Marin 50 Miler: The Importance of a Pause

I can't believe it. Yet, I am here – about to run the farthest I've ever run.

Just before sunrise, the sound of the Pacific blends with the chatter of a herd of runners as we pass over the start line for the Marin Ultra Challenge. It's dark and we've got our headlamps on. Electric pastel slowly blooms along the horizon next to the silhouette of the Golden Gate Bridge, like a just-ripe nectarine. We're on the first climb. Lights from runners up ahead on the trail that wraps around the hills above me turn off one by one; morning light begins to fill the sky to welcome the day.

In endurance events, the mental is just as important as the physical. There's great pleasure and reward to be had in moving quickly through the woods and meadows, testing our limits in the context of a competition. The pressure to travel great distances via foot in a relatively short amount of time certainly keeps a runner/human moving. But sometimes, a pause for well-being – not at an aid station for calories, or for a bathroom break – is what keeps my mind strong during a long run. My spirit is fueled, healthy, and happy when I pause occasionally to observe and appreciate the details of the trails I'm racing on. This may be a physical pause, or it could be a mental pause, like a form of moving meditation.

I took a minute on the super steep climb up Willow Camp to let my heart rest and watch the marine layer dissipate and reveal a beach curving below me. I spent a couple minutes cooling down inside an opening at the base of a redwood tree on the Matt Davis trail. I bent down to reach for an oxalis leaf to pop in my mouth for its thirst-quenching citrusy burst (my favorite!). And I gave an extra thanks to the ever-amazing aid station volunteers and a hug for my crew. 

Then, yes indeed – it's a race. And it's swiftly onward, upward, downward, or however the trail may lead.

Thank you to @insidetrail and all runners, crew, spectators and volunteers for all you did to make this incredible day possible.

Top photo of sunrise by Sean Harrasser.