On July 13th of this year I ran the Badwater Ultra Marathon faster than I ever had before. This was a surprising result but one that I was really happy about. Once I realized that the race clock was not broken and that I did actually run sub 26 hours, I immediately realized that I had to take another shot at the Death Valley Cup record. I tried for the record two years ago but came up well short. The Furnace Creek 508 kicked my butt (and my butt was never the same).

Running well at Badwater is certainly tough. I have done the race 5 times and it is never easy. But honestly I will take running 135 miles anytime over sitting on a bike seat for two days. Don’t get me wrong, I love cycling but the 508 is a very long race. And without proper training, certain parts of the human anatomy suffer tremendously. If you don’t understand what I mean by this then see me after ASS, oops I meant class.

Anyway, I have been on the bike now for about two months. Okay, not all the time. I get off to sleep and use the bathroom sometimes. But seriously my training has gone well. I have ridden more in preparation for the FC 08 than any other cycling event I have done before. I have had some awesome help from several people (Ray Zahab, Tracy Sproule, Meredith Dolhare and Justin Andrews). Without their support and badgering I would not be ready for this race.

Sponsors have really stepped up for me too. Trysports in Charlotte, Balega Socks, Mission Skincare,  Tappening and Infinit Nutrition have all contributed product or money or both. And they will all be reaching out to thousands of people asking them to follow along on this quest.

I am truly excited and I hope that I can have a good race. But honestly, what I care about most is reminding myself and all of you what is most important; PARTICIPATION. Don’t just watch, DO SOMETHING NOW!