I recently ventured into the world of the 12-hour endurance run.  You know, the kind where you run the same loop over and over at a set start time.  For 12 hours.  For no real apparent reason. Oh, and this race also had a twist, after each loop the lap clock decreased by 9 seconds, so you have to progressively get faster to keep from being eliminated.  Admittedly, my primary motivation in signing up for this race was the t-shirt (who doesn’t want a dinosaur race shirt?) so it’s fair to say I did not fully appreciate this challenge going into it.  It seemed like a fun way to get in a long run with friends on the weekend.  (Spoiler alert I was not the last runner standing so if you’re reading this for race tips no need to read further.)

It didn't take long before we were hiding in the bushes. Heavy machinery and watchful eyes lumbered down the rocky road below us. I suppose that's what we deserve for attempting to ride a closed road. But to our credit, we were on bikes and obviously, traffic rules don't apply. My brother, laying horizontal behind a log on an exposed hillside, couldn’t stop smiling. He was able to briefly escape the turmoil of medical school at the University of Washington to join me in Idaho for an annual get-together. This year’s objective was to ski the Devil’s Bedstead, a prominent peak in the Pioneer mountains of Central Idaho. 

Streaking. That word has a very different meaning to me these days compared to my college days rummaging around the UNC Charlotte campus. My present day interpretation of streaking is to run at least one mile every single day. This time, fortunately, with clothes on. I’ve been streaking two full years without a single day off. I’ve learned a lot about running, grit, will, and pure love for a hobby turned necessity. 

Guest Contributor: Lisa Landrum
Read Time: 5 mins

For me, there’s nothing that makes me feel freer than trail running. It’s an opportunity to, literally, get grounded and focus on one thing … my run. As chaotic as the world may become, each run is my opportunity to control things. Trail or road, fast or slow, hours or minutes. I make the choices. I control the decisions. I like that.