The Sweetest Thing...

ITS OFFICIAL!! 47:24:06

CONGRATULATIONS ALEX AND CREW!!!

So Close!

Lone Pine

Alright Folks: Alex made it to Lone Pine at 42:55. He has 48 hour to complete the race. This means he has 5 hours to complete 13 miles. You can do it Alex, keep it up, dig deep!!

A quick phone call!

The crew arranged for a quick phone call tonight!

Stacey says that he's been extremely positive throughout the entire race. Alex sounds very tired. He vomited a lot after trying to regain his weight at the second rest stop, but felt better immediately after. Right now the only thing that is bothersome are blisters on his feet. However, he's motivated to cross that finish-line. He says thank you to everyone that has left a comment, read his blog or followed-along via face-book posts. It will be an amazing feeling for him to read all of these posts once he's done, and realize how many people were supporting him through this journey! One last marathon to go, you're 4/5 Alex

100 Miles!

The GPS is tracking Alex at 100 Miles!!! Only 35 Miles left to go!

Fort McMurray Love

Love from AM

S.O.D.A.

A last request -

Please remember that Alex is running on behalf of the CANADIAN charity S.O.D.A. (Samuha Overseas Development Association). 100% of the funds donated go directly towards children in India who are trying to achieve what so many of us take for granted - Mobility.

Support Alex by donating at at www.samuha.ca

Fourth Rest Station!

Congrats Carlos Gomes de Sa for winning Badwater 2013 in 24:38:16!!!

Sibling Update

Father Crowley

Alex has made it to Father Crowley landmark. 80 miles complete, 55 to go! You can do this!! 3/5 marathons complete!! Keep it up!

Third rest station!

Alex has made it to the third rest station and is already on his way towards the fourth. The time splits on the Badwater site have not be updated for hours. I will keep you posted!

Just completed 2/5 marathons!

Made it to Stove Pipe Wells

Just got off the phone with Alex:

He lost 7 lbs (of sweat). He had to wait until he gained at least half of it back before he could start running again. This took about 30 minutes. The focus is to hydrate as much as possible before the sun rises and to continually watch his salt intake. He seemed to be in good spirits!

Stacey & Jody

Approaching 1st Marathon distance

Just completed my 1st of 5 marathons during this Ultra

Did I mention I have the "Dream Team" Crew?

Made it to Furnace Creek!

Web Cam

The first 8:00 start runner has made it to the first aid station. This means Alex is not far behind. To watch live streaming as he passes through Furnace Creek click on the link:

http://www.badwater.com/2013web/index.html

Half way down the page are two media screens. Click on the right one named USTREAM.

Good luck Alex!

Start line

The first stretch of the race I have to run alone. My crew will be waiting for me 28 Km out in 2 vehicles. Here is a pic of the first vehicle, ready to hit the road and me at the start line!

Pre-Race Photos

Here are a few pictures of me prior to the orientation meeting. All of this years runners are pool side for a final photo before the big race. Good luck to all the participants and crews!

GPS

Crew Co-Capitano Joaquin Candel has set me up with a GPS tracking device. My start time is 8 am (11 am EST). Please follow me along on the link below. Again, thank you for all the encouragement. I am a little bit nervous, but am looking forward to stepping up to that start line!

http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0S1JxlJNknvs5q8A0tpqe9ddheFIcad4R

A BIG thank you, and a little recap

After years of following the Badwater 135 Ultramarathon and months dedicated to training for this race, it all comes down to these last remaining 3 days. On Monday morning at 8:00 a.m. (11:00 EST) I step up to the start line of the toughest race in the world. Training was not easy, and following a training schedule for 9 straight months, day in and day out was hard. But with all the support from my wife, running friends and of course my family, I feel I am prepared for the long journey from Badwater to the portals of Mount Whitney 135 miles away.

Here is a recap:

Month	KM
Jan	228.7
Feb	403.0
Mar	491.3
Apr	449.4
May	445.6
June	375.1
July	110.2
TOTAL DAYS	2503.3

I’m sure I would have run even further, but over the last 5 weeks I focused most of my training runs on hills and heat. I truly enjoyed this experience and have learned a lot of myself and my capabilities. I also would like to say that I have one hell of a dog. Sam has run for over 700km this year with me and is by far my best training partner; mainly because she always runs my speed and doesn’t mind taking walking breaks when ever I needed them.

I don’t know how well reception will be out in the desert, but I will see if someone on my crew can update the blog as much as possible. The Badwater race director and organizers will also be posting time splits, pictures as well as race updates. Please use the links below to join me on this adventure!

Follow the webcast at:
http://www.badwater.com

Follow the time splits and results at: http://dbase.adventurecorps.com/results.php?bw_eid=65&bwr=Go

Follow the race on Twitter (Join the conversation by adding hash tag #bw135 to all your tweets about the race):
http://twitter.com/adventurecorps

Follow the race staff's live photo stream on Instagram:
http://instagram.com/badwaterHQ

Follow the race director's live photo stream on Instagram:
http://instagram.com/chriskostman

Follow the race staff's photostream on Flickr:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/adventurecorps/

Follow the race director's photostream on Flickr:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/chriskostman/

Join the Facebook conversation:
http://www.facebook.com/badwater135

Over the last few days I have received many emails, facebook messages and phone calls, wishing me good luck! I want to thank everyone for their support and encouragement.  I would also like that thank my crew for helping prepare and get organized with all the logistics that took place over the last few months. I look forward to spending some quality time with you for about 2 days in Death Valley, California.

I wish all the runners and crews at this year’s Badwater Ultramarathon all the best and I hope everyone has an amazing experience and stays safe!

See you at the finish line!

Las Vegas Bound!

One of the best parts about writing this blog is being able to share and pass along all of the things that I have learned along the way. This transfer of knowledge is pretty typical within the Ultramarathon community and I am happy to help! There are a few new people or people who are starting this year to train for Badwater who are using blogs for reference. So for those folks, as well as those who would be curious to know what my gear will look like, I have included a list below. Always feel free to contact me if you have any further questions. I’ll be sure to add a blog “what I wish I would have brought to Badwater” or “I’m totally glad I brought____with me” once the race is done. But for now, the list below is what I have brought from home or picked up in Las Vegas:

Running Shoes (3)
Running shorts (2)
Running Shirts (2) long sleeve, (2) short sleeve
Sweater
Socks (5)
Duct Tape (to prevent blisters)
Running Hat
Touque
Water bottles (2)
Headlamp (2)
Reflector vest
Watch
Sun glasses
Penetan
First Aid kit
Safety pins
Second Skin
Bandanas
Salt pills
Advil
HEED
Spray bottle (to cool me down)
Coolers
Chair
Signs for Cars (name and bib number – race requirements)
Waivers for myself and the crew
Medical Forms
Sunscreen
Scoop for ice
Extra batteries
Lip balm
Directions to the race
Travel insurance (not required, but a good idea!)

On top of all that gear, I needed to make sure I had hotels booked for myself and the crew, rental cars reserved and rental car insurance just in case.

As for my nutrition when I arrive in Las Vegas I will have a couple of days to purchase all the food, drinks and ice I will need for the race. The quantities of each product will be decided when I meet with my crew in person, but here is a start:

Water
Gatorade
Ginger ale
Monster energy drink
Granola bars
chocolate chip cookies
Licorice
M&Ms
Mashed potatoes (Joaquin will be making these for me)
Pretzels
Chips
Bananas
Canned fruit
Papa John’s pizza (yeah that’s right, I enjoy a few slices of pizza on these crazy long runs!)
And of course ICE, and lots of it!

Running for S.O.D.A.

Growing up I was always thankful to be healthy, athletic, and involved in organized sport. It wasn’t until I travelled to India a couple of years ago that I realized how truly fortunate I was. My wife Julie travelled to Koppal India as part of her physiotherapy program. I met her in Bangalore where she filled me in on the many disabled children she worked with. These children struggled to sit, stand and walk due to various conditions such as Cerebral Palsy, West Syndrome, and Polio. Through collaboration with the NGO Julie worked with, these kids were striving to achieve the goals so many of us take for granted - mobility, independence, and education.

In honour of these children's hard work, and to raise further funds to supply children with resources such as physiotherapy, orthotics, mobility aids, and family education, I will be running in this year's Badwater 135 Ultramarathon. This race is 135 miles long (217km) non-stop from Death Valley to Mt. Whitney, CA in temperatures up to 130F (55C). The Badwater course covers three mountain ranges for a total elevation of 13,000 feet (3962m0. It is the most demanding and extreme running race offered anywhere on the planet.

All funds raised will go to the Canadian charity S.O.D.A., started by a physiotherapist in British Columbia named Hilary Crowley (Julie’s Supervisor). She has returned to this same area of India for the past 15 years. You can get further information at www.samuha.ca and be confident that 100% of the funds go directly to those in need of rehabilitation. Hilary returns annually to ensure their proper distribution.

If you are interested in donating please email me at alex_lalonde@msn.com or donate directly on the website. All donations above $10.00 are eligible for a tax receipt.

 

My wife Julie working with children with various abilities in rural India. All this was made possible by the Canadian charity S.O.D.A.

Many thanks

World's Toughest Race!

http://ca.askmen.com/top_10/sports/toughest-races-in-the-world_1.html

The Badwater 135 Ultramarathon is once again selected as the world's toughest race, this time by askmen.com.

Bring on the Heat!

Over the years, people have written, blogged and have been in documentaries illustrating the wide spectrum of training techniques used to prepare runners for The Badwater 135 race. June 1st marked the start of my heat training. My strategy is to start slow and progress until one week before the race. So far I have run every day in June switching from wearing my NorthFace or MEC polyester long-sleeved sweater (these are the same sweaters I use to train in the winter). On June 1^st the temperatures in Cambridge were 29C, and with the humidex it felt like 35C (95F  – for my American friends). Between the 2^nd and the 6^th of June, the temperatures dropped, but this weekend they were once again in the high 20’s. During these runs I have been feeling great; just one small cramp in my stomach but it resolved quickly. I have been drinking about 1.5 litres of fluids every hour and have been able to keep my weight. I also started hot yoga 3 times per week. I will keep you posted as my training continues.

My heat training plan has been created from strategies used by past Badwater finishers; mainly Gerardo Re and Iris Cooper.

Below is a list of resources on ultrarunning and heat training that I have read/watched. There are also plenty of articles online that every athlete attempting Badwater should read. Many can be found directly on the Badwater website.

Books:

A Few Degrees From Hell by Scott Ludwig
Eat & Run by Scott Jurek
Born to Run by Christopher McDougall
Run! By Dean Karnazes
Running through the Wall by Neal Jamison

Documentary:

Running on the Sun

Temperatures - Just over 35 days until the race

Looks like it's heating up in Death Valley and there is still 35 more days until race day. It's going to be a hot one this year!

A quick youtube video from this weekend

http://youtu.be/NDVW2eTRlGY

Sulphur Springs 100 Mile Race – May 25, 2013

When it comes to running, finding a 5km, 10km, or even a half marathon race nearby is easy. Unfortunately, finding a local ultra-marathon is difficult. Fortunately for me, there is an ultra running event that takes place every year, one hour from my house. The Burlington Runners Club (http://www.burlingtonrunners.com/ ) host multiple running events throughout the year. The Sulphur Springs Race in Ancaster, Ontario being my favourite. This was their 21^st year running this event and the number of registered runners has grown significantly. This year, there were 1200 runners that took part in this trail race, ranging in distances from 10 km to 100 miles. There is even a 100 mile relay race.

I really enjoy the Sulphur Springs course and train there whenever I get the chance. There is always an abundance of wildlife and I usually come across a runner or two that I have met before. Even though the course is situated within the Bruce trail, which is around 800km long, the actual course is only a 20km loop. This allows me to do a lap and get back to my car to replenish my fluids and pick up some more food before beginning again. This year was no different. I was able to get out to the course 3 times for 60km training runs prior to race day.

Check-in for the 100 mile runners is before a mandatory dinner. This occurs at 5pm the Friday before the race. The weather was great, but the temperatures were  on their way down. I put up a tent to sleep in, but decided to sleep in my car to stay warmer. The temperatures reached close to 0 degrees, and with the turn of a key, I had heat within minutes. A pillow, a blanket and the driver’s seat of my car was what I had to get me the best sleep I could.

I usually get up 60-90 minutes before the race, so that I can slowly eat and prepare myself for my long day ahead. I had a few minutes to spare, which gave me a little time to chat with runners that I have gotten to know over the years, and new runners I met the night before.  Six a.m. came and the runners took off!

Even though it rained for a few days during the week before the race, the course was mostly dry, with only a couple of small sections of mud (nothing that would slow down your pace). The hard part of any race is trying to run your own race, while not getting influence by someone else’s pace. At the Sulphur Springs race, the 50 mile, 100 mile and 100 mile relay teams all start at the same time.  With so many categories, knowing who to run with is difficult. Thankfully, the race director made sure that bib numbers were different colours for each race distance. However, it is still easy to get caught up talking to someone for too long, not knowing that their race is almost done, while you still have hours left on the trails. This was the case for me when I was running with 50 mile runners. If it wasn’t for the run/walk pattern I was following this could have hurt me. Luckily, I had a walk break to let those runners get ahead of me.

My plan was to put my Badwater strategy to the test and complete a run/walk pattern for the first 4 laps. My training must have been going well because I completed the 4 laps with no problems at all in a time of 8:03. This is now my personal best for 50 miles.

After 100 km of running, I started to get a blister on my right foot, as well as some stomach pains. These two things would slow me down even more over the last 3 laps. Tom Wronecki joined me on lap 6 and 7, kept me company and helped me at each aid station. We talked about everything! Well, he was doing most of the talking. During this time I was just trying the keep running while trying to ignore my stomach. I was also fortunate to have my sister, Stacey, pace me for my last lap. She drove almost 2 hours to come run a 20km lap with me and then drive home once I finished. Both Tom and Stacey helped me to break my personal record in the 100 mile distance. I finished the Sulphur Springs 100 mile race in 20 hours and 29 minutes. More then 2 hours off my personal best. Thank you Tom and Stacey, I could not have done it without your help!

The temperature dipped a bit at night, but as long as I kept moving I stayed warm. It wasn’t until after the race when we finally stopped moving that I felt how cold it really was outside. Overall, the weather and course conditions couldn’t have been better. The course was also very well marked and the volunteers at the aid stations were always helpful.

Due to the great race conditions, almost every race category at this event had new course records. Dale Draaistra now has the course record for the 100 mile race with a time of 15:37:24 and Laura Perry has the female course record at 18:57:59. Congratulations to both of them!

While making new running friends and breaking my personal best was great, training for the Badwater Ultramarathon is now the only thing on my mind. After a couple of days of recovery, I plan to be back running by Wednesday.

Lastly, thank you everyone for following my blog this far. It was amazing to meet new people at this race that I had never met before, but recognized me from my blog. This is an amazing journey that I am happy to share with you, and I am so thankful for all of the support that I have received.

Nutrition

For those of you who don’t run long distances, you might not know that you need to eat while you run. Especially when you run ultra distances, you need to stay both hydrated as well as nourished to be able to have the strength and energy to keep moving. All runners are different and need different foods to help them. I will take this time to let you know what helps me stay hydrated and nourished during my runs.

Starting with hydration, I like to drink at least one litre of fluid for every hour I run. I sweat a lot, and have used a scale to measure how much fluid I lose per hour.  I mostly drink just water, but I’m a big fan of Gatorade or HEED sports drink. I try to drink at least half a litre of Gatorade or HEED for every litre of water I drink, just to give me some electrolytes as well as flavour.

In regards to the food I eat, it’s basically anything that will give me calories, sugar, salt and protein.  During my training runs and races, I like to eat at least 200 calories of food every hour. Some of these foods include: Hammer gels, peanut butter and jam on some sort of bagel, cliff bars, vega bars, bananas, and the occasional cookie. During races it’s pretty much the same, but I’m limited to what is offered at race aid stations as well. They tend to have foods which include baked potatoes dipped in salt, chocolate chip cookies, licorice M&Ms, raisins, pretzels and chips. I don’t mind changing it up and eating some of that food later on in a race to give me something different to eat, but for the most part I try to eat what I eat during training. There have also been a few times that I have been able to eat a slice of homemade pizza at a race, and it seemed to do the trick.

The hardest transition for me was actually practicing eating while running. It’s not as easy as it seems. Initially I would get an upset stomach but with practice, and with figuring out which foods worked best for me (and that I could keep down) I am now able to eat and continue running without any issues.

My rookie mistake: I need to mention that making sure you eat enough salt so that your body can absorbed all the water it sweats out is VITAL.  Also by consuming enough salt, you will prevent your body from cramping up and ensure you are hydrated. Again this depends on the runner, the temperature conditions and how much you are sweating.

While these foods and hydration strategy works for me, everyone needs to test what works for them during their training runs. I started out by consulting a local sports nutritionist and highly recommend utilizing any veteran runners who are willing to share what nutritionally works for them!

Training update – Sunday May 5, 2013

The weather couldn’t have been any nicer this whole week; nothing but blue skies and hot temperatures... but that didn’t stop me from wearing a long sleeved running shirt with a sweater over top. Yes it was hot, but training like this will help me prepare for the hot temps in Badwater. Up until this week I have been running on nothing but pavement because the Badwater Ultramarathon is a road race. However, this week I started running on trails once again. I will be running in the Sulphur Springs 100 Mile (trail) race on May 25^th .

Today was great! I started running at 5:40am and went until 12:20pm for a total of 60km. The trails at Dundas Valley, which is where the Sulphur Springs race will be held was beautiful. I saw 13 deer as well as many other animals which were out and about. The course was dry and as I said before the weather was great. I love running on trails and enjoyed getting back to them this week. Here is the breakdown of my running this week.

Day	Distance
Mon April 29,2013	19.3
Tue April 30, 2013	12.1
Wed May 1, 2013	14
Fri May 3, 2013	14
Sun May 5, 2013	60
Total	119.4km

 

Until next time… Happy running!

The crew that helped Gerardo Re complete the 2012 Badwater Ultramarathon (left to right): Conor Loughnane, Alex Lalonde, Gerardo Re, Katyna Aguilar, Troy Troncin and Joaquin Candel

My Badwater Crew

While running is usually an individual sport, completing the 135 miles from the Badwater Basin to the Whitney Portal alone is almost impossible. Less then a handful of people have only completed this task solo. During the actual Badwater Ultraramthon, it is mandatory to have a crew. There are no aid stations, so your crew follows you in support vehicles to provide food, water, clothes or even a seat if needed. A crew member is also allowed to pace you (keep you company) on the course after the first checkpoint at 17.5km from the start line. While truly only 1 person is completing the whole course on foot, it takes a whole team effort to complete this race.

I am very fortunate to have a crew member who ran the race last year. Gerardo Re is the first person from Argentina to have completed the Badwater Ultramrathon. He also invited me last year to crew for him as he completed this difficult race. Gerardo is a seasoned runner. He has been my mentor through this Badwater process, helped me create a training plan, all while reminding me that this is all about having fun!

Katyna Aguilar and Joaquin Candel are veteran crew members who played an integral part of Gerardo’s team last year. They both bring experience crewing at this tough race and will definitely help my other crew members learn the ropes. What is most noticeable about Katyna and Joaguin are their positive attitudes and their ability to guide a runner through some of the toughest mental challenges that can occur during a race of this scale. I saw it last year with Gerardo and know they will bring a lot to the table this year as well.

My older brother Jody will be flying in from Edmonton. He was a medic in the Canadian Army and has always been one of my biggest competitors and fans growing up. My younger sister Stacey will also be joining me from Northern Ontario. She is currently a firefighter with the Sudbury fire department. I am glad that they have both decided to join me on this journey. I’m sure my older sister Anne-Marie would have loved the trip to Death Valley as well, but she is expecting a baby this summer, so she declined the offer. Although, I know she could do it ;)

My last crew member who I am grateful for joining is Tom Wronecki.  I met Tom 5 years ago during my first ultra. He helped me get to that painful first finish line by providing me tips throughout the race. He also kept me company during the toughest parts of the race, until I was slowing him down too much. He has also been a great training partner. We get together at least once a month for a long run throughout the trails in Milton Ontario. I know our wives don’t always appreciate our early morning runs, but sometimes we guys just need to get away and tear up those trails!

Even though the race is still just under three months away I can’t thank my crew enough for all they have done for me leading up to this point. Let’s enjoy this adventure and make some great memories.

Training update – Sunday April 21, 2013

When will winter end? It’s hard to train for a heat race when even spring doesn’t want to arrive. Last week was filled with all types of weather which made for a challenging training week. I ran through it all: sun, rain, freezing rain, snow, hail, extreme wind (I had to run twice as hard just to move forward) and of course, temperatures that ranged from -3 to +18 degrees Celsius. The weather didn’t deter me from running because even though I know what it will be like in Death Valley, California… HOT! The weather conditions for most ultra races cannot be predicted.

Having a busy work week along with other commitments I was still able to run close to my overall objective of 150km.

Day - Distance
Mon April 15th - 19.3km
Tues April 16th - 9.6km
Wed April 17th - 16.5km
Thurs April 18th - 9.6km
Fri April 19th - 12.1km
Sat April 20th - 49km
TOTAL - 116.1km

Up to this point in my training I have been concentrating on one speed workout a week, while the rest is focused on endurance and long gradual inclines. Over the next two months leading up to Badwater, I will include hill training to prepare myself for the three mountains that I will have to scale.

Even though I don’t like to take the time to stretch, this year I have been stretching at least 30 minutes after every run and even on my days off. I believe it has helped me recover quicker so that I can continue to train on consecutive days, with only minimal rest periods.

If you have any questions regarding my training or stretching, please do not hesitate to email me. In a different posting I will discuss what works for me with regards to nutrition while running.

Until next time… Happy running!

Julie, Sam and I having some fun at Wasaga Beach

Running can be a lonely activity

Running alone is great, it gives you time to think or just unwind from a long day at work. But there are times when having someone to talk to or just keep you company on those trail/roads, would make for a more enjoyable run.
My wife Julie really wanted me to have a running partner, so she decided to give me a rescue dog for my birthday. Our close friend Tory is a volunteer dog walker at the K-W Humane Society and was on the lookout for a dog that could keep up with me running and had a gentle heart. (Did I mention at this point I was terrified of large dogs I don’t know?!?!). We got the call that a beautiful Sheppard was up for adoption and we took her home that day.

Our second day with Sam (my actual birthday) was a memorable one. I went golfing with Julie, her uncle Tony and his daughter Nicole. Little did we know we were coming home to a disaster. Once we opened the door to the basement the smell was recognizable and revolting. Sam had pooped everywhere, stepped in it, and then proceeded to leave paw prints on the walls. I believe the words that escaped my mouth were…”this is not what I wanted for my Birthday!”  Its funny looking back now…Sam was the best birthday present I ever received, and her new crate was the second.

Sam is a German Sheppard, Husky, Doberman, Collie, and Labrador mix. The best of everything! She is 4 years old and such a great runner. In the beginning I didn’t want to push her too far because I didn’t know much about dogs and their ability to run long distances. This week, I took Sam on her first 20km run. I was quite surprised. We only took minimal walk breaks, and easily finished in 2 hours.

Running with Sam, pushes me to be a better runner. My pace has increased and she’s a great reminder to stay hydrated. In the winter while running, she will dip her nose into the snow, flick it up and eat it. On my long days when I run 60 km, I usually pick up Sam back at the house for the last 10 km. Its great motivation to finish those long runs.

And the best thing about Sam…she never turns down a run.

P.S.

If you’re interested in adding a canine to your training runs, I highly recommend adopting a dog from the KW humane society:

http://www.kwhumane.com/adopt/

In the Beginning...

Growing up, I loved running! Today I love it even more! When I was young, I used running as endurance training for hockey. It wasn’t until after I stopped playing hockey competitively that I began to run longer distances. It all started during a long weekend camping trip when my sister Stacey invited me to join her in running the Scotiabank Marathon in Toronto later that summer. What I didn’t know at the time, was only six short years later, I would be running in the 2013 Badwater 135 Ultramarathon. For those who don’t know, this race is 135 miles long (217km) non-stop from Death Valley to Mt. Whitney, CA in temperatures up to 130F (55C). The Badwater course covers three mountain ranges for a total of 13,000 feet (3962m) of cumulative vertical ascent and 4,700 feet (1433m) of cumulative descent. It is the most demanding and extreme running race offered anywhere on the planet.

After completing my first marathon with my sister, I told her I would never run that far again. I honestly thought that was the truth. Yesterday, I ran farther then a marathon distance, by myself, in the rain, as part of training.

It only took a couple of weeks after that first marathon to realize I wanted to complete harder and tougher marathons with challenging environmental elements. While researching races such as The Great Wall of China Marathon, the Mount Everest Marathon, I eventually came across the website for the Badwater 135 Ultramarathon. At first I couldn’t believe anyone would run that far, but after reading the majority of the website, I was hooked. It was love at first sight. I knew that completing the Badwater 135 would be my next athletic goal.

Having a goal in mind was one thing, but completing a goal like this is another. Criteria for your application to even be reviewed it must include: a minimum of three completed 100 mile races. Additional endurance adventure races and experience crewing for another Badwater participant probably doesn’t hurt. The application is then reviewed by a panel of judges, who only choose up to 100 runners a year. I knew this wasn’t going to be easy, considering I never ran further then 42km, and I struggled through the final kilometers during that race.  After researching training, nutrition, stretching, and recovery, and the help of family, close friends and of course my loving wife, Julie, I knew that getting to the Badwater finish line was achievable!

Throughout this blog I will tell you about my journey to Badwater.  I will also provide current training updates, gear recommendations as well as anything I find interesting in the world of running. Please follow along on my journey from the rural roads in Cambridge Ontario to the hot roads in Death Valley California….and beyond….if my wife lets me ;)……Just kidding Julie J