A few months ago, the editor of a major running magazine spent a long time interviewing me for an article about addiction in running. I poured my heart out, but never saw it published.
So I battled back and forth for awhile, torn between letting the story go, if I wanted to go there, yada yada, until I finally just said …ya know what? Screw it…. nobody can tell my thoughts better than me…. So here we go. Prepare yourselves.
For the past three years, I’ve attempted to take my running journey from “Ultra Crazy Runner” to just “Crazy Runner” by participating in my favorite marathon: the annual Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon. I would say it’s tradition, but really it’s just more of a personal running vendetta.
It’s hard for me to believe that it was two and a half years ago when I ran my first ultra race: Strolling Jim 40 Mile Run. I was bound and determined to prove to myself, my family, my friends..anybody and everybody.. that I could turn my once drug addicted self into someone inspirational. Someone worthwhile. Continue reading
At the heart of every adventure, lies a reason for its existence: a need, a want, a desire… maybe a goal, a fear, or an adrenaline rush… For me? Well, when you break it down, I guess it’s always the same: I’m lookin’ for trouble.
A few months ago while I was out at Badwater, I got a text from my good friend, Beth McCurdy: “Hey girl, I want to talk to you about something, I have an idea. Call me when you get back to Georgia.” At the time, I was out exploring Red Rock, the Grand Canyon, and working at the greatest races of all time in Death Valley (Badwater) so I pushed the text to the back of my mind. I didn’t think of it again until I got home. Funny though, because that little text would ultimately turn into one of the most inspiring experiences of my life…
In early 2011, in the peak of some very heavy training, I ripped a piece off of my favorite training bandanna and tied it to my wrist.
Okay. Why?
After Jen and I road tripped all the way from Vegas to Death Valley, it was time to ditch the wheels and find the party. We then joined the race director, Chris Kostman, and his soon-to-be wife Laurie Streff, lounging by the pool drinking fruity drinks and waiting for runners… Bahhhaha! Just kidding. No actually we found the pair doing exactly what you’d expect an RD to be doing before one of the most meticulously executed running events in the world: preparing and polishing every last detail of Badwater. Continue reading
(Please read Chapters 1, 2, & 3 before this post!)
The Sign
“So whad’ya think, Ambs?”
Amber and I were going back and forth- taking turns between Devil’s Advocate and Gutsy Adventurer- trying to decide exactly what we should do at this point.
Do we finish out our adventure of a lifetime?
Do we play it safe and turn around?
Our guts were telling us to turn around, but ironically- our guts were propelling us forward. We simply didn’t know which “guts” to listen to:
“It’s 1:18.” I said, “Think we can tackle the rest of that climb, then run 13 back to phantom ranch before they close at 4 to get more food?”
“I mean… Probably.. If we push it? But do we chance that? That’s a really big chance to take, ya know? I mean, Ash..we don’t get any food and we’re toast. We’ve got kids and husbands waiting by the phone to make sure we are okay. One wrong move out here and we could be dead.” Continue reading
