The Lean Horse

We made it back from the Lean Horse and back to our normal Life again. The trip to South Dakota is always fun, but this year was another humbling experience again. This was my 2nd attempt at running the Lean Horse and I fell shy of the finish line by 30 miles.

Carhinge was the first stop on our trip to South Dakota. It's a mystical place. Life changing for sure.

I was able to scratch one item from the bucket list. PISS ON CARHINGE. "Who doesn't have that on their list"? It was satisfying.

The next morning we were got checked in....had a quick snack.....stretched and got ready for the race start up.

The race had about 140 runners, some running the 50 miler and about 80 people running the 100 miler. I love the energy at the start. Most people are nervous and jacked up ready to get the race started. I tend to be numb. No emotion, I'm just ready to go.

After we got started I hooked up with the only other person from Nebraska. Scott G. from LaVista Nebraska.. One hell of a good guy. Really......we didn't plan to dress the same.......Scott ended up with at 25 hour finish.......Which I'm proud to say he represented Nebraska well. I hope to do some more running with Scott in the future.

The wild life in South Dakota was incredible. I know most of my friends would look at hind-end as an invitation. Kind of looks like a target. And look.........handle bars......who could say "No" I had to pass on this one.

Big Buck.......What a monster.

After the race gets underway you are really able to relax and just enjoy the run. The Lean Horse is considered one of the easiest 100 mile ultra. Non technical trails, with all smooth surfaces, but I argue that. It's ALL up and down. You are always going through some level of elevation change, and the changes in temperature are challenging too. The start of the race is 40. The mid day is 80 and after the sun goes back down it's back in the lower 40's.

The first 25 miles were smooth. I was running well. I did not have any major problems. I was able to see Aneta a few times at different aid station and was able to cruse into Carrol Creek aid station at mile 30 feeling good. From 30 to 40 miles my body was starting to rebel a little and started getting sick. I was sick of drinking energy drinks, I was sick of gu, my "S" caps were not tasty and that's were I started Blow Chunks. And "No" I don't have a cat named "Chunks" (joke). Now on the up-side of getting sick it was only a minor problem. I just had to slow down. Focus on staying hydrated, and keep moving forward.

Now it started getting late. The sun was down and believe me South Dakota is dark. It's funny but when you are running in the trees. No moon light, and all you have is your head lamp, you tend to see things. Everything moves. Trees take on different shapes. I kept seeing chairs lines up on the side of the trail. I go take a closer look and guess what ......no chairs...just more and more trees.

I ended my run about 1:30am at night. I really had trouble from mile 60 to 70. The last section of my run was a 6 mile stretch from Crazy Horse Monument to Harbach park all up hill. It trashed the quads and with no water in my system.......I just shut down. On the upside.......I did 70miles.......I did about 12 thousand food of ascent/descent, and I ran from 6am and stopped at 1:30am.........On the down side.......I showed up to run a 100 mile race. I only covered 70 miles.

I am disappointed in the end result but overall I'm happy for the opportunity, and to say I ran in tough conditions, and I've gained a ton of experience for the next race.

In short.....The Lean Horse is a great event. Jerry Dunn does a great job putting on a event that is challenging, but do-a-ble for the first time ultra runner.