La Petite Trotte à Léon report
In the wake of my trip to Europe, I’ve fallen far behind on a number of article ideas I had planned for Half Past Done and haven’t posted in a couple of weeks. It’s been…
Category Archives: Ultrarunning
What is PTL?
On Monday, Aug. 26, at the ridiculous starting time of 10 p.m., I’m going to line up with eighty other teams on the dark streets of downtown Chamonix, France, to start this monster of a…
Overcrowding in trail races
The Leadville 100, an iconic trail ultramarathon that has been held each year since 1983, took place this past weekend in Leadville, Colorado. Along with speedy sponsored runners such as Ian Sharman, Nick Clark, and…
A run across the Gobi Desert
On the list of “compelling adventures to follow” is Canadian adventurer Ray Zahab’s current attempt to run 2,300 kilometers across the Gobi Desert in approximately 35 days. Via live-tracking, photos, and video, Zahab is broadcasting…
3,100 miles around the block
It’s a footrace designed by a guru and touted as the longest in the world — but for the thousands of miles runners will travel in the Self-Transcendence race, the only ground they’ll cover encompasses a…
The philosophies of Ras
Earlier this week, while Googling the phrase “addicted to endorphins,” I came across the blog of a lanky trail runner with knee-length dreadlocks who adopted the moniker “Ultrapedestrian.” Without yet knowing anything else about him,…
Beat reviews his favorite shirt
By Beat Jegerlehner A large percentage of my running and adventuring gear is made by Skinfit — a small Austrian manufacturer — ever since my brother introduced me to the brand about 10 years ago.…
Barkley Marathons: Cruel joke, serious passion
From the outside, the Barkley Marathons seem like joke — an over-the-top parody of all the ultrarunning events that take themselves much too seriously. One imagines a bearded race director puffing a cigarette on his back…
Iditarod racers press on toward Nome
I apologize for the sparse updates on this blog during the past week. Life often gets in the way of even the best intentions, but the Iditarod Trail Invitational continues its long grind along the…
David Johnston wins ITI foot race
Dave Johnston doesn’t quite have the appearance of a long-distance runner. A three-foot blond ponytail wrapped in rubber bands hangs down to his legs. He’d just as soon wear fifteen-year-old race T-shirts and board shorts…