23 Comments
Jul 26, 2023Liked by Sarah Lavender Smith

Wow that’s crazy about the hallucinations you had. You are an incredible ultra runner & others have learned so much from you sharing these epic experiences!

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Jul 26, 2023Liked by Sarah Lavender Smith

Great article! I have my second 100 mile “attempt” coming up in 3 days! Ive knocked out a couple of 50k’s and a 100k since my first 100 mile DNF….I used your book a lot through my training👍👍😉

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Thank you! Which 100?? I bet you will be able to channel your DNF disappointment and commit not to quit!

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Jul 26, 2023Liked by Sarah Lavender Smith

Burning River in Ohio🔥🔥🔥

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Jul 26, 2023Liked by Sarah Lavender Smith

I have no doubt you’re going to crush Run Rabbit Run! This is a fantastic approach to your training. I learned so much from reading it, thank you for sharing. Seize the night! :)

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Same to you for Rio!

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Jul 26, 2023Liked by Sarah Lavender Smith

Thank you so much for sharing your experiences with us! I'm not there yet, but would like to be. (the longest I've run is 50K) I just received your book a week ago and look forward to reading and gaining more knowledge about Ultras.

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author

Thanks so much for reading this newsletter and my book! Feel free to hit me up with training questions, even just to talk about which race(s) to train for if you want to work up to an ultra.

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Jul 26, 2023Liked by Sarah Lavender Smith

That documentary made me cry!

Can't wait to follow your training and race day Sarah. Thanks for sharing as always!

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author

Glad you liked it :-)

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Aug 2, 2023Liked by Sarah Lavender Smith

Upstate Ny and willing to travel not sure about doing my first ultra at altitude 🤣. But working on my 50 states and still need Colorado. Just ordered the book will be a good treat after 5 12s in an ER😬thank you

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Aug 2, 2023Liked by Sarah Lavender Smith

Alright you’ve got me. Looking for spring early summer ultra and getting your book when I get off this work travel week gig. Any suggestions in the north east?

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author

hi, that's great, and thanks for wanting to read my book! I admit, I'm not familiar with the Northeast, but if you use Ultrasignup's race finder tool, you can search geographically. Where do you live?

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Aug 1, 2023Liked by Sarah Lavender Smith

Run rabbit 🤣💪❤️sounds amazing

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Good luck in the race - loved your insight into what you need to do to prepare for such an epic run.

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Jul 30, 2023Liked by Sarah Lavender Smith

Just as I admire Jill Homer, I admire what you are doing. Excellent, enjoyable letter.

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Jul 28, 2023Liked by Sarah Lavender Smith

Thanks for giving us an inside look into ultra training. My longest race was the AR50 miler some time ago; I’ll leave the 100s to you! The best advice I got was doing back-to-back long runs which felt brutal at first but gradually became a way of life. And I always met the ultra training goal: tired legs!

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Jul 27, 2023Liked by Sarah Lavender Smith

That “How Run 100 Miles” video is one of my all time favorites, I try and watch it annually. Have a blast at Run Rabbit Run. I’ve personally found that the races that I over plan I do the worst and am frustrated by. The more I let go and treat it as an adventure into the unknown, taking what the day gives me, things seem to flow much better. This years training for the Bear 100 seems to be stronger than last years IMTUF training, so I’d love to have a time closer to 30 hours as opposed to 35 hours, but who knows how it will all unfold.

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I feel the same way! I was stressing out trying to shoehorn in a trip to Steamboat to run part of the course, then I thought, "why am I trying to take 2 days and all that driving for a long run? Just show up & run it on race day ..."

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New light...hmmm. I know youre a UD fan but you should borrow a UA belt light. It’s a really great tactical tool and RRR as you know is rife with trip hazards. Game changer in my opinion

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I’ve tried it & don’t like the feeling of a belt--bothers my sensitive stomach. I use the head light in combo with Kogalas on my sternum strap.

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Jul 26, 2023Liked by Sarah Lavender Smith

Gotcha, I was a bit reluctant to mention it because you are dialed in no matter what and god knows over the years I’ve gained so much info/assistance from your perspective and informative reporting on multiple platforms. Not to mention your book. URP was throwing at 90 mph when you were artfully interviewing there too, so skillful writing is hardly the only arrow in your quiver. Although I gotta say URP since your departure is...bushwhacking down a trail I’m not interested in but I’m not going to snipe since it’s unproductive. But I will say, Finn Megan and D-Bo are examples of people that now foster and bolster a strong trail running community as they lean in as the sport continues to grow. They epitomize the best attributes of intentional learning in my opinion which is steering the ship towards a future that I value and the sport is all the more healthy for it. Whew, now there’s an unsolicited tangent for bo good reason. Yikes!

Changing topic,

It was terrific seeing the piece on local legend Sophie Speidel. Hope I spelled that right. When I run around Crozet in Mint Springs Valley park on occasion (or some other trails in that area) she’s crushing it in the Blue Ridge. Strava has her stamp of ownership on some routes that a deep bench of Virginia running talent frequent, which is noteworthy. Another example of what is actually happening on the trails. Women who influence not because of gender but because they are runners who do it for the lifestyle of embracing the outdoors. With longevity too. Stellar.

Anyway, on a more personal positive note, my local friend Tara Dower from Virginia Beach is currently in your vast neighborhood in the pursuit of a team self supported FKT on the Colorado Trail. She did well at RRR last year and is having a great year so far in 2023. Hope you get to meet her since she’s returning for another year at RRR. Cheers SLS.

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Jul 27, 2023·edited Jul 27, 2023Author

hi Mark -- I appreciated your suggestion of the waist belt light. It's a good idea to have two light sources -- one on head, one lower to the ground -- and I've found the Kogalas work well for that. As for URP -- I'm glad I got to co-host for those years with Eric and am proud of what we did. But he didn't keep up with the competition. Several experienced coaches and runners such as Koop, Mario Fraioli, DBo etc entered the podcast space and were better informed & had better production quality. I stopped co-hosting around 2019 when I moved year round to CO. I think it's sad URP devolved into not producing podcasts anymore and an only occasional daily news digest, often overshadowed by Eric's personal and political views. Oh well, whatever, the trail media space is exploding and there are plenty of other avenues for getting info. That's exciting about Tara! Thanks for reading & commenting.

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