Chasing a DNF

After pacing in my snow-covered driveway for a few minutes waiting on the Garmin to connect to GPS satellites, I was finally ready to knock out this run. I pressed the button, the timer started and I launched in the snow and slush in the aftermath of Winter Storm Liam. That first step is when I heard the “pop” in my ankle. “Oh that can’t be good” I thought to myself. In typical idiot fashion I kept on running. I had miles behind me and miles more to run after all. I started the week feeling pretty darn good. I had put a 6 mile training run to foot with The Commander and some good friends over the weekend. One girl, we will call her Silver because her initials are AG, and I run together because we run at the same pace and she pushes me. It was a good run with good friends and everything I thought I needed to be ready for the Moraine State Park Frosty Feet 5k trail run the following weekend. My plan was to maybe run once during the week, but maybe not.  It has been referred to

My heart is pounding so hard I can feel it in my temples. I look at my watch and check my heart rate; wow! I can’t believe how much climbing I’ve done. I look down below me. Nothing but trees and rocks. I’m reminded of George of the Jungle, “If you fall, you have a very long time to waive goodbye”. I look up ahead of me, still can’t see the tree line. “The Beast” is living up to its name. Climbing the Beast; Photo courtesy of Mike McNeil I first heard about the Frozen Snot around the same time I ran the 2017 Boulder Beast. Its many of the same trails with some added extras. My interest was piqued but I didn’t really consider doing the run until I decided to run 12 trail runs in 2018. I needed a January run and I thought, to quote a particularly nasty trail on the race, Why Not? At about 430’ of elevation gain per mile, the Snot dwarfs most if not all other Pennsylvania Races (see the graph On Matt Lipsey’s blog ). I read more than once that it’s the toughest trail race in t