Paved paradise

So I am sitting in a Best Buy parking lot.  They open in a hour.  Going to get the wife a remote starter for Christmas.  I know, but zero wrapping involved.  Still need to come up with a couple other wifey type presents.  Not my strength.  Ever notice the word strengths has 9 letters and only one is a vowel?

Some of the folks here know I put in for the Big Backyard Ultra for next October.  Currently I am 17th on the wait list.  Maybe this will happen.  I had to turn in a resume and was excited to be that close quite honestly.  The resume is decent, but I have no depth of work and I am not someone who has depth at 100 milers.  I finished one and that was 2003.  I did do 3 days of Syllamo twice, so that is the long distance portion of what I submitted.

If you are not familiar with the format you can look it up.  It is a 4.167 mile race every hour until the last person is standing.  Last year went like 68-69 hours.  That pace is equal to 100 miles every 24 hours.  Looks like a beast.  I have a ton of thoughts about the race, training, the competitors, etc.  I’ll be sharing those thoughts here.  I’ve got high hopes I’ll get in.  The field has generally been around 70, but as they are handing out 12 golden tickets to Backyard champions around the world I can’t see the field being less than 80.  There are 67 in currently.  I was 20 on the wait list and 3 have gotten in.  What pumps me up is the ballers who are going to be there.  I just want to get in there and do the best I can do and overcome a few obstacles.  Not the just another bum from the neighborhood routine, but more like the Bear Bryant line, “Be good, or be gone.”

In some regards I would consider it the last event I would do the all in training mind set.  Been doing this a long time.  The training ideas come easy, the enthusiasm is there, and because it is different makes it fun.  The me inside of me has been very vocal recently.  I distinctly thought I heard in a Gregory Peck voice say to my other conscious, “We’ve made other plans and that don’t include you.”  Not sure of the meaning, but will press on until I hear different.