Why do I want to do an ultra trail run?
I ran cross country in high school, but university classes and other activities eventually crept in and the running just faded away. My interest in signing up for an actual race didn’t pick up again until I took part in a local charity walk/run (I walked 3k) in 2018. The support for the cause and sense of community among the participants was amazing.
I signed up for a 10k within the week.
The First Race
This distance was a pretty intimidating goal as I had never run ten consecutive kilometers in my life. I remember mentioning to my Dad (a seasoned long distance runner) how tough it would be to do 10k and his advice has stuck with me to this day. He told me that if I could run 5k, then I could run 10k.
Seems a little too simple, but as I got into my training, I began to see what he meant. I found that I was able to complete longer and longer runs and before I knew it, I was at my goal distance. Well Dad, if I can run 10k I guess I can run 50k… right?? (cue nervous laughter).
Lots to Learn
From this point on I signed up for at least one race each summer (excluding the dark ages of pandemic). These ranged in distance from 5k to half marathon. My understanding of training for relatively longer distances has improved with time, though I definitely have tons more to learn. Although I did learn some from my two half marathon experiences, a lot of the knowledge also came from old reliable… YouTube!
I fell down the rabbit hole on multiple occasions, watching everything from “how to” videos about training schedules and form, to vlogs by amateurs and pro athletes. As you can imagine, there is an endless supply of videos.
My Inspo
In my YouTube travels I came across Courtney Dauwalter. She is a sponsored pro ultra trail runner from Colorado. I watched a short documentary called the Source about her experience completing the Tahoe 200, a 200 mile trail race in California. Not only was the distance bewildering, her personality and approach to the sport was also surprising.
I had always envisioned someone performing at such an elite level to be very intense, with all things in life revolving around the next competition. Courtney is the exact opposite of what I expected. She appears to be a down to earth person who doesn’t take herself too seriously. She seems to just genuinely love the sport and happens to also be amazing at it lol.
Shoot My Shot
My preconceptions about the “type” of person who would do these races meant they never even crossed my radar. How could I possibly hope to try something like that?
Now obviously I am not going to just go out and run 200 miles… I’d be lost at the bottom of that lake. But I was inspired by the idea that I could stay my pretty laid back self while also being dedicated to training. For the first time I realized that even with my fairly chill personality, I could have a chance at finishing one of these ultra runs.
Happy Trails
Why would I pick a trail ultra as opposed to a road race? Throughout the Source there were many amazing shots of the beautiful scenery at Lake Tahoe. I appreciated the views and came to the conclusion that when a person is out there competing for hours on end, being in nature would be the best possible option!
And now you know 🙂
