2013 San Juan Solstice 50: Myself (3rd), Dakota Jones (1st & New CR), Jason Schlarb (2nd)
Everyone always talks about "living the dream" in regards to traveling, following your passion, etc. I hear it often from friends who see the photos I post of my adventures in the mountains, the places I go, and the things I see, but I still feel like my "dream life" has been just out of reach. Often times I ask myself the question, how many people us actually get to do that, live their dream? Hell, how many people actually have the guts to truly give it a try? More often than not, that dream life is much harder to attain than a life of security and is usually lost or overtaken by the other "American dream".
In the short time that I have been part of the ultra running community I have gotten to know a few of those people who have ventured off on their own path to chase their dreams and pursue their passions. Some of them make it, some don't, but at least they gave it a shot. People like that inspire me, and give me the motivation to pursue my own dreams. Two good examples are my friends Dakota Jones and Jason Schlarb (pictured above). The more time I spend hanging out with them or people like them, whether it be during a race, a training run / adventure, or even just a social event, the more I realize how much I want to pursue my own dream. That dream is to be a professional ultra runner and travel the world and live my life through running and playing in the mountains. The more time I spend with them and the more I hear about their adventures, the more I want it too. It sounds cliche, but I want to be like them. Who wouldn't really?
A year ago I made the decision to give this running thing a shot. I didn't want to think back years from now and wonder if I could have made those "dreams" of traveling the world through running a reality or not. I figured at the very worst I would end up broke, still in a vacation destination (probably Crested Butte, CO), with a lot of really good stories and photos of my summer of adventures. At best? I would actually pull it off and become a "professional ultra runner" and get the opportunity to travel the world through running. Either way there was really nothing to lose and everything to gain. So I gave it hell, and below is a recap of my attempt at "living the dream - 2013".
In the short time that I have been part of the ultra running community I have gotten to know a few of those people who have ventured off on their own path to chase their dreams and pursue their passions. Some of them make it, some don't, but at least they gave it a shot. People like that inspire me, and give me the motivation to pursue my own dreams. Two good examples are my friends Dakota Jones and Jason Schlarb (pictured above). The more time I spend hanging out with them or people like them, whether it be during a race, a training run / adventure, or even just a social event, the more I realize how much I want to pursue my own dream. That dream is to be a professional ultra runner and travel the world and live my life through running and playing in the mountains. The more time I spend with them and the more I hear about their adventures, the more I want it too. It sounds cliche, but I want to be like them. Who wouldn't really?
A year ago I made the decision to give this running thing a shot. I didn't want to think back years from now and wonder if I could have made those "dreams" of traveling the world through running a reality or not. I figured at the very worst I would end up broke, still in a vacation destination (probably Crested Butte, CO), with a lot of really good stories and photos of my summer of adventures. At best? I would actually pull it off and become a "professional ultra runner" and get the opportunity to travel the world through running. Either way there was really nothing to lose and everything to gain. So I gave it hell, and below is a recap of my attempt at "living the dream - 2013".
January & February: I got paid to walk in the snow! Guiding snowshoe tours all around Crested Butte. Each trip made me appreciate the accessibility we have in mountain towns to the outdoors. (Photo Credit: Xavier Fane)
March: I bested an elite field of runners to win my opening race of the season, the Run Through Time trail marathon in Salida, CO -- In the photo: Timmy Parr (4th), Myself (1st), & Nick Clark (2nd)
March: The Grand Canyon is a magical place, and one of my favorites. I got to join some good CB/Gunny friends and complete my second double crossing. Fun adventure runs like these are what this sport is all about!
April: I traveled all over CO & UT by bike and thumb (yes, hitchhiking) as a sales rep for VFuel and visiting friends along the way. Pictured above is my college teammate and good friend Jake Krolick in Great Sand Dunes NP. I also won the Desert RATS trail marathon and got the $100 premium from the first climb early in the race.
May: I got my first ultra win at the Quad Rock 50 in Ft Collins, CO. I spent the entire month in Boulder, CO repping VFuel, visiting friends, making new ones, and putting in some great training along the front range including an epic 9 hour day through snow to tag Mt Audubon with Trent Briney & Sage Canaday. (photo via Silke Koester)
June: What a fun month!! I spent the first couple weeks putting in some big miles in Crested Butte while watching the Lupine paint the hillsides blue, followed by a week long camping trip to bag 14ers with my good friend and adventure buddy Jess and her dog Jack, and ended it with a 3rd place finish at the San Juan Solstice 50 in Lake City where Dakota Jones smashed Matt Carpenters CR (see photo at the top of this post).
July: I had one of the best months of training packed full of adventures including bagging dozens of peaks, running the 4 Pass Loop three times, more camping trips, and traversing the Ruby Range for the second time. My dad even came out to Crested Butte to visit, taking his first ever flight and eating his first ever Avocado!!
August: Sticking with my summer trend, I did more peak bagging and ridge traverses, then drove out to Ashland, OR where I ran with Timmy Olson before hitching out to the coast to run in Humboldt Redwoods SP and bike through the Avenue of the Giants. I followed that up with summiting Mt Shasta in California, then flew too SLC and drove to Snowbird, UT to do a photo shoot for for some new Altra Zero Drop shoes. After that I flew back to CO and ran/hiked up Longs Peak and put in a 30 mile day with my friend Trent Briney, before heading back to Crested Butte and doing some runs in the Maroon Bells Wilderness, which the photo above is from. WOW... what a month!
September: After a summer of awesome training, I capped it off with a 4th place finish at the highly competitive Run Rabbit Run 100 in Steamboat Springs, CO. Check out the video that Altra made!
October: To make the year even more memorable, I had made it onto the back of TrailRunner Magazine in a full page Altra ad, the October 2013 issue. After recovering from RRR100, I spent a lot of time enjoying the fall colors in CB from high up on ridge lines and down in thick Aspen groves, my favorite time of year!
November: The "not so good, but also kinda good" month. Training was up and down, but I got to go to southern Utah to do another photo/video shoot for Altra. (Check out the Olympus video review, should be out soon!). After that I flew out east and had my worst ultra performance to date at the JFK50, ending my top 5 streak that started in 2012. I got sick race week.. tough break, but it happens. At least I got to spend Thanksgiving week with my family in Upstate NY which was nice. I don't get back there often enough. (photo: the Upper Loop in CB)
December: The month of R&R. The end of the season is always bittersweet. You wish it could keep on going (as long as it was going well), but at the same time its a relief to get a break and let the body rest. I took two full weeks off from running before starting back into some light training. December was also the time to plan my 2014 race schedule, figure out sponsorships, stock up a few pounds for the upcoming year! (photo: mid December in CB)
Looking Forward to 2014!
If you can remember all the way back to the beginning of 2013, before all of those adventures, races, mountain summits and photos of beautiful vistas that I shared, I said I was in "pursuit of a dream". That dream being becoming a professional ultra runner. Now if it didn't work out I had a hell of a summer, there is no arguing that. Guess what though? I just signed a contract with Altra Footwear and am officially one of their first "professional" sponsored athletes! I can't express how stoked I am to be representing them in 2014 and having the opportunity to continue with my passion and actually make a living (or at least mostly) through being an athlete. I will have the opportunity the coming year to race overseas, travel more domestically to races, and focus my efforts solely on training. It's a dream come true!
My other sponsors for 2014 include: VFuel (use code: JCA20 for 20% off) and Griggs Orthopedics. I am still looking for additional sponsorship at this time and hope to have everything solidified before my first race in February. If you are a brand or know of a brand who would want to be represented, send me an email.
2014 Race Schedule:
** = Dependant on Qualifier
Coaching:
If you are running your first ultra, trying to improve upon past results, or just want more structure and liability for your running in the coming year then you're in luck! I still have a few openings for 2014. For more information, be sure to check out my coaching pages.
Follow my adventures in 2014!
My other sponsors for 2014 include: VFuel (use code: JCA20 for 20% off) and Griggs Orthopedics. I am still looking for additional sponsorship at this time and hope to have everything solidified before my first race in February. If you are a brand or know of a brand who would want to be represented, send me an email.
2014 Race Schedule:
- February 1 - Sean O'Brian 50 - Malibu, CA
- March 15 - Run Through Time 26.2 - Salida, CO
- May 10 - Transvulcania 83k - Canary Islands, ESP
- June 28 - Western States 100 - Auburn, CA **
- July 19 - Speedgoat 50k - Snowbird, UT
- September 12 - Run Rabbit Run 100 - Stemboat Springs, CO
- November ? - Bootlegger 50k - Boulder City, NV
- December ? - The North Face 50 - San Francisco, CA
** = Dependant on Qualifier
Coaching:
If you are running your first ultra, trying to improve upon past results, or just want more structure and liability for your running in the coming year then you're in luck! I still have a few openings for 2014. For more information, be sure to check out my coaching pages.
Follow my adventures in 2014!
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Live Pure, Run Pure, & Keep Chasing Your Dreams!
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