Congrats on getting this going! Since you asked what we’d like to read here, I’m curious to know more of your story--how & why you got into running, where you’re from, etc. also what your training looks like.
Thank you, Sarah! That's a great idea. I'm planning to do a bit of an autobiographical post sometime soon (maybe not right away, as I don't want to bore people with too much "me stuff" right off the bat, ha!, but soon). I'll share a bit here for you now, though.
I grew up in Georgia, first in the metro-Atlanta area, then more rural north Georgia. I began riding horses when I was 5 and continued passionately, aside from a brief hiatus as a young teen, through college where I rode for the University of Georgia NCAA women's equestrian team. It was the experience of a lifetime! (I wasn't a highly competitive member of our large team and considered myself lucky to be selected as a walk-on freshman year.)
I picked up running when I was 20 and my mom encouraged me to join her for a half marathon in the Tetons after my family moved to Wyoming in 2015 while I was still in undergrad (a story for another time). I loved it, and we signed up for another one—my first trail race actually—the very next weekend in West Yellowstone :D.
l continued running throughout the rest of college but it wasn't until I moved to Missoula that I really dove into trail running consistently. From there, thanks to a few famous YouTube videos, I discovered the world of ultrarunning and was starstruck. It took me a few years before I signed up for my first 50K (the Rut mountain runs in Big Sky, MT), and I fell totally in love after that. I ran my first 50 and 100 milers last summer, along with the Trifecta at the Rut last September and R2R2R in October.
I run consistently year-round but let mileage dip to the 20s and 30s if I'm not actively training for something (especially in late-fall/early winter), and tend to sit around 40-50mpw with 5-8' vert on average weeks. I'm a "less is more" runner so far and have found that 60-70 mile weeks are great peaks for me leading up to a long race. I'll share a post sometime about how I train for ultras of varying distances... I'd love to hear what others are doing too and what works for different folks. There's always so much to learn and experiment with!
Thanks for your comment... I chose Substack because of your newsletter and am very happy with it!
great to hear... you still have young fresh legs and a ton of potential! Thanks for reading & recommending my newsletter too. I took up running as a grad student, right before I turned 25, and more than a quarter-century later (god that sounds old) still at it! Did you ever get to know "the Montana Mikes" (Foote and Wolf)? They are inspiring; watching their videos always made me want to go to MT and run some of those races.
I appreciate that -- I definitely feel very new to the sport in that sense and am grateful to have many, many miles left (I hope!). That's one of the things that plagues me as I dive deeper into the ultra world; I want to be cautious not to overdo it too quickly, but also want to let my mind and body go on the adventures that feel exciting. I suppose it's always a practice of intention, checking in, and balance. Open to any advice you may share :)
I haven't met Mike Wolfe but know Foote just from community events and what not (I also dabble in backcountry skiing and skimo, so I've done some local races put on by Foote). Awesome human and neighbor!
Oh my gosh my friend. So many things to say to you. I’m so proud of you! This is rad. You are rad. I’m looking forward to growing with you. 🧡
Kristie, your support makes my heart SO warm! Thank you, thank you, thank you🙏🏻🧡. I'm looking forward to learning from and growing with you, too!
Congrats on getting this going! Since you asked what we’d like to read here, I’m curious to know more of your story--how & why you got into running, where you’re from, etc. also what your training looks like.
Thank you, Sarah! That's a great idea. I'm planning to do a bit of an autobiographical post sometime soon (maybe not right away, as I don't want to bore people with too much "me stuff" right off the bat, ha!, but soon). I'll share a bit here for you now, though.
I grew up in Georgia, first in the metro-Atlanta area, then more rural north Georgia. I began riding horses when I was 5 and continued passionately, aside from a brief hiatus as a young teen, through college where I rode for the University of Georgia NCAA women's equestrian team. It was the experience of a lifetime! (I wasn't a highly competitive member of our large team and considered myself lucky to be selected as a walk-on freshman year.)
I picked up running when I was 20 and my mom encouraged me to join her for a half marathon in the Tetons after my family moved to Wyoming in 2015 while I was still in undergrad (a story for another time). I loved it, and we signed up for another one—my first trail race actually—the very next weekend in West Yellowstone :D.
l continued running throughout the rest of college but it wasn't until I moved to Missoula that I really dove into trail running consistently. From there, thanks to a few famous YouTube videos, I discovered the world of ultrarunning and was starstruck. It took me a few years before I signed up for my first 50K (the Rut mountain runs in Big Sky, MT), and I fell totally in love after that. I ran my first 50 and 100 milers last summer, along with the Trifecta at the Rut last September and R2R2R in October.
I run consistently year-round but let mileage dip to the 20s and 30s if I'm not actively training for something (especially in late-fall/early winter), and tend to sit around 40-50mpw with 5-8' vert on average weeks. I'm a "less is more" runner so far and have found that 60-70 mile weeks are great peaks for me leading up to a long race. I'll share a post sometime about how I train for ultras of varying distances... I'd love to hear what others are doing too and what works for different folks. There's always so much to learn and experiment with!
Thanks for your comment... I chose Substack because of your newsletter and am very happy with it!
With care,
Morgan
great to hear... you still have young fresh legs and a ton of potential! Thanks for reading & recommending my newsletter too. I took up running as a grad student, right before I turned 25, and more than a quarter-century later (god that sounds old) still at it! Did you ever get to know "the Montana Mikes" (Foote and Wolf)? They are inspiring; watching their videos always made me want to go to MT and run some of those races.
I appreciate that -- I definitely feel very new to the sport in that sense and am grateful to have many, many miles left (I hope!). That's one of the things that plagues me as I dive deeper into the ultra world; I want to be cautious not to overdo it too quickly, but also want to let my mind and body go on the adventures that feel exciting. I suppose it's always a practice of intention, checking in, and balance. Open to any advice you may share :)
I haven't met Mike Wolfe but know Foote just from community events and what not (I also dabble in backcountry skiing and skimo, so I've done some local races put on by Foote). Awesome human and neighbor!