out those places and seen those things , and then you're doing it by yourself and you're doing it Right .
Speaker 1And I mean I think she would be okay with us sharing that . Like that was the first time she had ever done anything like that . She had ever gone by herself to meet up other than the retreat that we all met at . But like you know , that was a big deal for her to leave her family to fly across the country to then rent a car to drive to the middle of nowhere , like it was a thing . Yeah . And you know it did honestly kind of work out in our favor . We had this cozy little cabin . It was a beautiful fall weekend in West Virginia . The leaves were turning . I mean it was just like quintessential fall weekend . You couldn't have asked for better scenario . And so I know that she's coming . At that point you didn't know there was no idea .
Speaker 1And so you know , at the same time I'm also trying to like communicate with her and set up , okay , how are we going to surprise Sarah with Allie ?
Speaker 1And we were going to come and watch you cross the finish line for the 50 miler , but now in hindsight , like , again , that would have been at pm and then we got to drive back and like prepare for our race day on Sunday . You know , it's just like it kind of all worked out that you all were able to come out and have dinner and just like chill , and we're all sitting by the campfire . This car rolls up and I'm playing it like , oh , maybe this , because it's also the middle of nowhere , like this is out a little dirt road , like there's no reason to come out this road unless you're staying at this cabin . And so as this car pulls up , I'm like , well , maybe this is the owner of the cabin you know to check on us , right ? And then what were your thoughts ? Because I don't think initially you realized who she was . Like it took you a solid like 10 to 15 seconds to make the connection .
Speaker 2Yeah , well , I mean exactly . So I'm sitting there and I'm still probably just I'm happy to be there with you guys in that moment , and then I'm still just like in my head and my heart , I'm still like , god damn it , you know what I mean , processing it all .
Speaker 2Yeah , I'm still processing and you can't think well after those things . You know you can't even see things well because you're always looking down and you're always looking at leaves , and so so much of who you are as a person is just dysfunctional after doing that Almost like disoriented a little bit A hundred , percent A hundred .
Speaker 2If you asked me to solve like well , not that this is fair , but like even a basic math problem , or spell a basic word on like a third grader's test , it ain't going to happen . Like I'm not , I'm not able to problem solve things here .
Speaker 1You could totally tell like your rate of speech was slower , your processing time was longer , like you can definitely see the impact oh yeah , from somebody that's like putting themselves through this ultra marathon or this ultra race . Yeah , it takes a lot , she pulls up , she gets out . I'm like , oh , who's that ? And I'm watching you the whole time Cause I want to see the moment you make the connection of who she is .
Speaker 2Well , I'm thinking like it might be the Airbnb person . And then I'm like , well , this is kind of weird . And then also at the end of that road you said those weird signs that were out there .
Speaker 1Uh-huh yeah , like warning you that don't pick up this cyanide , like cyanide .
Speaker 2And I'm like , okay , well , I was like , well , jeff's packing , right , his husband carries , he has a legal permit to carry a gun . Well , you don't need it in West Virginia , but he did have a even so . I was like , well , you know , if any worse comes to worse , right , we're ready to roll um . And so in my head I'm just sitting there like , oh geez , like what's happening now , you know , yeah . And then I'm looking and I'm like you're right .
Unexpected Trail Race Reunion and Triumph
Speaker 2I was just so completely confused and disoriented and then , at the same time and I was like what in the absolute hell , yeah , is happening ? Like ally , like I was just like questioning it was this her , as I was saying her name and looking at her , and I looked over at you and you were just like like surprised and happy and stuff . And I looked at jeff and he was like trying to like be like this is actual happening , like I'm thinking like where's ash ? And I'm getting pumped . You know what I mean . Or is this all just some kind of like dream ? Like where , what happened ?
Speaker 1like look at me . I'm still like what happened ? What's that ? Yeah , this was my face all weekend what's happening .
Speaker 2It was oh , and so it even took me a minute after I don't know , 10 to 15 minutes after she got there , kind of like with you that I was able to actually like no one's ever done .
Speaker 1You mean , no one's ever pulled off the greatest surprise of all time ? No , no , who does that ? You ?
Speaker 2know what I mean . No , and especially to come there . You know what I mean . Like if you're coming to like I don't know Huntington , then it's still cool and it's still wonderful and great , but it's not that .
Speaker 1Right , this was like significant effort to get there . And and then you know to also then realize that , hey , we're here to like run you through that final day , because at that point that was the kind of like the whole thing . It's like , even though it's only 13 miles you know , if you've already ran 80 , that doesn't seem like that long but we're like she might need that push that last day , like we could be that push for her , you know , to get her through the last day . So it's like that whole idea of like not only have my friends showed up , but now they they've also trained for the last six months for this so they could run me home you know , like the whole idea was a lot .
Speaker 2Still still , still a lot . Oh my God , yeah . So , and then whenever I put all that together that you guys were then all training for this thing and that's what the whole thing was I'm just like oh my God . And then I'm like well , is there a puppy ? Like , what's the next surprise ?
Speaker 1You were , like , are we getting a puppy too ? Like what else is happening here ? So that was awesome , because we did get to spend time together there . And again , I think , just for me , like being that example for my daughter , that like this is like what , girlfriend , this is what friendship is about , right , this is why it's so important to pick your friends and really be there for them and like show up for them and , like you can see , I just thought it was like so beautiful for her to get to see that . Oh yeah , and so yeah . So then we had , we had our race . Then on .
Speaker 1Sunday , which , also to give some context , like Allie and I were both training at below sea level or at least I know I'm below sea level , I know she's at sea level and so I was quite nervous . I went for one run while I was out there , or while I was in West Virginia , and I was like I'm gonna die tomorrow , like I couldn't make it up the one hill that I tried to run up and I was like I'm literally gonna die tomorrow because here I've been training at below sea level and why I felt really good about my training and I had stuck to the program and I had done all the things I was very nervous about . You know , I've not I've never done a trail race of any kind . I had done two six mile runs out in Colorado and so I was like , okay , I know I can run six miles on a trail , but like I didn't know how the second half was going to go , yeah , and shout out to the Nike Run Club app Want to get into running of any kind . I mean I do .
Speaker 1I give a lot of credit because I followed it to a T . I followed the half marathon training plan to a T . All 70 runs took the recovery days as prescribed , did a lot of like strength training and yoga , a lot of stretching , but like , followed it to a T and even though I also had trained for the half marathon I did a year or 10 years ago over 10 years ago I was so I felt so much more prepared this time and my husband , you know , being a runner , he was like you got to trust the process because those last few weeks of the taper it feels like you're not running enough and you're and I think that kind of like you really have to trust this plan that you have , you know , said that you're going to do because it messes with your head a little bit . You're like , well , I haven't run over three miles in a week and a half . Like , how am I going to run 13 up a mountain ? Yeah , so I highly recommend it's a free app . It's got 5K , marathon , half marathon , any kind of training program you want to do Guided runs , not guided . I did 100% guided runs because I need someone in my ear telling me what to do .
Speaker 1I mean , what I learned from this is I never really learned how to run . I never really learned that , like you have to go slow because your body is going from walking to running . Like you don't want to go out the gate fast , you don't want to get caught up and trying to keep up with people , like you have to . You have to run your race and respect your body where it's at . It doesn't mean you are a slow runner , it means you need . It's more about , like , the effort that you're giving at the beginning of a run or the middle of the run or whatever , and that there are different types of run . I think , for my very ADD self , like I also need that , like every day can't be a seven mile run or whatever . You know , some are speed runs , some are distance runs , some are recovery run .
Speaker 1The majority of your training is a recovery run which is just a nice easy pace you know , like a five on a scale of one to 10 . And so I really can't say enough good things as a non-runner to be to run that race in what I felt like was great conditioning .
Speaker 1I cannot suggest it more . If somebody wants to get into running to check out that app you know it's still placed . You can sync it to like your Spotify and it plays your music while you have somebody telling you how to run . You know , like , pick it up here , slow down , how's your breathing , check your form , like all of those things were so , so helpful to me . So , anyway , shout out to Coach Bennett . That was amazing . And so , yeah , we got there and my husband also ran the half marathon , and so Jeff was our guy for , uh , he was our teammate for your Jeff with the aid stations and he you know we're throwing our long sleeves to him as we went by the first time like he was the true MVP of the weekend . He was helping me sort of like coordinate all of these things , while also being there for Sarah and her . And then Benny took care of us during our marathon . You know he was truly the MVP of the weekend . Yeah , because we couldn't have done it without him .
Speaker 2Definitely .
Speaker 1I think I said this to you when we were on the trail , like I think that was the first time we had ever run together . It was in our entire life and we've been friends for over 30 years . I know it was the first time we had ever gone for a run together and it was just great to have you like leading us . You know , a lot of it is single file because you're on a trail , a very narrow trail , and so a lot of times you know it was Sarah and we sort of bookend , we put Allie in the middle and then I was last , but it just it felt like we were a tribe and again , like you were saying , you're high fiving people as you go past them on the trail .
Speaker 1And good job and the aid stayed at the aid stations . Everyone is so inspiring and you know just kind and it was truly one of my favorite days of all time . Oh yeah , it was truly one of my favorite days of all time , oh yeah .
Speaker 1Not only just because I finished it and I felt really good about it , but I loved every second of it . It didn't even feel like work Right and I know it's very different than the terrain that you had been on the two days before . It's not nearly as high of you know of a climb or as much of a climb , but it's still like . I was like amazed at how good I felt .
Speaker 2Oh , you were amazing , yeah , you were power .
Speaker 1I mean just like I felt like Hercules I can't even describe it it was . It was so much fun to run with my friends through the forest in the middle of nowhere , no , and my mom and my kids are waiting at the finish line to watch these three very strong women cross the line together . You know , like it was so special and I have my husband there and your husband there Like it was just so much fun . I loved every second of it .
Speaker 2It was yeah , it was absolutely amazing , and we were able to like talk and like catch up and cheer each other on . You know , while you're doing something like that or like catch up and cheer each other on , you know why you're doing something like that , or you know , as we're climbing over fences barbed wire fences or going through creeks or you know , trying to find the flags , right yeah yeah , trail markers .
Speaker 1You were like our personal guide . You'd be like and over here , you see this , you know like it was . It was just so fun . I mean , I think it would have been fun regardless , just because of where it was and everything , but it was so special to do that together , yeah .
Speaker 2It was absolutely amazing . Yeah , well , and I think , like you said , it shows our kids so much , it shows everybody so much . But even for us we said that we're like we can't climb mountains , and that means it literally and figuratively , you know , and especially if you have a good crew with you , then it just yes , the answer is yes , and so it's just , you know , pick up your feet and go . So .
Running Journey of Self-Discovery
Speaker 1This whole experience because when I started , you know , it started out of a frustration of with my body and like nothing's working and I'm just going to go for a run because that must be the answer . Right , I hate running , so that must be the answer . But it became so much more , and not only realizing I don't hate running , I just wasn't doing it correctly . And and really , you know , while it did achieve some of the things that I wanted to , it did help me slow down a little bit and those types of things it became more about like you can literally do anything you put your mind to .
Speaker 2Yeah , and your body's strong .
Speaker 1Right , with the right coaching and just sheer like showing up for yourself . Like I showed up for myself 70 times in a row , you know , for the last six months , and no matter if I was on vacation , if I was at a conference , like I did not skip a run and I was so proud of that fact , of that I didn't give up on myself , even though there were several days I didn't want to do it . There were several runs where I started out thinking I was going to run a distance and I just I couldn't do it that day and so I did it the next day . Like that , that willingness not to give up on myself was , um , I think , probably the biggest takeaway for me Don't give up on yourself and that you can do anything with the right training and and motivation .
Speaker 1And for me , the motivation was I'm running this regardless . I have signed up , I'm all in , like I didn't want to get there and disappoint you or anyone else , right ? So ? But just like the excitement of knowing that I got to surprise you and all those things was really helpful in keeping me motivated for six months straight , because it was like I can't show up and like not finish , I can run , you know , nearly 100 miles um . So it was just . It was such a great weekend um it was beautiful , beautiful , bring it total full circle .
Speaker 1When we were driving out that morning for the race , allie was behind us and she texted me , which it didn't come through because there's no cell service , um , but on the way home to South Carolina I finally got her text and she's like do you see the hawk swooping and circling your car all the way out here ? And if you've listened to the show , you know that that's like my symbol for my dad . Like when I see a hawk , like I feel like it's my dad and um and I had , and we had seen it like swoop down in front of our car . But it was just like it was . You know , I felt him , I felt him there , I felt um , just so much and so much of it is connected to you because you were such a vital part of helping me through that .
Speaker 1You know , arguably the hardest time of my life was losing him . And like that's what I mean , like you showed up for me so big and it just it all feels so connected to me . I can't explain it , but it was just like precious , like those , these , this , and I think I said this to you and Allie , like this is what we live for , like those , these , this , and I think I said this to you and Allie like this is what we live for . These are the moments that are literally what's worth living for . Yeah , because we get to share love and feel connected to people , and it's just to me like what it's all about , like there is nothing bigger or better in life than giving and receiving love . Yeah , and that's ultimately what it was all about .
Speaker 1Oh well , it was sweet , I want to do it again . Yeah , right , I would totally do it again . My husband's like so next year we're doing the 50K . I'm like oh okay , okay , let me try , maybe like a marathon , and then we'll talk about expanding .
Speaker 2Yeah , yeah , here we go .
Speaker 1I don't know . I've always said I would never do a marathon , but the half is like a great distance in many ways .
Speaker 2Yeah , it's a fun distance .
Speaker 1You're not going to really beat your body up .
Speaker 2Yeah , it's a great distance it's a fun one , yeah , yeah , it's a fun one , so , but it is , yeah so , best weekend ever , best weekend best weekend in a really long time .
Speaker 1Yeah , yeah , just that . It was almost sad , like as each mile ticked by , I was like we're getting closer to the finish and and I'm like , I'm sad , like I don't want this to end , I don't want our time to end , I don't want this experience to end , but I wanted to cross the finish line the three of us , you know . So I did want that moment to happen too . Yeah , it was special .
Speaker 1It was so special , everything about it was just it was as it was supposed to be . Yeah , exactly . Yeah doesn't mean that it's not that you're not going to chase this dream down someday in the in the future , but it just wasn't this weekend .
Speaker 2No the universe had other plans that were more important than me finishing yeah you know , and there's a lesson in that oh , 100% , yeah , yeah .
Speaker 1So Sometimes the universe knows best .
Speaker 2It . Does you trust the process ?
Speaker 1Right , that's going to be our new goal .
Speaker 2I hate that for you .
Speaker 1But , yeah . It did turn out that we got to have margaritas and sit by a cozy fire in the middle of the woods .
Speaker 2Yeah , like I said I just had , had I finished that and not been able to have that time , that also would have been a hard loss too , I think . So I think that everything worked out in the best , optimal way that it ever could have .
Speaker 1I mean whenever I ran this race before .
Speaker 2I didn't do all three days , so this time you know 31 , 25 , 13 .
Speaker 1Yeah , and you right , that was a new experience for you just to even run those three back , those three days back to back and to see people I hadn't seen in eight years .
Speaker 2you know , and I think that was like eight or nine years I hadn't seen some of those people who I was really connected with , really great friends , and to see them , just like I had seen them all the time . You know what I mean . Like that too . It was just that weekend was about connections , it was about love , it was about things that it was not intended to be about , that also needed to be like , shown , and so Sort of like cracked you open .
Speaker 1I guess God , yes , yes did I need that ?
Speaker 2I guess there was a goal you did .
Speaker 1I think that the universe sends us exactly what we need in that moment and I think the what you said , like the bigger , the bigger lesson or the bigger point of that weekend , was for you to see how many people love and support you yeah , and want you to win at everything . That's so sweet and it was a win because you did something you have never done before .
Speaker 2Well , and I saw that . You know what I mean that was the biggest one is that I saw that . And it's interesting you mentioned cracked egg , because whenever we were at that Cobra retreat where we met Allie , I think my word was soften and then I drew an egg . I , I think my word was soften and that I drew an egg .
Speaker 2I literally have it because my binder is right there . Of course it is . I have an egg on it that has little cracks on it , and so , yes , I think that's exactly what needed to happen . That seed was planted in March in carefree Arizona and you know six months later , almost to the day yeah , there it is , there it is .
Speaker 1It's so cool . The universe has its ways , it does . I just had chills , I did not realize . I do remember your word being softened . What was my word ? Do you remember ? I think it was surrender , sur , yeah , that's my word your word for 2023 was commitment and , yeah , still got some more things to commit to posting regularly about our podcasts off our platform . Well , that's the next commitment Right On to the next goal .
Speaker 2That's it . We're on to the next .
Speaker 1Yeah , yeah , we're on , don't stop , get it , get it .
Speaker 2That's right . You always got to have something , otherwise you don't know what direction you're going in , so that's right .
Speaker 1Have something planned , moving forward one foot in front of the other ?
Speaker 2Yeah , down a dream one way or the other .
Race Recap Reflection and Inspiration
Speaker 2Well , that was special , everything about it was super super special .
Speaker 1It's fun to recap and just like hear your point of view and I hope this has inspired some people to set some new goals . Maybe surprise your bestie , like . There's just so much , I think , takeaways from this , this , and so I hope that you all have loved this race recap as much as we have , because it was really fun to share this and that's all we got , so be sure to send us any of your ideas for new episodes .
Speaker 2Stay connected with us . Hopefully you hear how important that connection is and want to kind of work on maintaining it too . So until next time , lylas , and that connection is and want to kind of work on maintaining it too . So until next time , lylas out .
