Auburn Edurance Expo 2007

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Last weekend I made a trip down to Auburn, CA for the Endurance Capital Expo. It had been almost a year and half since I had been down in Western States Trail country and a few years since I attended the first Endurance Capital celebration.

This year’s event was an indoor expo at the Auburn Fairgrounds, producing a great community vibe and featuring local organizations like the Cool Bicycle Club and the Western States Trail Foundation. Also present were area businesses catering to endurance enthusiasts including Auburn Running Company. Clinics and presentations were provided by Auburn heroes including legendary Tevis Cup rider Potato Richardson, Tevis Cup rider and “father” of the Western States Endurance Run, Gordy Ainsleigh, and five-time Western States Endurance Run champion, Tim Tweitmeyer, among others. I also spoke about my recent wins at the Hardrock 100 and Spartathlon and answered questions from an excited crowd of endurance enthusiasts. Continue reading →

My 2007 Spartathlon race report

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The award ceremonies are over and most runners are back home following another successful running of an event we’ve come to know as Spartathlon. This year’s event was extra special being the twenty-fifth anniversary. But it was also an emotional one due to the disaster of forest fires that just a few weeks earlier brought enormous devastation to Greece, including the Peloponnese Peninsula where the race runs through. Nearly 500,000 acres were burned and the fires took 65 lives. Although the affect of the fires was felt by the runners and event organizers, the spirit and celebration of the race was alive and well. I’d like to make special note to the German runners who raised 10,000 euro for aid relief as well as point to a link on Daily Frappe with more information and links to numerous ways of helping.

BubbleShare: Share photos – Halloween contest

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2006 Spartathlon video & race report

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In making final preparations for Spartathlon, which starts the morning after next, I took a look back at last year’s video of the race for inspiration. I also dug up the report I wrote for UltraRunning Magazine and took a look back at the photos taken by Glenn Tachiyama.

Spartathlon: A Journey of History, Culture, & Peace
by Scott Jurek (story reprinted here was originally published in UltraRunning Magazine) Continue reading →

“Vegetarian Sports Nutrition”

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As I arrived in Greece last week, I was reminded of last year’s arrival prior to Spartathlon. I was reviewing a new book written by D. Enette Larson-Meyer, PhD, RD, “Vegetarian Sports Nutrition”. Being very impressed with this book, I agreed to write the forward. Although a few books have been written about vegetarian sports nutrition, Larson-Meyer goes into great detail when presenting the science and does so in an easy to understand format. At the same time, she provides practical information that the veteran and aspiring vegetarian can each utilize in their daily and exercise specific nutritional planning. Many formulas and tables guide the reader in calculating their individual nutritional requirements both on and off the field or race course.

Carnivores read on! Continue reading →

How safe is your sunscreen?

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I came across a great resource recently. Skin Deep is a safety guide by Environmental Working Group. They are a small nonprofit formed to test and rate the safety of cosmetics and many items we use for personal care. “Because the FDA doesn’t require companies to test their own products for safety”, “Skin Deep pairs ingredients in nearly 25,000 products against 50 definitive toxicity and regulatory databases, making it the largest integrated data resource of its kind.”

On their site, you may look up the safety of a specific ingredient, product, or brand. You can also view by category, such as “skin care” or “baby care.” You will receive ratings of 0-2 for low hazard, 3-6 for moderate hazard, or 7-10 for high hazard. You may also take a further look at why this product is rated as it is. Continue reading →

Defending my Spartathlon title

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I’m happy to officially announce I will be going back to Spartathlon this year. It is coming up quickly and I have been able to get in excellent training upon returning from France. Valmir Nunes of Brazil, a previous Spartathlon winner, is in top shape this year after dropping last year due to injury. Another previous winner, Jens Lucas of Germany, will also be running, but possibly slightly tired after a stellar second place finish at UTMB. Markus Thalmann of Austria is one more past champion helping to stack the field. American 24 Hour record holder Mark Godale is also in great form this year and I expect many more great competitors to be ready to give it their all.

Last year for the first time the race provided a live webcast which I heard was quite good, posting quick updates of top runners. Be sure to check the website on race day, Friday September 28. We have a 7:00 start, middle of Thursday night for those back in the States.

I’m excited to go back and tackle this tough and long road race and enjoy the great culture of the Greek people, the beautiful country and rich history of Greece!

UltraRunning goes color

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With a fresh new look and a brand new crew, publisher John Medinger, editor Tia Bodington, and manager Lisa Henson put together a fresh new UltraRunning Magazine. Keeping to the core of what it’s brought readers for decades, they’ve updated the look and added some color photography for this September issue. Looks great!

If you’re interested in seeing a what I look like at close to 40 miles and at 14,000 feet, be sure to check out the cover! As you can see, lack of oxygen and the long gruling climb left no time to pose for the photo taken by Luis Escobar. Hardrock story is on page 32.

2007 UTMB report

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In my first running of the Ultra Trail-Tour du Mont-Blanc, I did not produce the result I was hoping for. I withdrew just before half way, noticing early on that I didn’t have the pep in my legs that I usually do at my peak. As each early mile was feeling like an ending mile, I decided to spare my body the torture and call it a day, hopefully sparing it for next month’s Spartathlon. I realized that my legs just didn’t have enough time to recover from last months Hardrock performance.

Mentally I was ready to compete and we couldn’t have asked for better weather, course conditions, or line up of outstanding competitors. But this was a good reminder to me that in spite of this year’s large ambitions, it is best for me to pick one or two key events with enough recovery time in between, as I have in years past, if I wish to perform at my best for these key races. Continue reading →