Wednesday, June 23, 2010

It's a Big and Beautiful World: Bighorn 100 Mile Trail Run

***Danni has been more diligent than I about posting her experiences at Bighorn as the Leslie Pacer - her post and thoughts are here.



I've been a busy girl with a return road trip from Wyoming and jumping back into work. No time for a race report or much else! On my facebook account, I left this message which pretty much sums up my thoughts post-100 Miler:

"Aaaah, Wyoming. I love you, your prettty places, your friendly people and your big sprawling skys. I got the Ultimate 100 Mile Tour. Thank you kind people of the Bighorn Ultra! You've got yourselves a helluva' little runny-run going on down there."



That's me "hike-a-running" as the sun comes up at 5:00 in the AM somewhere in the Bighorn Mountains. It sure was beautiful out there. I'd be lying if I said it was easy, but there were moments of big smiles and elation as I cruised along the trail. There were also moments of frustration and grumpiness and feeling sorry for myself. But I'll get to all of that when I write up a race report.

For now, I'll tell you this: I finished! Woohoo!



Some numbers from this years 2010 edition of the Bighorn 100 Mile Trail Race:

157 Starters
95 Finishers
62 DNF

35 ladies started
18 finished
17 DNF'd


As for me, I finished 12th out of those 17 ladies and took 31 hours and 33 minutes to get my butt to the finish line. I was pretty darn happy to reach that finish line and even managed to finish feeling pretty strong. I've certainly got lots to learn when it comes to running a 100 miles - it's an ongoing experiment of one. I'm enjoying it.
I
Danni was kind enough to join me for the last 50 miles and her company was appreciated, enjoyed and a welcome distraction. Thanks, Danni! Angela was a fantastic road trip companion and also managed to get herself to the finish line. I'll say this: I sure have met some great people through this little trail running habit of mine. My friends are super stars! Thanks everyone, for a great weekend.

Race report to come as soon as this fog in my brain clears.... :)

11 comments:

Dan said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Dan said...

Great finish. Can't wait to hear the full story. Rest well.

Sara Montgomery said...

Congratulations, Leslie!! You're amazing. Can't wait to read the deets.

Kaz said...

Well done! Looking forward to the full description. Still waiting on babs to arrive so it will be great a vicarious adventure for me!

Recover well,

Kaz.

Danni said...

You really are a machine. I enjoy telling people about how you were running so fast I couldn't keep up at the end.

Paige said...

YaHOOOOOOOOOOO! Congratulations on your finish! I knew you would :)

JeffO said...

AWESOME!!!!

Deanna Stoppler said...

Very cool! You look great, as usual.

Jill Homer said...

Common, where are the words?

Incredible finish! I still can't wrap my head around traveling 100 miles on one push without wheels underneath. Congratulations!

Thomas Bussiere said...

Congrats on finishing such a tough race. Nice pics and look forward to your report.

Leslie said...

Where are the words? They are coming, I swear. Note to self: next time do a race report IMMEDIATELY following the race. My memory is already a little foggy - maybe race induced amnesia! R.I.A!