“What hurts you blesses you.” ~Rumi

Roughly eight months before my first one hundred mile foot race, I didn’t realise I was off course near the end of the first long loop of the Woodstock 100K. It was Friday evening after an afternoon start for hundred miler and hundred kilometer runners; I was cruising carefully in a primitive pair of huaraches with no socks. Focused on the trail and running towards the loud music at the start/finish area, which is the center of a long weekend camp/party with a live band and many races happening, suddenly where my path ended, I was stunned to see a very fit young woman running by in nothing but… trail shoes!

Just that instant I glanced down to see the course flags at that corner and realized I was no longer on the 100K or 100M trail. As she buzzed past, leading a pack of other nude runners, I immediately realized this was one of those memorable moments that would not be photographed. I glanced back up to the right and watched the full moon busting down the trail, and at my left were ladies and gentlemen chasing the rabbit, leaving me apologetically trying to figure out how I’d gotten onto the nude run. The theme was Woodstock, so trail shoe nudity is part of the fun for many. I felt like I’d landed in somebody’s bedroom, but turned back and figured out where I’d taken a turn onto the wrong color flags. Course navigation has been a recurring challenge, but I had to laugh and know that this is just one of those situations that will never happen again. Savor the uniqueness of the experience. As Danny Dreyer says, “once you become an ultra runner, life is never boring”.

Sunrise at about eight miles into a one hundred mile race is a special time for us. Witching hour ends as the cold and lonely hours slowly fade. Sunday morning, April 29th, 2018, was extra sweet. I was 55 years old and striving to be the third person to earn the 500 mile club buckle at the C&O Canal 100 Mile Endurance Run. This was my first hundred mile race and the goal was to run it five years in a row, with the cherry on top being five course PR’s in a row. I was on pace for a hundred mile PR as well. Here, another “this will never happen ‘full moon’ moment” unfolded before me.

Running towards the finish line from Noland’s Ferry towards Harper’s Ferry on a gorgeous light gravel path, the sparkling, huge Potomac was on my left to remind me I was running uphill toward the finish. The sun was above the mountains and trees were at my left and a bit behind me to enhance the sparkling river view. The sky was perfectly blue with brilliant, puffy white clouds over the mountains. As if this weren’t enough beauty, the most amazing, huge full moon was in view at my left and ahead, over the mountains and trees as the woods were coming alive with birds singing. I felt incredible and it would be a brief time seeing the moon’s setting reflect opposite the sun’s rising reflection on the Potomac. With heightened senses, a great runner’s high and much gratitude, I was in “business mode” going for a PR and chasing the “Randy buckle” as some called it. The RD’s had one gold buckle, as I was the sole four time finisher running the race. I had a camera in my pocket, but I knew I couldn’t fully capture the beauty and magic.

It was as if billions of diamonds were churning on the river, putting on a light show just for me. It was the “blue hour” or “golden hour” as photographers refer to the best lighting of the day which happens after sunrise and before sunset. My camera would stay in my pack and I’d soak up the memories while staying focused on the end goals. The “race” starts at about eighty miles. My table had been set and I was all in, loving every step forward. My mantra shifted back and forth from “dig deep” to “dig deeper”.

As a “Vlogger” on YouTube, I have a pile of notepads with ideas and long stories written. I’ve been intending for years to start a blog. The notes I’m reviewing now are nearly two years old! Had Covid-19 not materialized, I’d be driving to my 7th annual C&0 100 right now for 100 miler finisher buckle sixteen. Ultra Running has changed how I view life and running as I’m nearing ten years of ultra running. Current goals include maxing out my number of hours of runner’s high over a lifetime while experiencing amazing places with kindred spirits. It’s about joyful longevity as a mission that includes inspiring others to discover this potential for an upward spiral in well-being. It’s about discovering general truths and executing plans based on these principles. Is not my “work” incomplete unless it’s disseminated to others? If I sit on the “experiments”, it’s almost as if I’ve not done enough, even though experiencing the magical flow of life through these activities should be enough. Yet it’s often more play than work. Why are we here? For “ease” or disease?

At C&O 100, I’ve experienced extremes in weather over the years ranging from snow, sleet and rain in the mid 30’s to humidity and blazing sun above 90 degrees with heavy Spring pollen. Usually, conditions are more in the pleasant middle. The many variables that drew me to C&O as my first hundred miler, are the same “just right” aspects of the race that draw me back like steel to a magnet. The course is easy to navigate and smooth enough to run meditatively. If heavy rains hit, the course is still runnable and the area is rich in history and gorgeous views, both natural and man made. On one side of the course is the Potomac, on the other are remnants of the historic canal and train tracks. The sights, sounds and aromas of trains enhance the experience. Harper’s Ferry looks like a movie set and the pleasing bridges connect the scenery and bring Appalachian Trail hikers to some parts of our race course. Sometimes we see horses and talk to their riders. Other sounds include the Potomac River rapids, springs flowing to the Potomac and canal, the chorus of tree frogs from the “peepers”, and various wildlife moving about. Beautiful mountains, rocks, trees, hills, wild flowers and turtles, lots of turtles sunning in the canal, keep me distracted until the next expertly volunteer staffed aid station. As an exclusively plant fueled sandal runner, I’m often overwhelmed with options. Once, upon making the long drive, hundreds of miles, home, I found an uneaten rice burrito in my hydration vest to finish. Still delicious!

While I love tough mountain based hundred milers and inaugural hundred mile races, C&O Canal 100 draws me back, as I strive towards the 1000 Mile buckle. The soonest that could now happen for me is at age 61 due to Covid-19. The laid back vibe of this race and “Beast Coast Runners” who run it and support it add to the pull. It’s hard to imagine that we are only about an hour away from Washington DC. The late Spring timing keeps me focused on proper training through the Winter. C&O 100 helps me be a better runner. Better running directly correlates to being a better human perhaps?

C&O 100 is small enough to meet people and large enough to not feel too isolated on the long dark trails at night. Running the same race year after year reminds me of Cheers, the TV show. Sometimes you just wanna run where it seems like everybody knows your name. The first year running C&O as my first hundred, I was surprised by how many people I met and still keep in contact. No bar stools needed. Each of my six finisher’s buckles has the year engraved and 2018 was extra special, my “double buckle” year.

The course is mostly flat towpath, but the hill to and from the finish/start/aid area is steep and technical with water crossings. I look forward to that variation in motion. Otherwise, runners can dig deep within thoughts, mantras, and self focus with little risk of tripping, and enjoy a meditative full body massage that goes beyond a full spin the earth for most of us, a form of yoga. At this race I’ve had at least three strong finishes where I felt like Superman on “kryptonite”, but it’s real. Negative splits on a runner’s high at a hundred miler is a feeling I wish could be bottled and sold. I’d be set and could run anywhere, anytime! This is a feeling many of us ultra runners chase. Our place in the race irrelevant relative to how we felt doing it.

Currently I’m at fifteen finisher’s buckles for 100 mile races, with six from C&O, plus that gold colored 500 Mile Club buckle. There are only three in circulation for at least one more year. James Lampman and Edward Masuoka are proud holders. The shiny trinkets are reminders of special moments in nature with the great people we meet along this outlier path. Running is an expression of what we are at our primal core. Races tend to feel like three day communes for people who’ve discovered their genetic strength. And it’s one of the few “sports” where a competitor may be found sleeping in a port-o-jon. It’s tough to explain the pull, but it can go beyond flow state, and being in the zone. Scott Jurek describes it as a state of being out of the body, that feeling of crushing it easily at the end of a hundred miles.

It must have been my third running of C&O when it started raining at sunset and kept raining all night and into the next day. Maybe it was the negative ions, but I felt cold with the first drops of rain at about 75 miles in and cranked up the pace to stay warm, feeling great while passing lots of runners. Lyrics from “The Sounds of Silence” were banging around my head for hours. This was the night I came to love and look forward to the night run. “Hello darkness my old friend, I’ve come to talk with you again. In restless dreams I walked alone.” Splashing my sandals through puddles, “I turned my collar to the cold and damp, when my eyes were stabbed by the flash of neon light that split the night.”

In “Born To Run,” the book, I learned how the Raramuri live more cooperatively than competitively, a reminder to seek wisdom over wealth. Running far can be a transformational, uniquely human experience, a form of health and the most valuable wealth, or form of energy.

Actively monitoring emotions and thoughts is becoming more of a habit, an unconscious competence. During runs, of course, but everything we do outside of the race impacts the next race. It’s all connected. Everything is alive. Moving away from unconscious incompetence is the start of this process, a four step process to be more aware. This is not a typical race report detailing what I ate and at what pace I ran at 55.5 miles. It’s more about practicing light, smooth and easy, and patiently waiting for some speed and fluidity as a byproduct. After my first 100 mile finish at C&O in 2014, I wondered how long I could maintain that hard won level of wellness. This was a wave I’d like to keep riding. The physical pain was far more than offset by my hours of intense runner’s high. At that first hundred miler, I knew before the buckle landed in my hand, I’d be back.

The army of volunteers it takes to pull off this race is likely more than the typical number of finishers. I’ve noticed that gratitude goes a long way and repeat volunteers sometimes understand my needs before I do. A glance at me, and a familiar volunteer gets the ginger rice soup or hot coffee, just what I needed. After laying down in the mulch after one finish, the aid station captain brought me hummus and pita chips to eat while lying on the ground! Best. Hummus. Ever.

Ultra running is a leap of faith. Each run is preparation for the next. If you dig deep enough into the ultra running experience, it may change how you think about nearly everything. The meaning of song lyrics change from what the artist intended. Personal transformation may change how you vote, what you’ll eat, what you care about and how you view animals and pets. I want to reach out and touch the flame, where the streets have no name …

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“Fools,” said I, “You do not know
Silence like a cancer grows
Hear my words that I might teach you
Take my arms that I might reach you.”
But my words like silent raindrops fell
And echoed in the wells of silence.

~Simon & Garfunkel