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The Journey Back to Western States

In 2025, I planned to pace my good friend Jeff Gould at his first Western States. He ended up super sick with bronchitis and had to withdraw less than 48 hours before the race. Fortunately, the next person on the waitlist (Rusty) had proactively jumped on a plane from the U.K. and was able to use his spot in the race. Since I was now free, I joined my husband Steve and volunteered at Peachstone Aid Station. And we hostedRead more
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CIM 2023 – a happy return to pavement, this time with purpose

November 14, my good friend Karyn reached out via text “Hey old friend. Are you in marathon shape?” She was looking for a co-pacer to help her lead the 3:55 pace group at the California International Marathon (“CIM”) in Sacramento. My initial response was “I might be but I can’t commit for a few weeks while I test out the pace”. Karyn replied: “The race is December 3“ I hadn’t run a marathon (or any road race) since 2014. SinceRead more
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A big dose of Heaven: TRT104, 2021

Last weekend I completed my sixth Tahoe Rim Trail Endurance Run 100-miler. The race’s tagline is “A glimpse of Heaven, a taste of Hell.” The average elevation of the course was 7800′ and took place on mostly single-track decomposed granite trails. This was the first year the race started and finished in Carson City, and the course changes had amounted to a longer distance (about 104 miles) with more climbing (about 20k’ gain).  To prepare for the 2021 edition, IRead more
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TRT 100 2019 – Number 5

Stumbling and staggering up and over Snow Valley Peak,  pain radiating down my legs with every step,  blisters exploding underfoot like deep shards of glass, I fantasized about “getting” to drop at the next aid station – mile 93 – surely they won’t let me go on when they see my feet. Nearly 24 hours into the Tahoe Rim Trail 100 – my fifth one – all I could think about was dropping. My pacer, Javier, practically ran circles aroundRead more
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Western States 100

Two days before the race, Mone’ told me that Cortney, the famous pastry chef for Squaw, was super excited about all things Western States. When she heard I was doing it, she asked for my autograph. I said, tell her yes, in exchange for a piece of her red velvet cake, and Cortney replied:

“tell her if she finishes Western States I’ll bake her a whole f#$%ing cake.”Read more
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Western States week

“Coach tells us a story about his dad who was running a race for 100 miles from Squaw to Auburn, and he talked about failure and what it was like to work for something and show up, and keep showing up even when it feels like the outcome you want is impossibly out of reach.   Because when you keep showing up, at some point you’ll see something you never considered to be possible.   And you automatically beat anyoneRead more
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Marin Ultra Challenge 50 miler 2018

In the week leading up to the Marin Ultra Challenge 50 (MUC for short), I was pretty terrified. I believe I was suffering from a mild case of TRT-PTSD, after the last race I’d entered, the TRT100, didn’t pan out so well. I went into that race feeling strong and ready, but my stomach rebelled and I spent a lot of time in a heap on the side of the trail. I’d trained consistently leading up to MUC, thanks to guidance from Coach Meghan, but after TRT, I knew that anything could happen.Read more
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TRT 100 – a glimpse of heaven, more than a taste of hell

How had I become “that guy”, an example of “what not to do” in this race?  Lying in an indiscernible pile on the ground, mile 65, 10:00 pm or so, at the psychedelic Alice and Wonderland -themed Red House Aid Station, I listened as an intermittent stream of runners entered, refueled, and then continued on their way.  The sting of being passed had faded over the past 6 hours, after being reduced to a jog-walk-stop-poop rotation for the past 20 miles, until I could go no more. I had fallen down the rabbit hole.Read more