12-in-12 | A Look Back
My year long personal project is now complete (...sort of). Here is a brief look back.
[JUN] Ring the Springs 100
- Went as well as I could hope. Travelling to Colorado for the weekend and performing well at altitude is always nice. Getting to the play in the Rockies is a true gift, and I can not wait till next time. A solid 4th place overall there was a great result as well.
- Race Report: Ring the Springs 100Mi
[JUL] Tahoe 200
- A blessing in disguise as getting into this event late due to the 2023 date change combined with my unfortunate cancellation/delay of AC100 led me to get into Tahoe. This has been on my bucket list for a while and was worth it for sure. Running in the high Sierra alpines and terrain was spectacular. My only wish is that the course was still the full loop. I was still modified due to closure of wilderness area and was not the full loop around the lake - perhaps reason to go back one year.
- Race Report: Holy Shit That Is A Big Lake
- Podcast: Texas Outlaw Running Talk Show, EP #34 | YouTube version: Tahoe 200 Mile Finisher - Trevor Meding - YouTube
[AUG] Habanero Hundred
- I was humbled here with only my 4th Did Not Finish (D.N.F.) in my time of ultrarunning. I knew this one would be tough with the dryness and extreme summer heat Texas has been having. Sandwiching this event between two 200s might not have been the best choice but it was so coinvent being only an hour from our house. On hindsight I wish I had chosen another mountain one in Colorado instead, but scheduling did not allow.
- Race Report: What A Dumb Idea
- I was humbled here with only my 4th Did Not Finish (D.N.F.) in my time of ultrarunning. I knew this one would be tough with the dryness and extreme summer heat Texas has been having. Sandwiching this event between two 200s might not have been the best choice but it was so coinvent being only an hour from our house. On hindsight I wish I had chosen another mountain one in Colorado instead, but scheduling did not allow.
- Race Report: What A Dumb Idea
[SEP] The Divide 200
- A trip back home to Alberta was long overdue and what better way to draw me in than a long ultramarathon. I took 2 weeks off from work and went to visit my folks back in my hometown and then run in Canada's first 200 miler. Sinister Sports & WURA put on a great event that provided the most remote and wild terrain to run through. It was truly amazing to be able to run through this mountain wilderness coupled with the great weather that occurred. This was a very hard race but such a great experience.
- Race Report: Alberta Bound | Ultramarathon #107
- A trip back home to Alberta was long overdue and what better way to draw me in than a long ultramarathon. I took 2 weeks off from work and went to visit my folks back in my hometown and then run in Canada's first 200 miler. Sinister Sports & WURA put on a great event that provided the most remote and wild terrain to run through. It was truly amazing to be able to run through this mountain wilderness coupled with the great weather that occurred. This was a very hard race but such a great experience.
- Race Report: Alberta Bound | Ultramarathon #107
[OCT] Big Tex Backyard Ultra
- Another backyard ultra...why not....I love this format. Well shit. I picked this weekend as it aligned with my schedule and knowing that running this type of race would not be a guaranteed "100 Mi" attempt. Little did I know that it was about to come true. I had a poor day (again in a backyard) which only allowed me to complete a 12 yard (50 Mi) official distance. Since I was commited to some other obligations for the remainder of the month I did not have time to attempt another 100 miler for October sadly. This really hampers my #12in12 attempt, but such is life with family and full-time work.
- Ultimately this means I Did Not Start (D.N.S.) a true 100 Mi event for October
- Another backyard ultra...why not....I love this format. Well shit. I picked this weekend as it aligned with my schedule and knowing that running this type of race would not be a guaranteed "100 Mi" attempt. Little did I know that it was about to come true. I had a poor day (again in a backyard) which only allowed me to complete a 12 yard (50 Mi) official distance. Since I was commited to some other obligations for the remainder of the month I did not have time to attempt another 100 miler for October sadly. This really hampers my #12in12 attempt, but such is life with family and full-time work.
- Ultimately this means I Did Not Start (D.N.S.) a true 100 Mi event for October
[DEC] Loup Garou Trail Run
- I was back to this race for my second time ever and this time for the full loop experience. I had been here in a modified course year which was an out and back so coming for the full loop around Chicot State Park was a big draw to get me back to this local lowkey ultramarathon. I recommend this race to anyone looking for a late year end race at a very reasonable cheap price comparatively speaking these days.
- Race Report: December in the Deep South
- I was back to this race for my second time ever and this time for the full loop experience. I had been here in a modified course year which was an out and back so coming for the full loop around Chicot State Park was a big draw to get me back to this local lowkey ultramarathon. I recommend this race to anyone looking for a late year end race at a very reasonable cheap price comparatively speaking these days.
- Race Report: December in the Deep South
[NOV] Dinosaur Valley Endurance Run
- I had not been back to this event in 5 years. I took the opportunity to hop in last minute and take on another looped course that was easy to self crew. The Dinosaur Valley State Park is a great place to run and provides moderate elevation changes and some nice singletrack out there. My goal of achieving another sub-24 hour finished was realized.
- Race Report: Return to Dino Valley
- I had not been back to this event in 5 years. I took the opportunity to hop in last minute and take on another looped course that was easy to self crew. The Dinosaur Valley State Park is a great place to run and provides moderate elevation changes and some nice singletrack out there. My goal of achieving another sub-24 hour finished was realized.
- Race Report: Return to Dino Valley
[JAN] The Conquer Toughest Backyard Ultra
- I had been struggling to find a 100 Mi race close for January and put myself on the waitlist for this new backyard format because it was advertised as tough and even had some prize money. I got in with 3 days to go and so I packed myself up and headed to Georgia. It was cold and super hard to stay warm throughout the event, but that was all part of the challenge design. Ultimately, I had to bow out just after 15 hours, which equated to miles, but over 15k of elevation gain.
- Ultimately this means I Did Not Start (D.N.S.) a true 100 Mi event for January either.
[FEB] Run LOViT
- This one was on my bucket list for a while and I jumped at the opportunity to go run by Lake Ouachita in the woods. A beautiful and challenging course that proved to be worth the trip to Arkansas.
- Race Report: I LOViT
[MAR] Grasslands Trail Run
- This one was a relatively short drive, put on by local Texas running company, and as a bonus was a nice decent price to enter. These 100 miles started off in a blistering PR-like fashion as the weather was gorgeous. Then mother nature opened up with rain and thunderstorms and it became a complete grind in the mud to get this one done. Persistence was key this day.
- Race Report: Grasslands? More Like Mudlands!
[APR] Arbuckle 100 Mi
- An inaugural race year and touted as a tough 100 miles I took on the challenge. This was a small race put on at an offroad ATV park. The terrain was super rocky, steep, punchy climbs for half the course made worse by thunderstorms that not only slicked up the course, but created standing water nearly everywhere as there was no flat spots on these rutted out ATV roads. The course was tough and the elements made it that much more, but I managed to finish within the allotted 30-hour cutoff to take the victory & course record as I was the only finisher of the event in this small field.
- Race Report: Arbuckle 100
- An inaugural race year and touted as a tough 100 miles I took on the challenge. This was a small race put on at an offroad ATV park. The terrain was super rocky, steep, punchy climbs for half the course made worse by thunderstorms that not only slicked up the course, but created standing water nearly everywhere as there was no flat spots on these rutted out ATV roads. The course was tough and the elements made it that much more, but I managed to finish within the allotted 30-hour cutoff to take the victory & course record as I was the only finisher of the event in this small field.
- Race Report: Arbuckle 100
[MAY] The Hellbender One Hundred
- Another bucket list race that I realized with a quick trip out to North Carolina made for a great ending to my #12in12. Hellbender was recently granted HR-Qualifier status and thus is a very popular race out East even though it is only a few years old at this point. I absolutely had a blast running up and down the mountains in NC and even getting to peak out on Mount Mitchell (highest point East of the Mississippi). A thunderstorm came in fast and made for my 3rd race in a row with rain. The shear steepness and technicality of the course proved to me that East [ Beast] Coast running is no joke. One of my longer times in terms of a 100 mile event, but I was still up near the top third of the finishers on this tough loop.
- Race Report: To Hell & Back
- 12 months, 12 ultramarathons:
- x1 D.N.F. (Habanero)
- x2 Last Person Standing events. Sadly, I did not achieve 100 Mi mark in either of these. (Big Tex, The Conquer)
- x2 200 Mi completed (Tahoe, The Divide)
- x7 100 Mi completed. (Ring the Springs, Dinosaur Valley, Loup Garou, LOViT, Grasslands, Arbuckle, Hellbender One Hundred)
- A total of x9 more buckles added to my collection!
I took this challenge on by starting in June just after the May announcement of the 2023-24 #rabbitELITEtrail team. I aligned my personal challenge to go throughout the entire season of being selected back onto the team. To me it seemed fitting since 2023 is The Year of the rabbit. I am super humble and honored to be still chosen to be on the rabbit trail team and so I wanted to do something challenging this year as I raced in my rabbit gear supporting the brand and sharing my journey.
I had a blast on this journey. I found myself at a lot of new races (for me) which is always fun to be able to try out a new event, meet new people, and take on new trails. As a bonus I added 9 new cool buckles into my collection! Essentially, I took all my focus off shorter ultras (i.e. 50 km, 50 Mi, 100 km) and solely focused on the 100 Milers, and a couple beyond. The hundred has always been my favorite distance since discovering ultrarunning and I think this year solidified this for me in a big way. I just love the journey of attempting to cover the distance in 1 day -- or there abouts. My 100 Miler collection now sits at forty finishes and now my next focus will shift towards getting to fifty and being halfway to the 100x100 Lifetime Club (which there is now thirty worldwide members as of this writing in 2024-Jun).
I do not have any specific plans in terms of timeframe but realistically sometime around the end of 2025 would seem reasonable at my historical pace of running these ultras. My next event is scheduled for Aug-03 as I am in Angeles Crest 100 in California. Looking forward very much to this event as it is one of the older Hundreds in America and deemed a classic by many. Plus it is notorious for being hard to get into now, so I have to take care of my lottery luck and get it done with my entry.
Thank you as well to Athletic Brewing for helping me choose healthier drink choices. I often enjoy a Golden Dawn Lager after my runs as it is light and refreshing, especially on the warmer days. My favorite though has to be the classic Run Wild IPA. Check out Athletic Brewing for yourself (CLICK HERE for 20% discount code) with my referral link.
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