2014 - A Year of Gratitude

(Getting a beach run in with Jen (sister-in-law), Cameron (niece), Brian (bro-in-law), and Sophie (daughter) in Carmel, CA)

Another beautiful sunrise here in Carmel Valley, CA, as I sip my coffee and watch 3-year-old Quinn craft another pony adventure among an endless sea of Lego structures. The holidays are wide-eyed magic for her, and she takes great care to ensure every toy, new and old, has a role in her latest production. The rest of the extended family is happily slumbering, their bodies embracing the long nights of the winter solstice and holiday mornings void of responsibility, so Quinn's precious little voice fills the halls like an angels whisper. A few years ago, a pre-sun wake up call from an audience deprived child would be a nightmare, and three in a row would invoke near-suicidal tendencies. This year, I am nothing but grateful. Opening my eyes and heart to get the most from every experience, whether family or running or whatever, has been the big theme of 2014. This has been a good year.

My newly recharged humility could have come from how this year started, i.e., waaay too much on my plate. I had a freshly broken collarbone, a new job that required 100+ cross-country flights per year, growing kids who fill weekends faster than I can control, a house in perpetual upgrade, and of course, a heavy race schedule that ignored all of these realities. My life mantra of "live life to have good stories" has a way of overbooking the calendar (as well as the checkbook), and my sanity often gets the spillover.

(Starting the year with a bang, or "snap" in this case)

It could be because I'm 45 years old now, an age that science says is the most challenging time to be happy (the low point in the U-Curve, as they say). I know the feeling they are referring to - that headwind of responsibility that eats away at a once-overabundant sense of appreciation - but it's nothing that can't be overcome with a good trail race with my mountain peeps or a round of fine dining with my wife. Or a Corvette, I hear, although I haven't gone that route yet. But it's good to have options. ;-)

(The U Curve measures average happiness levels by age across many international cultures)

When I think about it, what filled 2014 with gratitude was not my results, but because of what I got to witness along the way. Our sport has really come leaps and bounds in the last decade, but 2014 felt like I was seeing history at every turn (or Tweet as the case may be).

I started the year with a welcome-back-from-surgery 3:24 at the Caumsett 50k, but also got to watch Ethan Coffee (2:53) and Emily Harrison (3:16) set new course records on their ways to USATF 50k Road National Championship titles. Emily would go on to win the IAU 50k Worlds as well.

(Emily Harrison, our 50k National and World Champ)

My 10th Boston Marathon was epic, particularly when my family got to be there to watch Meb Keflezighi hold off the Kenyans to one of the greatest American ROAR's I have ever heard. Boston got it's mojo back!

(Meb Keflezighi brings it home at Boston)

A week later, I watched Vitargo teammate Michael Wardian set a new record for the Boston 2 Big Sur Challenge (best combined time of the two marathons), winning the Big Sur Marathon overall in the process. That guy is amazing! And only beginning to reset every Masters record out there, I'm sure.

(Super-Master Michael Wardian on his way to winning the 2014 Big Sur Marathon)

The Cayuga Trails 50m opened my eyes to upstate New York's incredible slice of nature, and also allowed me to witness the "new breed" of trail runners in action as Chris Vargo (1st, USATF 50-Mile Trail Champ), Matt Flaherty (2nd), and Magdalena Boulet (1st) bring their sub-six minute skills to the hills.

(Matt Flaherty and Chris Vargo setting the pace early on)

The Pikes Peak Double proved to be even harder than expected, but not for Sage Canaday who sprinted in the last half mile to secure the win in the Ascent, and the World Mountain Challenge. Team inov-8 member Peter Maksimow also shaved a few minutes off his best to make the Top 10 with a last minute surge. I mean, honestly...who sprints at 14,000'?!? I can barely move. Simply incredible to watch.

(Nothing quite like this finish line)

The Pine to Palm 100m was a worthy Western States qualifier (despite losing the lottery AGAIN even with 76% odds of winning!), and a fun time revisiting the hills of Ashland, OR, with my Dad. But watching Bob Shebest win his TRT100 (17:38, CR)/P2P100 (18:42) double while Becky Kirschenmann (19:21, 2nd overall) took yet another hour off her course record really showed us all how it's done.

(Becky Kirschenmann on her way to her record setting win)

(Me taking a break at the halfway point)

The Fall 50m was a great new race, and a chance for me to set a new 50-Mile PR (6:11) and do the 50/50 (winning USATF Masters titles in the 50-Mile Trail and Road categories in the same year). But watching Larisa Dannis cruise along watching nothing but her heart rate, then take the win with a perfectly paced 5:59 just blew my mind. Imagine if she actually RACED IT! We're only beginning to see what she can do, particularly now that she lives in Mill Valley.

(Chicks dig guys with medals)

Between Twitter, iRunFar, and UltraRunnerPodcast.com, we all got ridiculously complete and thoughtful coverage of the biggest ultras in the world, watching Team USA take gold at the IAU World 100k's (with Max King's new American Record), Zach Bitter clock a world best 12-hour and 11:47 100-mile American Record, Team "Mill Valley" claim five Top 10 slots at Western States, Ellie Greenwood pass the Russian twins in the last 10k of Comrades and take the win, Kilian Jornet take on five new mountain FKT's, Teammate Gary Gellin add a Miwok 100k win to his collection, Rory Bosio take her 2nd win at UTMB, Rob Krar win States, Leadville, and RunRabbitRun in less than six weeks, Stephanie Howe win States/get married/finish a PhD in a month, the launch of SkyRunning USA, the Tahoe 200m runners making us all look like short course runners, Sage Canaday win the TNF50 in a super-stacked field...the list goes on. Because ultras are still so personal, I know just about everyone reading this knows one or more of these amazing athletes. How cool is it to see them rock it?!?

Yes, I had a few DNS's due to sickness/life events (TRT100, Moab Marathon, Flagline, CIM), but I also was consistent enough to get 316,000' vertical over 2,200 miles according to Strava. I'll take that any day.

But more than anything, I am happy just to be here. I deeply feel these are the best of times, and am ready to shake it up again for 2015. I hope you are all finding adventure in all parts of your lives, and letting its fountain of youth pour down your cheeks.

Kudos all and I'll see ya next year!

- SD

Planning My 2014 Race Season

Ah, that glorious time of year when you curl up with a cup of coffee, peruse the list of 500+ trail running and triathlon adventures available for the year, and choose the dozen that will define 2014. I enjoy this ritual every January (see '06, '07, '08, '10, '11, '12, '13). There's something magical about seeing a race schedule laid out - it's proof that we choose to live IN this world instead of ON it. All it takes is a few entry fees, and I have enough adventure on the schedule to conjure plenty of motivation for training and boundless energy for family and professional life.

So, how to start? I find it's always best to take an annual 2-3 week break from structured training and reflect back on the previous season. What brought me the most joy? Which memories seared into my soul and can still bring a smile to my face? Did any experience have me longing for more, or wanting to revisit? Has my training peaked from running the same formats too much?

Then I take a look at the year ahead, and figure out what would best balance my work and life. How much stress/travel/family commitment should I expect? Would it be best complemented with an escape to a new country with all new people and languages, or to engage regularly with the same friendly faces? Would I thrive from structured training, or is it best to hang loose this year? My life mantra has always been "live life to have good stories" - any new places, distances, race formats, or other adventures that could add a few more fables?

My 2013 season started with a hunger for more big mountains and international travel, and I got that in spades. This year I am feeling the desire to stick closer to home, run with my local peeps in mid-distance ultras, and revisit some of the races that have helped defined who I am as a runner. Lots of contributing reasons for this: my work travel is back on the insane end of the spectrum (80+ flights/year), I'm turning 45 in April and getting all nostalgic, I would like to revisit some goals I had for 2013, and of course, the lottery gods have cast their vote. My healing collarbone (aka, "Frankenshoulder") is making it impossible to consider any cycling/triathlon adventures at the moment, so I'll put those on the backburner for now.

So with that, I give you my 2014 season:

Caumsett 50k, Long Island, NY, 3/2 - I had a breakthrough race here in 2010 at the USATF 50k Road Championships (PR, 3:21), and now that I'm armed with a bit more knowledge and training, would love to use this race as a checkpoint for my mid-40's. Hopefully the collarbone will heal in time to get some good training cycles in.

Boston Marathon, 4/21 - Boston again for three big reasons. First, it would be great to have some closure after the bombings of last year. This year will undoubtedly be an epic weekend of celebration and healing for one of my favorite running cities. Second, my original beer-induced goal for Boston was to streak ten races in a row, and this will be #10! Third, my family has expressed interest in tagging along this year, which is a rare treat. So once again to Hopkinton!

Big Sur Marathon, 4/27 - The Boston 2 Big Sur Challenge is a great double - it puts these two races on two coasts just six days apart. In fact, I'm liking the concept of doubling enough to put three doubles on the calendar this year. Last year I was shooting for a Top 5 finish for B2B, only to place sixth by ~2 minutes (despite my best times at both races). I'm going to give a Top 5 finish another shot. My family will join for this one too! 

Bay to Breakers, 5/18 - Sophie, my 7-year-old, says she wants to run/walk the Bay to Breakers 12k this year so I will crew for my princess. It will help keep my blog traffic up too, since "naked runners" oddly remains a top ten search term (other fun search terms regularly in the top 10 include "how long is a 50k", "Jenn Shelton bikini", and the classic "toenail fell off").

Cayuga Trails 50m, Ithica, NY, 6/1 - I'm a sucker for good pictures, and everything I've seen coming out of Cayuga looks amazing. It's also a part of the east coast wilderness I've been dying to check out. It happens to be the USATF 50-mile Trail Championship this year, so it sounds like a good place to test out being the new kid in the 45-49 age group.

Tahoe Rim Trail 100m, Incline Village, NV, 7/19 - Nostalgia (and a little luck from the lottery gods) brings me back to the place of my first 100-mile race. I didn't have a hundo on the calendar last year, and really missed its unique crazy flavor of insanity. Many of my favorite ultra runners will be there too - really looking forward to it!

Pikes Peak Double, Manitou Springs, CO, 8/17-18 - I had an incredible time at my first Pikes Peak Marathon last year, and learned a lot about how to train for a high altitude race. So I want to come back and do my second double of the season - the back-to-back Ascent (13.1 miles up) and Marathon (up and down). The Acsent is the WMRA Long Distance Mountain Running Challenge, so it should attract some global talent, and the Marathon always attracts the best. Manitou Springs is a special place this weekend, and I'm going to get as much as I can.

Flagline 50k, Bend, OR, 9/21 - My third double for the year will be the "Max King double", which begins with the Flagline 50k. I've been wanting to head back to Bend, OR, and now that this race is once again the USATF 50k Trail Championships, it's good timing.

XTerra Trail Running National Championship (21k), Ogden, UT, 9/22 - The day after Flagline, I'll be at the XTerra Nationals in Utah. I haven't done an XTerra race in a few years, and now that Quinn is nearing age 3, I think she would have a lot of fun. They really do a great job creating a kid- and dog-friendly environment. Count Sophie in for sure!

Fall 50m, Sturgeon Bay, WI, 10/25 - The Fall 50m is the new location for the USATF 50-mile Road Championship, and after accidentally clocking a 50m PR last October at Tussey Mountainback, I'm thinking another 50m PR is in reach with some focused training. This looks like a fun and fast course in a state I've never raced...perfect!

Moab Marathon, Moab, UT, 11/8 - This one has been on my bucket list for a while, thanks to the steep terrain and gorgeous surrounding area. Since it's the USATF Trail Marathon Championship, adding this one puts me in all the USATF middle distance ultras, road and trail. There's something about the USATF races that seem to bring out faster times from me, so I'm hoping for some good results in my new age group.

XTerra World Championship (21k), Oahu, HI, 12/7 - Another fast race I have been longing to return to that also conveniently comes with an excuse to "acclimate" in Hawaii just as winter comes. A great one for the family! Maybe if I'm feeling crazy, I'll tag on the Honolulu Marathon for one final double. ;-)

So there you have it - my 2014 schedule. I am giddy to get going!

SD

Ultra Race Lotteries for 2014 - Adventure Awaits! Western States Lottery Going Now...

It's lottery season again in the world of ultrarunning! Time to put your name in the hat for your favorite races and see how the Lottery Gods determine your fate! The Western States 100m lottery is on right now (already nearing 2,200 entries), and given the changes for 2015, it will be the last year you can qualify with a 50-miler. So don't hesitate - put your name in!

Below are a few links to popular races that have lotteries (and a few that don't...yet):

Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run, June 28, 2014 (Lottery Nov 9-16, Drawing Dec 7)

Way Too Cool 50k, March 8, 2014 (Lottery Dec 2-8, Drawing Dec 10)

Lake Sonoma 50m, April 12, 2014 (No lottery - reg opens Dec 15)

Miwok 100k, May 3, 2014 (Lottery Dec 1-10, Drawing Dec 12)

Massanutten 100, May 17, 2014 (Lottery Jan 1-8, Drawing Jan 10)

Mt. Washington Road Race, June 15, 2014 (Lottery Feb 14-March 14, Drawing March 15)

Hardrock 100, July 11, 2014 (Lottery Now-Dec 1, Drawing Dec 7)

Tahoe Rim Trail 100m, July 19, 2014 (Lottery Dec 7-21, Drawing Dec 22)

Badwater 135, July ~15, 2014 (Lottery/app Jan 20-Feb 1, Selection Feb ~15)

Vermont 100, July ~20, 2014 (No lottery - reg opens around Jan 1)

Leadville 100, Aug 16, 2014 (No lottery - reg opens Jan 1)

Ultra-Trail du Mont Blanc, Aug 30, 2014 (Registration Dec 19-Jan 5, Lottery selection Jan 15 if needed)

Wasatch 100, September 5, 2014 (Lottery Dec 1-Jan 6, Drawing Feb'ish)

Ironman Hawaii World Championship, Oct 11, 2014 (Lottery Now-Feb 28, Drawing April 15)