My Ultra story.... Why Run?

After marathoning for a few years , completing several every year most sub three's, my interest in distance running grew from our beginning few ultra runners here in Rochester and a monthly publishing of a booklet called Ultra-runner which listed results and articles of national races and runners. This was new territory for me. I purchased a book about running a first 50 miler. I liked the approach, training schedule and execution of 50 miler. Since I was already marathon trained up, I made a plan to do a 50 that a couple of Rochester ultra runners were going to travel to in Buffalo in Nov. called Nickle City Fifty. Ultras then were pretty small in number and pretty low key. Can't remember who (Probably Norm Frank and Eddie Cohen) joined my Kodak training buddy Mike H. and I in Buffalo at the Zoo location which had a looping road course around Zoo. It was typical Nov weather cold but not icy. A number of loops to equal 50 miles. Mike and I ran side by side the entire race and finished in the top ten in around 6 hours. Pretty good even for today's standards. My first ultra plaque.

This run cut my teeth for other ultra distance races which Rochester put on in our town in early 80's. Our small ultra community here in town pulled together track ultras at U of R sponsoring Strong Children Center over the next several years. I saw, participated and conquered every track race I ran 24 hrs max 100 miles or more. Some set national age records for 50K, 50 mi, 100k and 100 miles.

How many laps around a track for 100 miles? Do the math 425 +/-.

Those were really mind bending and hallucinating. Running that many miles took phenomenal mind strength training. Experienced utlra runners know what mean. Remember I used to do LSD? I remember on trip I was on where I was a horse running on a beach along Lake Ontario, probably singing Free Bird. hah. That's

another story.

Stories about trail ultras you will have to read my book.

So that isn't why I stared yesterday's post, but it's the back story. I told Heather Beck my co-author I've got alot of stories and off we went with my memoir.

The book which started this long conversation is Ultra Christianity, Lessons learned from, God while training for Ultra marathoning. Tom Garrett pub. 2012 Kindle. I was interested what this author had to say, because God took me on this running path in the first place. I know it was Providence that took me here and now. My trip is not over quite yet. I'll comment tomorrow on what I read and what it means to me personally. Deal?