Calico Trail 50K in CA last month
This race report has sure come in fits and starts! Work, illness, training...everything has gotten in the way of finishing, so not as fresh in my mind, all these weeks later. But the memories of the desert are still not far from the front of my mind, so here goes.... The 50K is a funny distance. Marathoners move up (many without much trail experience perhaps), while ultra folks move down. In my case, I had skipped over the 50K, when I moved up from the marathon a little over three years ago. Going to 50 milers, 40 milers, 100Ks, and even attempting 100 milers, before finally doing my first 50K a year ago. But then I did four last year, and this was now the second of the new year. They've always been "B races" in my mind--either on the way to some bigger goal race or coming back from layoffs or injury or both. With Calico (and to a lesser extent Phunt 2 weeks before), I feel like I'm starting to get the hang of actually "racing" a 50K. It requires a distinct