Happy 2021! Can We Race Now, Please? ;-)

Happy 2021, everyone! I hope this blog entry finds you well, and looking forward to the new year. Although a fresh calendar doesn't magically reset our respective realities, it's nice to have a mental construct to pack up 2020 and put it in the rear view mirror. Auf Weidersehen, zwanzig zwanzig!

(Our newest family member and recovery coach, Moose)

I remain with my girls hunkered down here in Linz, Austria, on government lockdown #3 until Jan 6th 18th 25th (is it lockdown #3? I'm losing track...). In the Austrian version of "lockdown", we are only allowed to leave our home with masks for essential trips, such as groceries, pharmacy, exercise (thank god), and dog walking. Then you come home, give yourself a Silkwood shower, and cry into your beer with fingers crossed for a few minutes, hoping you didn't just condemn yourself for two months on a ventilator just for coffee creamer. We are the singing caged birds, however, cheerful to have avoided the spread of COVID that has reached our closest neighbors, and many friends and coworkers. The vaccines are rolling out too, so there is finally a path out of this dark cave, as rocky as it may be. 

So....does that mean....can I even say it out loud...the 2021 race calendar is a go? For the first time in months, I think the answer is yes. A few early year cancellations and geographic exceptions, of course, but a firm YES! I know I'm an optimist, but the facts are lining up nicely here too. I will allow myself to un-hunch the shoulders, and breathe a sigh of relief enough to plan again. 

(I did manage one race in September, 2020, the adidas Innsbruck Trail Marathon, which was a lot of fun!)

Thanks to all of the COVID race rescheduling, my current 2021 summer race calendar looks like a the perfect recipe for an Overcommitment Omelette. I can likely make the most of the next two months to be ready for the Transgrancanaria 129k in late February, thanks to staying committed to fitness through the winter. But then there is the Mozart 100 in mid June, followed the next weekend by the adidas Infinite Trails 90k, followed the next weekend by Ironman Austria, and then the Alpe D'Huez long distance triathlon. The 38-year-old me probably could have managed with some Aleve and frequent massages, but at 51, my "experienced" hamstrings seize up just reading the calendar. 

Yet thanks to missing so much racing in 2020, I just can't get myself to cancel any of these races. This was supposed to be part of the adventure of moving to Austria, you know? Do all the European racing you can, now that they are all local races? And with one year "taken away", how much time do I have to do these? ONE SUMMER TO RULE THEM ALL! (ha, ha)

Hmmm....well, what would you do? 

One thing for sure, it's going to be a lot of fun. I think I'll lace up right now. ;-)

See you on the trails!

Optimism Supernova Engaged

Griaß di, meine Lieben! 

(translation - "good day, my loves!", in our local Tyrol mountain dialect)

I hope this finds you all well, with hearts full of hope that cast spontaneous smiles across your face like comets. I know it is a challenge to be an optimist these days, but you really should be. Gratitude is our superpower! And when faced with the #CoronaTrumpBlackLivesMatterHomeSchoolingForeverZoomIsMyNewOfficeScrewMasksAllRacesCancelled* reality that is today, we should all be ready to full on supernova right now. Collect that energy, meine Lieben, your time is coming! (early November, Americans...don't forget to vote!)

Personally, I am feeling...well, I think "healed" is the right word. Not due to an athletic injury, per se, but more of an overuse injury of the professional kind. You may have heard of it (or unfortunately have experienced it) as "burnout". For me, apparently, that is ~40 consecutive 15+ hour workdays of semi-controlled chaos, with some home schooling and global pandemic to caramelize what little energy is left. It only stopped when my family intervened to tell me you haven't stepped outside in more than a week. What? A week? Me, the guy who fuels up on dirt and mountains? How does this happen?!?

Many reasons. But in retrospect, nearly all self-inflicted. Perhaps it's that Little Engine That Could voice that all of ultrarunners nuture, now looking for outlets in a raceless world. When respected workmates ask for help, it is hard to say no, even when your cup is spilling over like Niagara Falls. And one should never let a good crisis go to waste (as I often say as a manager) and we had plenty of fuel for that fire. Put them together and life balance starts looking less like a scale, and more like a Trebuchet catapult. Luckily I'm living in Europe, where it is strange NOT to take two weeks of vacation in August. When I finally set the "out of office" reply, it felt like staggering across the finish line in a deep fog of exhaustion, swearing it can't really be the end/it's just a mirage/we must keep going, even after you have crossed its pearly gates. 

A few days of sleep, then the family was ready to break out of our castle (dungeon?). It's still tricky to travel beyond Austria and a few neighbouring countries, but Austria remains novel for us, so we were content with a few nights in the big city (Vienna), some local exploring, and a week in the mountains (Kitzbühel). I had no race to train for, given the recent cancellation of the rescheduled Ironman Austria (my last Summer holdout!). But in the Alps, people of all ages are hiking, running, and cycling every day for hours, with a few beer and food stops along the way. It's just how they roll, and a good reminder that one doesn't need a race to smile in the sun and enjoy the splendor. 

I'm back now, recharged and ready. I've blocked out my mornings once more, selfishly claiming back precious daily time in my local mountains. As fate would have it, the adidas Innsbruck Alpine Trailrunning Festival has announced it is still "a go" for September 13th, which means the marathon distance can also count as my virtual Boston Marathon run. Wait...a trail marathon to keep my Boston streak alive...how fitting is that?!? I never saw that that coming. What a great story to be captured! 

In my limited (and self-serving) understanding of supernovas, they occur when there is a sudden re-ignition of nuclear fission at the core, caused by excess gravity applied on a star that is losing fuel. Sounds familiar!

OPTIMISM SUPERNOVA ENGAGED. ;-)

Cheers all! - SD

* For the record, this very Germanesque hashtag officially started here. ;-)

Hello, I Miss You! Capturing The Feelings of the Corona Crisis...

How are you? I mean, really...how are you doing?

I've said this, and meant it, more in the last two weeks than the previous five years.

And, I miss you. I truly, truly miss you all. It's time that I admit that too.

The things we take for granted, in sudden absence, can have stinging clarity. For me, it is mourning our race calendar, our sports. That schedule that ensured we found each other on a regular cadence.

I find I mourn for the specifics - a starting line to reconnect with my tribe, the unique salty, sunburnt glow that comes from playing all day in nature, and a finish line where shared laughter is the ultimate victory. Not to mention the lazy evening on the couch with our collective feet up, high-fiving across the social channels to the thousands of others in their races.

And I miss hugs. Specifically, those out of the ordinary hugs that we give each other, because we did something extraordinary, together.

We usually bask every weekend in hugs, sweat, and finish lines this time of year...such a given! And now, gone. We can still touch base, but we just can't connect.

For now, anyway.

Our races will return before we know it, our bond greater than ever, and we will appreciate them all the more.

Know that this is inevitable, and let some humor in to keep you company. It's like the whole world got plantar fasciitis at the same time - stay home, don't move, laugh about it when you can. Not sure for how long, weeks for some and months for others, but soon enough, we'll all be back on our feet.

We are DAY 18 on lockdown here in Austria. Nearly three weeks of no schools, offices, restaurants, bars, etc. - just limited breaks to walk the dog and get groceries. Zelda is thrilled to head out for walkies a couple of times a day....now SHE takes US for a walk so WE don't chew the end off of the coffee table.

It seemed crazy when the Austrian government went full lockdown so quickly...now, watching COVID-19 hit full stride in the USA, I wish more of you had been forced into the same circumstance. From this side of the Atlantic, the US outbreak reminds me of watching a California forest fire heat map in a thunderstorm while the Santa Ana winds are blowing hard (and most Americans are taking selfies next to the glow). Hunker down, people!

Most days we sit and enjoy the quiet, noticing that our planet is thriving outside like never before. No traffic, no planes, no mindless group consumption in pursuit of distraction...there are literally birds and bees (and bunnies) everywhere in our neighbourhood. The Danube river is truly blue, and the flowers just can't wait any longer. The trails are too full for trail running, but I love seeing how the forests help calm these communities in their time of need.

Other days the house feels like Vegas - losing money every minute, cocktails are acceptable at any hour, and nobody has any idea what day it is.

Work has become a fountain of inspiration. My team at adidas Runtastic rushed to get 260+ free workout videos and training plans to the world, and now our morning dashboards show millions of people staying fit during quarantine. All ages, all countries, all fitness levels, and growing like crazy...it's the biggest rush to athletics I have ever seen in my lifetime. It feels good to provide a little help among the helplessness, and we have more fun stuff coming.

To be honest, I have enjoyed working remotely more than I would have ever guessed. The kids and pets interrupting the online meetings, the wide variety of attics, hallways, kitchens, and bathrooms that are now offices, and the collective unspoken decision to no longer deal with hairstyles. It feels more like family now, and more honest than ever.

Plus the realization of how much time one actually spends on weekly work travel...booking, packing, parking, waiting, flying, checking in, smalltalk with strangers, hotels, cabs, tracking expenses...it's like I got a bonus eighth day in the week back, with explicit permission to not wear pants. That day is quickly swallowed up by home schooling, cleaning our own toilets, and conference calls, but still, I'll take that trade.

Fitness-wise, it has been the virtual cycling world of Zwift that has filled the gap for me. I miss the outdoors, but plugging into Zwift keeps me connected to other athletes in real time (and out of the Emergency Room), and we collectively give Corona the finger each night as we bury ourselves in the evening race or ride. I should be in (virtual) Ironman shape by July. ;-)

This has been a tough time for all of us. I do honestly hope that this find you doing well, and seeing the silver lining wherever you can. In truth, it will likely get worse before it gets better, but when it finally gets better, it's going TO BE GREAT!!!

Hang in there, and I'll see you at the starting line soon.

Cheers, ScottD

Well, That Didn't Work

Well, that didn’t work.

I shut down this blog with the best of intentions, truly. A few precious hours regained.

But in the absence of blogging I have found, quite selfishly, that writing is more catholicon than chore. It helps shape the narrative of my overloaded life, rather than add to its burden. The constant search for a story arc is this meditative connective tissue that fuses dreams and reality, and provides much needed agency for humility, courage, and meaning. Plus it helps me find cool new words like “catholicon”. ;-) 

Storytelling is a great personal escape, it turns out. I have so much going on my life – moving to Austria, the family thriving and exploding all at once, embracing my 50’s and its inevitable second half hyperreality, a new continent full of Ironman and ultrarunning events, all while night high diving into a career with adidas - it would be very easy to retreat into the chaos. But in writing the story, one finds meaning. Meaning reinforces purpose, and purpose becomes the supernova that fuels a life well lived.

(Happy 2020, everyone! Ringing in the new decade in Salzburg with Sophie, Christi, and in-laws Brian and Jen)

So here’s the deal, me. We are going to blog. We will make the time to rise above the day-to-day chaos, rediscover the collective humor and adventure around us, and write. We won’t move to distraction platforms (distractforms?) like TikTok or Twitter, and will keep it old school and long form. We will create and capture the stories worth sharing, so they can compound through sharing, inviting others into a world of adventure, fitness, and the transcendence of nature against the daily struggles of life.

Basically, our “mic drop” moment failed. So pick it back up. Ahem!

[clears throat] And here we go….

Climbing Alps At The 2019 adidas Infinite Trails World Championship

When one picks up and moves to Austria, the term "local trail scene" quickly takes on epic proportions. Big mountains, epic events, and cheering crowds that line courses that venture beyond the clouds...this is how they roll. The 2019 adidas Infinite Trails World Championship (aIT) was my first event as a local, and HOLY COW did it deliver on all fronts. Super fun, but I clearly have some work to do to step up my local game!

The aIT is a unique event held in Bad Gastein, Austria, a gorgeous valley town in the eastern Alps. Teams of three complete a relay of 25k/60k/40k (and a final 1k loop together), as well as a Prologue 15k two days before where the combined times of the three runners determine when they start on race day. No matter what your distance, there was going to be plenty of vertical ahead!

(Team NBG - Nik, Dave, Allan, and me)

(The course)

I was a last minute substitute for "Team NBG", a group of athletes socially connected through the adidas Nuremburg office. Like many of the 200 teams registered, we had plenty of country flags represented - speedy German Allan Fortuny would start us off with the 25k, the American (me!) would take on the 60k (subbing in for injured Team Captain Nik Benzer), and Dave Kerr from the UK would bring us home in the 40k. We all met for the first time just minutes before the Prologue 15k, where we got slotted as team #60.

(The Prologue was steep!)

(Tim Olson gets a quick photo with the NYC adidas Runners as the sun comes up)

It's hard to capture the rave-like scene that is the start/hand off area of the aIT. Searchlights beckon through the night, the beats are pumping, and the staggered race format means everyone gets a roar from the crowd. Professional runners such as Luis Alberto Hernando, Timothy Olson, Ekaterina Mityaeva, Yngvild Kaspersen, Holly Page and Sheila Avilés are there to run and cheer, as are adidas Runner clubs from Tokyo, Chengdu, Cairo, New York City, London, Berlin, Sao Paulo, Cape Town, and more. A truly global celebration, and I was loving every minute!

(Allan is stoked!!!)

I came to the 4am start to see Allan off, then hung around to chat with runners in the start queue. Jessica Zapotechne (whom I had met at the Boston Marathon) had an all-women crew from NYC, while my new friend Sum Singh Mattu from London was one of many tackling his first trail run ever. Wow! Kana Nagayama was running anchor for her mixed team from Japan, while Boulder, CO-runners Anthony Lee and Bailee Mulholland would be joining me on the 60k loop for their respective teams. We all spoke about the weather factor - it was already 80 degrees, and likely hitting the mid-90's by the time we were to finish.

(Allan tags me for Loop 2)

(And I'm off!)

Allan blazed through the 25k, coming in 17th (!) to give me the hand off just as the sun was coming up. I got my cheer and a few hundred high fives from the crowds, and climbed up to a "weg" (path)  above the valley floor to cruise ~10k to the first big climb, Graukrogel. One of the runners I paced with, fresh off the Mozart 100m a few weeks before, was super excited for this climb because it "gets so technical". Hmmm, not sure if I caught that in the briefing! There was a section on that map that said "no poles allowed", so perhaps that is what he is referring to?

(Here comes that sun!)

(Graukogel, here we come!)

Poles, btw, are essential for euro style trail running. Not only is it steep (like, 20+ DEGREE STEEP) but it's also not out of the question to have snow drifts, wild rocky meadows, and many stream crossings along the way. We had all of the above on this first climb, so I was grateful for the extra support the poles provided.

(Ah, that feels nice!)

15km in, the course markings headed up some scree to the spine of the mountain, and I began to understand why there was a "no poles section". It was straight up, all hands required! I slowed to keep myself together, easily losing 40 places along the way as the locals danced up the granite slabs.

(To the top!)

(Here is the "no poles" section...I see why! Photo by Ian Corless)

(Made it!)

I made the turn at the top, and got some high fives from runners while plunging down the steep meadows to cruise up the next valley towards the second climb (23k). This was taking much longer than expected, but then again, I didn't know what to expect! Welcome to the Alps, yo. Course markings were immaculate, and there were plenty of volunteers, so no worries.

(Whip out those poles!)

(Hop, hop, hop! Volunteers having fun)

Allan was a welcome site at Bockstein (30k), urging me to take more electrolytes as I chugged a liter of 50/50 water and Coke, desperately catching up on calories and hydration. I apologized for losing so many places, but he just laughed and told me to have a good time. Our Team Captain, Nik, was apparently putting in more km's than all of us helping his friends at various points on the course. This was all about fun!

(Climb #2)

(Watch your step!)

As we approached the spine of Stubnerkogel (42km), there was a long mountain meadow that took some group hollering to keep everyone on track. I quickly figured out if I saw marmots and squirrels, I was probably too far off the main route. The volunteers rang huge cow bells to get our attention, filling our hands with snowballs as we passed.

(On top of the world! Thanks for the photo, Nik)

As I reached the top of Stubnerkogel, a guy took my picture...hey, wait, it's Nik! Ha, ha...he really is everywhere! I told him I was beat, but still smiling and moving well.

(Cow photobomb!)

The final descent was mostly solo km's into the heat of the valley, aside from a few cheers of well-shaded mountain climbers sipping on g'spritzers at all the huts on the descent. This really is a great experience for everyone!

(The finish is right there...how far could it be? Ha, ha)

By the time I handed off to Dave for the final 40k leg, I had left him with just a few precious hours of sunlight. Ten hours for 60k! But over 14,000 ft of vert, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Dave sprinted into the hills, eager for his first trail run of this distance, and I collapsed in the shade with other finishers. We cheered runners until what remained of our voices cracked into whispers.

At 10:30pm, my alarm went off (good thing I set it!), and it was time to head back to the finish line for our final 1k loop. Dave came in looking great! We had plenty of time before the cut offs, which had already knocked out more than half of the teams, so we soaked in the last 1k as a team. Today, we would finish! 58th place, not too bad.

(Getting it done...there's no better feeling)

(Now time to chill!)

I spent the next morning soaking in the pools of the Alpentherme, joining Billy Yang, Jason Contino, Anthony Lee, and a cadre of sore runners up and down the kiddie waterslides. We all agreed this was a race for the ages. I know I will dream of these mountains for weeks, months, perhaps forever. Thank you, adidas Terrex team for making it happen!

The adventure continues...

My First Week Living In Austria

(Linz, Austria, along the Danube River)

Hello from Austria, my friends! Or as they say here locally, "grüß Gott" (pronounced "gruhsse got"). I've been living in Linz for just a few days now, and have developed a special appreciation for this German/Austrian phrase. In many ways it captures the endless whirlwind of intricacies one must navigate when moving to a foreign country.

I first heard the term "grüß Gott" when a local greeted me at the airport. Like with any new phrase, my first step was to type it into Google Translate, my new digital best friend. After 10 minutes of figuring out how to type the "ü" and the "ß", The Google replied with an even more confusing answer of "...it means 'greet God'".

Wait a minute...is "grüß Gott" a religious term, a polite greeting, or somewhere in between?

My wannabe romantic world traveler self (likely the same self that decided moving to a foreign country was a good idea) kicked in. If a Muslim friend greets me with "as-salamu alaykum", I know it as "peace be unto you", a phrase with religious history, but really just a polite formal/informal greeting. A Hindu friend may use "namaste" ("I bow to the divine within you"), which I consider a bit deeper on the religious scale, but likely somewhere in the middle of greeting and deeper meaning. But if an American greets me with "Praise Jesus", I know for sure they are on the extreme end of the religious nutball spectrum, and likely about to hand me a pamphlet.*

I decide it is best to try out this new phrase in real life, seeking clarity in the embarrassment and corrections guaranteed to follow. I say "grüß Gott" to a German guy next to me, and he replies in English with "I hope not anytime soon!", with a smart ass smirk and giggle to match. Ummm, yeah...even more confused now! I later ask a friend in Linz, who explains to me that "grüß Gott" is indeed an informal greeting, but only recognized in Austria and southern Germany as part of a local dialect. The German man I spoke to, likely from northern Germany, was kindly mocking my phrasing, as well as an accent that is already bending towards the oberösterreich (Upper Austria). The Austrian locals, however, do appreciate anyone using this term over the more formal, and German, "Guten Tag" ("good day").

(The church in my neighborhood, Postlingberg, sits on top of the hill)

(Drive by!)

I'm two words in, and already on a multi-day stumble to understand. Welcome to my new reality. ;-)

But to no surprise to my fellow adventurers, I am loving the journey. Everything is so new - the food, the trails, the rituals, the sounds, the people - one has to steep deeply in the curiosity crucible just to get through the day. I ask simple questions of strangers with abandon, and am delighted with any comprehensible response. And, of course, I NEED to understand those responses now, for this is where I live. The exhilaration mushrooming from that rooted commitment is beyond anything I've experienced in vacation or travel excursions, and well worth the habitual humility. I feel like I'm eight years old again, tugging sleeves with simple questions, needing to know the answers, and collapsing in my bed each night, fully drained. Naps are back on the agenda as well.

The solitude is nice too. I can't overhear conversations, watch TV, read the newspaper, listen to the radio, and all the Internet ads are gibberish, so the commonplace digital distractions of the USA have vanished. My true friends grow stronger, while hundreds of sorta-friends fall away, which turns out to be an immense gift of quality time. I quite literally have "no baggage", having purged my material belongings to the essentials that fit into two suitcases. The whole experience is deeply cleansing for mind, body, and soul. My only local friends are those yet to be made, which will happen in time, but until then, each waking hour has a welcome meditative grace.

(An inviting spot on the Traunsee Lake near a local trailhead)

And the trails...my god, the trails. Steep and vibrant, full of new flowers and birdsong, with "Huttes" every few miles where you can refill, refuel, watch families play, and meet fellow mountain folk. If your long run wasn't long enough, you can pay 20 Euro for a cot, wash your clothes in the sink, and start again in the morning with a full breakfast. No bears or mountain lions, although I did have a swan face me down when I got too close to his mate (they are HUGE in person, btw). It is all glorious beyond expectations, and the smile lines sunburned into my face are quickly establishing permanence.

(One of many inviting Huttes)

(Refuel!!!)

Routine will find me soon enough, I'm sure. Each day I pick up a couple of new phrases, and I already no longer require the English menus at restaurants. My new job starts tomorrow, and Christi and the girls will be joining me in a few weeks. I don't need a map for the local trails, although there are still more than enough wrong turns to keep them insatiably new. The adventure continues!

Tchüss!

- SD






* No offense to those of deep religious belief - I say this with the deepest respect to those who devote their lives to a higher purpose. The freedom to craft one's worldview is one of the great gifts of the human condition.  I am certainly a top 5% nutball in my beliefs as well. 

The Dunlaps Are Moving...To Austria!!!

The Dunlaps are moving...TO AUSTRIA!!! Yup, you read that right. And not an April Fool's joke!

(Three stripes on the shirt, three stripes on the flag!)

A few months ago, I started thinking about how powerful it would be to connect 1 billion athletes around the world with a new kind of digital experience. Little did I know it would set me on a path to a dream job working as an exec at adidas, located in Linz, Austria! The family is game for a new adventure, so we will be moving in a few months.

I hope to get a chance to see many of my Bay Area friends one more time before we go (runners - the Inside Trail Woodside Crossover 50k this weekend, and the Boston Marathon next weekend are my last two US races). If you find yourself in the Alps, be sure to come visit! I'll be racing in the SkyRunning Series starting this June.

And if you've ever wanted to own the Woodside house that is the first aid station for the Woodside 50k, Crystal Springs 50k, Whiskey Hill 50k, etc., infamy awaits you! But you better touch base soon...

Let the adventure begin!!!!