March 17, 2025 • 58 mins
What does it take to conquer 220 miles of beach, trail, and road when your body is actively fighting against you? David Solomon knows the answer all too well. Living with fascioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD) hasn't stopped him from pursuing ultra endurance challenges that would break many other runners.
David's journey through the recent Swammie Shuffle 200 takes us from the beaches of North Carolina's Outer Banks through moments of profound crisis and unexpected beauty. Having been a natural distance runner since childhood, he found his spiritual home in ultrarunning after completing the JFK 50 in 2001. Years later, when FSHD began affecting his muscle groups, David refused to surrender his passion—instead adapting and persevering.
The raw emotional honesty David shares about his darkest moment during the race—sobbing in bed on day three, unsure how he could possibly continue—resonates deeply. Yet somehow, he found the strength to take that next step, then another, ultimately logging 25 miles on his worst day. His description of the mental games played by that endless Virginia Beach horizon will feel painfully familiar to anyone who's tackled long distances.
What makes David's story uniquely compelling is how he marries suffering with beauty. As a talented photographer (Beloved Peace Photography), he pauses even in the depths of exhaustion to capture breathtaking landscapes. These creative moments serve as both documentation and spiritual sustenance, grounding him in peace while his body screams for relief.
The power of friendship shines throughout, particularly when his race crew and good friend Steven Dence, along with volunteer extraordinaire Mike Horner, ran out from the finish line to join him for the final brutal miles along the beach. The unexpected jubilation of finishing in daylight to cheers from fellow runners creates a perfect culmination to days of solitary struggle.
Perhaps most astounding? Just two weeks after completing this epic journey, David is heading back to attempt the Blackbeard's Revenge 100-miler on the same course. His philosophy that the clock is ticking with his progressive condition drives him to seize every opportunity while he still can.
Want to witness how determination and spirit can transcend physical limitations? David's story will move you to reconsider what's possible in your own life, whether you're a runner or not. Check out his stunning photography on Instagram at Beloved Peace Photography and let his journey inspire your own pursuit of seemingly impossible dreams.
Beloved Peace Photography (Instagram):
https://www.instagram.com/beloved_peace_photography?igsh=bGUwdW03ZmdudWto
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello and welcome If this is your first time with us.
Thank you so much for stoppingby.
You are listening to Choose toEndure, the show dedicated to
the non-elite runners, where weshare stories, interviews, gear
and training tips specific tothe tail-end heroes of the Ultra
(00:22):
universe.
My name is Richard Gleave.
I have been running Ultras nowsince 2017.
I have taken on and finishednumerous Ultra distances, all
the way up through 220 miles,and I am unashamedly a member of
the back of the pack, just likemany of you out there.
(00:43):
Member of the back of the pack,just like many of you out there
.
Now, today, I am thrilled tointroduce you to a really quite
extraordinary guest, mr DavidSolomon.
David's story is one ofresilience, creativity and
passion.
Not only is he an accomplishedultra runner, but he is also a
really talented photographer,capturing stunning landscapes
(01:07):
under his name and moniker,beloved Peace Photography.
What makes David's journey evenmore remarkable is that he's
done all this while living withfascio scapulohumeral muscular
dystrophy FSHD moving forwards,which is a progressive muscle
disorder that presents someunique physical challenges.
(01:29):
Despite this, david has refusedto let those challenges define
his limits, and in this episode,we're going to hear about his
very recent experience finishingthe Swami Shuffle 200.
We'll explore his creativejourney behind the camera lens
and learn how he continues topush himself physically and
mentally while living with FSHD.
(01:52):
So whether you're here for theinspiration, the ultra running
insights, or just to hear areally compelling story, I think
you're in for a treat.
Let's dive in.
Discover raw, inspiring storiesfrom runners who've been right
where you are.
This is the Choose to EndureUltra Running Podcast With your
(02:15):
host he's English, notAustralian Richard Gleave.
David, welcome to the show.
Really excited to have theopportunity to chat with you
today.
I think you've had such anincredible journey.
I really think listeners aregoing to find your story
inspiring and relatable.
(02:37):
To get things kicked off, canyou share a bit about your
background and really what firstdrew you to ultra running and
also photography?
Where does that come into play?
Speaker 2 (02:49):
Well, my earliest recollection of running was when
I was a child, maybe eight ornine years old.
There was this guy that livedacross the street that was older
than me and he would do the onemile loop around the
neighborhood that we lived inand I expressed interest to go
with him, but I guess he didn'tthink I would be able to do the
(03:13):
distance.
But I did do the distance, Iseem to recall more than once,
and he was surprised that I wasable to stick with him and do
the distance, and so distancerunning has just sort of always
been just a part of who I am.
I ran track in the ninth grade.
(03:33):
I competed in the two-mileevent and I placed first once
and had three second-placefinishes.
Then I did a bit of running inthe Navy, but it wasn't until
1997.
Oh nice when I did a 5K and thatsort of kicked off consistency
(03:56):
and running.
But it actually wasn't untillater that same year that I ran
the Duke Children's 15K andplaced third in my age group and
that really permanently sealedthe deal on my passion for
endurance running.
Speaker 1 (04:15):
Nice.
And so where did the ultrarunning come in?
Speaker 2 (04:18):
So after the 15K I ran a few races and then I did
my first marathon in 1999, theMyrtle Beach Marathon, which was
a lot of fun.
And then I did a couple moremarathons and decided I wanted
to do more, but I wasn't surewhat.
And then I found out aboutultra marathons, a whole
(04:43):
different sort of subculture ofrunning that I didn't even know
existed.
And I chose for my first ultrathe JFK 50 mile in 2001.
And it was such an incredibleexperience, running over that
type of terrain and being inthat type of environment,
(05:05):
running over that type ofterrain and being in that type
of environment, that I knew Iwas home.
Like marathons are fun, otherdistances are fun, but nothing
just you know, spoke to my soulthe same way the ultra marathons
have?
Speaker 1 (05:19):
Had you always been into the photography side of
things, or did that come aboutas a result of the ultra running
as you were out in theseawesome places like how and
where does the photography piecefit in?
So, ever since I?
Speaker 2 (05:30):
was a child, I've had an interest in photography, but
of course, I grew up during thefilm age and coming up at it.
Uh, you know, we didn't have alot of money when I was coming
up and so you just couldn't takea lot of shots on mom's camera
when I was a kid.
So the interest was alwaysthere, but the resources were
not.
But then, as cell phones camealong and cameras came on cell
(05:52):
phones and the cameras on thecell phones became better, I
started snapping images with mycell phone pretty consistently,
I guess in 2017.
And, to my surprise, peoplewere requesting to purchase
prints that I would post, andI'm like you know, I just
snapped this.
To my surprise, people wererequesting to purchase prints
that I would post, and I'm likeyou know, I just snapped this
with my phone, right and theywere like well, we don't care,
(06:13):
it's a great image, and sothat's what started it.
I did get my first real camerain 2018 and have accumulated
additional gear since then.
So I do have a couple ofsmaller cameras that I normally
take with me on runs and hikesso that the weight isn't as much
of a factor.
I did carry some during Swami,but I eventually ditched the
(06:37):
camera because I found that Ireally didn't have a lot of
interest in fooling with thecamera while I was running, but
I did so all of those shotsfooling with the camera while I
was running, but I did so all ofthose shots were taken with my
phone.
Speaker 1 (06:47):
I mean truly.
You probably wouldn't knowunless you had asked.
There's some really good shotsout there.
Do you go looking for shotsspecifically or do you just find
and see them and go oh, that'ssomething I've got to take a
shot of.
Speaker 2 (06:58):
You know I'm not trying to toot my own horn, but
there's this thing when peoplesay you've got the eye, and I
realized I've got the eye.
So it's like, you know, I'llcome along a scene and it's like
boom, all of a suddeneverything in the scene aligns
and I'm like, okay, I need tosnap this sort of a thing.
And so that's where a lot of myimages came in, Swami.
(07:21):
So yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1 (07:22):
There's some really good ones out there.
Definitely encourage folks togo have a look.
I think you're on mainlyInstagram, is that right?
Yes, sir, that's correct.
Speaker 2 (07:29):
Yeah, thank you.
Speaker 1 (07:30):
So we'll link that in the show notes here and
definitely folks go out thereand have a look at that.
Now, as far as the FSHD, haveyou always had that, or where in
your running journey did thatkick in?
If you haven't always had that?
Speaker 2 (07:46):
Yeah, sure, so it's genetic.
So technically I've always hadit, but it didn't manifest
itself until later in my life.
It is sometimes hereditary, butin my case it was not, so my
genes mutated, so no one passedit down to me, but I can pass it
down to my kids.
I'm not sure if they have it ornot, but it can be passed down.
(08:09):
Mine was adult onset, so, exceptfor some subtle signs I may
have realized going back someyears, it really didn't show up
until I was 37, 38 years old in2011, I think it was and I
remember we were moving oneweekend and I was trying to
(08:32):
reach some shelves in the closetand all of a sudden my right
arm wouldn't go above myshoulder anymore.
It didn't hurt, there was nopain associated with it, but I
just noticed that I, you know, Icouldn't do what I used to be
able to do with that arm, and soeventually I went to the doctor
(08:53):
.
They referred me to a bunch ofpeople who didn't know what was
going on, and finally I gotreferred to duke, and they did
some tests and discovered that Idid have the gene defect that
causes the FSHD.
Speaker 1 (09:10):
So yeah, for those out there that may be wondering
I think you alluded to it rightthere but how does it impact
your day-to-day life?
And then, secondly, how didthat then impact your approach
to the running and any otherendurance sports that you might
have participated in afteryou've had this onset?
Speaker 2 (09:27):
Yeah.
So the good news is I don'tlike to make the situation sound
worse than it is, because thereare a lot of people that I've
seen with FSHD that arewheelchair bound.
It's progressed much fartherwith them.
There's just huge variationsbetween symptoms and effects
that people have, so adult onsetis normally less severe, so
(09:51):
thankfully mine is less severe.
So far it has not really been adebilitating disease for me.
I can still do 85% of thethings I've always done, but the
disease does progress veryslowly but it does progress, and
so things that I've always doneare just more difficult for me
(10:14):
to do and take more recoverytime sometimes.
Also, the FSHD doesn't affectevery muscle everywhere.
It only affects certain musclegroups.
So different types of musculardystrophy affects different
muscle groups.
So for me mine is primarily inmy upper back, my triceps, my
(10:36):
quadriceps and my hips.
Those areas Also it's normallyasymmetric.
Those areas also it's normallyasymmetric, so it will usually
affect only one side and not theother.
Speaker 1 (10:51):
Or if it affects both sides, usually one side is
affected worse than the otherside so, so clearly, your fshd
hasn't affected you to the pointyet where you can't finish
something like the swami shuffle.
So let's get into your raceexperience.
What a week ago, two weeks ago,whenever it was now I don't
know, the days seem to gotogether.
(11:12):
We finished two weeks ago.
Yeah, I guess it is.
Yeah, it's almost exactly twoweeks ago at this point, yeah,
yeah.
So, first of all, I had a quicklook on your ultra signup bio
and you have a ton of ultraraces out there, but I didn't
see any other races kind of upand around the 200 mile mark.
What made you?
Speaker 2 (11:37):
decide to tackle the Swami Shuffle and a 200 miler.
So I have paced my buddy Dents,Stephen Dents, at the Swami
twice now, in 2022 and 2024.
And during those years he wasalways pushing and prodding me
to do the Swami also.
And I told him that, other thanshort distances, I really love
(11:58):
out and backs.
And I told him I just couldn'tfathom doing an out and back
that totaled 216 miles.
That's just out of the question.
Yeah, but through pacing himand crewing him and also I've
done a number of other soloadventures and races on the
Outer Banks I've kind of justbecome an expert on the course,
(12:18):
I guess.
And so it started to feel lesslike something I wouldn't want
to do and more like somethingI'm kind of already doing anyway
.
So like, why not just sign upand see what happens?
And so Vince and I switchedroles and he crewed me and the
rest is history.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
Yeah, walk us through your experience.
First of all, I think you and Imet in the runner house
pre-race.
We were doing pre-game in thehouse there.
So had you ever done 200 milesin any way, shape or form at
that point, or no?
Speaker 2 (12:51):
no, I I have done a couple of hundred milers, but I
have not finished a hundredmiler officially since 2014.
Speaker 1 (13:02):
Okay, so so to more than double that distance you
know, 11 years later wasdefinitely a significant
undertaking for me how were youfeeling that that day before,
the night before a 200 mile race, having not finished 100 since
goodness knows when?
I imagine that's got to bepretty daunting.
Speaker 2 (13:28):
Yeah, I mean, you know how the runner's mind works
because you're one yourself.
We go through periods ofexcitement and dreaming to
periods of what the heck have Igotten myself into?
And so sometimes it seemed likea really great idea, and
sometimes it seemed like areally terrible idea.
And this is all before the raceeven started.
Speaker 1 (13:51):
And then we had snow this year as well snow on the
beach and ice on the on thetrails, which is unusual for the
area and so added interest tothe 200 mile event, although
thankfully it went away, I think, as we got further south.
But yeah, it was pretty cool tostart with.
Yeah, it was all right.
So tell me how your, how yourrace went.
How did it start off?
Day one, day two you've got thebeach sections to get kicked
(14:13):
off.
How did your race go at thestart?
Speaker 2 (14:16):
so the good news is I knew all about the beach
section because I've done ittwice already but finishing,
finishing with dense.
So you know I knew what toexpect.
The beach section seemed reallyeasy to me only because the
first two times I did it was atdensest finish and by the way, I
had paced I think the secondtime I crewed and paced for him
(14:37):
I covered like 80 some milesmyself that week.
So you know, I think I was ashappy to finish that as he was,
even though he had done far moredistance than me.
So I was kind of thinking aboutall of that when I was hitting
the beach in my own race.
But now heading out, andobviously you know, the first
day for most everybody isprobably the best day, at least
(14:59):
for a while.
And so I was feeling reallygood.
I thought I would.
I thought it would take meeight hours to get off the beach
, cause when I did it a year agowith dance it took me eight
hours to get off the beach, butI actually came off the beach in
six, 48, which was a lot betterthan I thought I would be.
And uh, yeah, oh and I shouldinterject this too is I actually
(15:21):
had a really nasty fall onFebruary the 3rd, and for a
couple of weeks I wasn't evensure I would be able to run the
race at all, because I was insignificant pain in my back.
X-rays were negative, which isgreat, but I still had some pain
in my back all the way up tillthe Friday before the race.
(15:46):
But then on Saturday, when wewere traveling in, what was
lingering had disappeared, andso I was very thankful for that,
because I wasn't even I wasn'tsure if I'd be able to race at
all, and once I got started Ithought the injury might
resurface and wreak havoc on myefforts, but it actually didn't.
Speaker 1 (16:08):
Excellent, yeah, yeah .
So you got off the beach in 648, which I think is a pretty
decent effort, to be fair andthen you start your way down
from Corolla down to Nags Headand then over to over Pea Island
.
How was that for you?
Did you make good time on thosefirst few days with Mr Dents?
How did you guys work together?
How was he setting up from acrew perspective?
Speaker 2 (16:31):
Yeah, so Dents is so awesome.
I feel like I did a really goodjob crewing and pacing him, but
I also feel like he was evenbetter than I was.
I kept telling him I'm like man.
I said I feel really needy.
I said I don't know, I feellike I'm tougher for you than
(16:55):
you were for me, and maybe thatwas just me being in my head, I
don't know.
But he and I strategizedconstantly.
I mean, from the outset, wewere constantly strategizing,
shifting the game plan.
I mean you know how it is.
You were out there.
I'm sure you guys were doingthe same thing.
And so the challenge is notjust maintaining a certain
(17:17):
mileage per day, but also howdoes that coincide with places
you would like to stop and stayfor the night?
But also how does that coincidewith places you would like to
stop and stay for the night?
And so you know, those twothings together presented a lot
of challenges in the planning,for sure.
Speaker 1 (17:32):
Did you guys have a plan to stay somewhere every
night, or was there ever a planto kind of go through as far as
you can, and did it play outlike that?
Speaker 2 (17:42):
Here's the funny thing.
Ok, so dense is a.
Dense is a more gifted runnerthan I am, so he can.
He can control his plan betterby speeding up or slowing down
than I can.
For me, I'm just going to beslower, slower, okay.
So me improving my situation byspeeding up is never going to
(18:03):
happen.
I just do what I do and otherthings have to fall in place in
order to make that happen.
So when Dents did it, he coinedhis experience with Swami as
Bhuji, the Bhuji Swami.
In other words, he knew wherehe was going to stay.
Every night For the most parthe got to all of those places we
stayed, got up the next morningand continued on.
(18:25):
We both knew that my situationwas going to be different
because in order for me to logthe same amount of miles per day
, I was going to need more hourseach day to be able to
accomplish that same amount ofmileage.
So we knew that we wouldprobably stay some places along
the way, but we didn't have apreset schedule.
(18:46):
So we were just kind of seeinghow the days went and then maybe
, once we got over the halfwaypoint, sort of the finishing
plan started to come into morefocus and we kind of knew how
much we needed to do and thedestinations that we needed to
shoot for each day needed to doand the destinations that we
(19:07):
needed to shoot for each day.
Speaker 1 (19:07):
Now you I think you said you've done at least some
of this course with, with stevein particular, but other parts
of it maybe by you know, byyourself.
Are there any favorite parts ofthis course that you have or
parts that you like the least so?
Speaker 2 (19:18):
I really love running through the town of duck.
It's just such a charming,charming little beach town so I
really enjoy Duck.
Personally, I prefer runningthrough all of the little towns
more than I do the section.
I call the sections desolation.
The desolation stretches, andit isn't because they aren't
(19:38):
beautiful.
They are extremely beautifuland if I were out on a short
casual run I would probablyenjoy those sections more.
But because I'm already somentally fatigued it just seems
like some of those sectionscarry on forever and ever and so
(20:00):
I don't enjoy running ultras inthose long, desolate sections
as much as I do running throughthe little towns.
Speaker 1 (20:09):
Yeah, so down over Pea Island and then down past
well out to Avon.
That's another one that reallymesses with people's head when
you come out of Salvo and you'vegot like 15 miles of straight
road until you get to Avon downthere.
That's a tough stretch.
Speaker 2 (20:26):
Yeah, and at one point you can see it in some of
the photos I posted maybe one ortwo but I had a bucket hat on,
tried to keep some of the sunoff my face.
Man, those vehicles were flyingso fast it kept blowing my hat
off.
So then I flipped it up andmade it kind of look like a
Gilligan's hat, and it was aweird way to wear it, but that
(20:46):
was the only way I could keep iton my head.
Speaker 1 (20:50):
Yeah, we're talking about photos.
I think you have a great photoout there of you sitting there.
It's the pizza and lube photo.
I think that I like a lot.
What was going on with thepizza and lube photo.
Speaker 2 (21:03):
Man, I don't know, I, um, I.
I like to think that I'mself-sufficient and I've proven
that I can be on my solaradventures.
In fact, this is the first raceI've ever been crewed in at all
, to the best of my knowledge,and so in a sense it sort of
made me uncomfortable, justbecause I don't know that I'm
(21:24):
really like to be weighted onhand and foot, but it was.
It was clear to me that this isgoing to be my best chance of
finishing.
I did it for dance, he wasdoing it for me.
We have such a good chemistrytogether so it was just a really
fun time.
And so by the time that photowas taken, like, like we knew
what our routine was.
In fact, I would start textinghim in advance of me getting to
(21:52):
the next stop, saying I needthis, this and this, and he said
that really helped him out awhole lot, and so then when I
showed up he'd have my chair out, all of the things next to it
that I would need.
So you know we were kind of awell-oiled machine by that point
.
So it was funny to get a photoimage of what had become our
racer-crewer reality up to thatpoint.
Speaker 1 (22:12):
Yeah, well-oiled or well-lubed, I don't know.
It was definitely good.
Now, did you have a standardwhere Steve would go every two
miles and stop, or every fivemiles and stop?
Speaker 2 (22:27):
Yeah, it was kind of it just sort of depended on
where I was mentally andphysically and then so, you know
, we would tweak that.
So the more the overnights orthe or the early mornings, I
should say those are my besttimes of day, and so I feel like
I didn't need as much attentionduring those times of day, but
(22:48):
then the later we got in the day.
You know, the late afternooninto early evening is just
always really tough for me, andso at times I would say, you
know, let's do every two miles,and then a time or two I even
called him and had him come meetme even sooner than we had
planned, just because times Ijust felt unwell and things like
(23:12):
that.
And so yeah, we just kind oftweaked it as we went.
Speaker 1 (23:17):
Excellent.
Aside from the pizza and lube,were there any other specific
moments you can recall?
Speaker 2 (23:31):
either on the way out or the way back.
That really stood out to you.
Was there any point in the racewhere you thought I may not
actually finish this?
Yes, definitely.
So I have learned during mymulti-day hikes that day three
I'm sorry, day two is usuallythe worst for me.
So I anticipated day two beingthe worst for me during Swami.
But day two was worse than dayone for sure.
But it was actually day threewhen I bottomed out, and so what
(23:54):
I was really struggling with islike the first two nights.
I think the first day I logged44 miles.
Next day I logged 40 miles.
I logged 44 miles.
Next day I logged 40 miles.
But each time I wasn't gettingto the hotel or wherever we were
staying until like 1 or 2 inthe morning.
And I told him, as I said, I'mlike man, I can't keep doing
this.
Because here's the thing youknow, I've run 117 ultras up to
(24:23):
this point over a number ofyears, and where this differs
from other ultras is when yourun an ultra, you know you run
for a few hours or a day andthen you get to go home and
soothe the well, okay, but inthis you don't get to soothe
anything.
You got to get up the next dayand do it again, and then the
next day and do it again, andthen the next day and do it
again, and then the next day anddo it again.
(24:44):
So, even though in my head Iknew that that was what was
going to occur, nothing couldhave prepared me for that
experience except actuallybecome involved in the event.
And so when I got up on daythree, I mean I laid in bed
sobbing because I didn't knowhow I would go on.
(25:06):
I was chafing in really badplaces, you know.
My feet were really swollen, mylegs just hurt and ached.
I mean I looked like a cripplejust getting out of bed and
walking around the place and Ithought, I mean I really thought
I just might not be able to dothis anymore.
(25:28):
And that's so unlike me,because usually I can find some
place of motivation to get outthe door.
But I didn't have any on thisday.
And so, when I tell you, when Ifinally stepped out the door, I
don't even know what made thatpossible I just and I told Vince
(25:48):
I said I have no goals today.
Like my only goal is to takethe next step and then the next
step, and we'll just see wherethat gets me.
I ended up logging 25 milesthat day, which I felt was
pretty good, considering Ididn't want to do 25 feet.
But I realized then why thesejourney races are so incredibly
(26:11):
difficult and it really broke medown, man.
It really moved me to the core,you know, experiencing that
level of endurance to the pointwhere I just didn't want to go
anymore.
I mean really truly didn't wantto go anymore.
Speaker 1 (26:28):
But did anyway.
Yeah, and yet you did anyway,and that I think is key and
point of a lot of these races isthat you and others are somehow
finding the will to moveforwards, which I think is
absolutely incredible.
Where were you at on day three?
Were you down at the KOA?
Were you somewhere in that area, down in Salvo or Rodanthe?
(26:49):
Wherever, that is yes.
Speaker 2 (26:52):
So when I got to, I got to the halfway point, which
was Hatteras Light, and then westayed in Buxton that night,
which is about another mile anda half up.
I can't even remember the nameof the hotel and actually that
night I got the best sleep ofthe entire event.
(27:12):
I got seven hours of sleep andactually Dave Moore was very
kind and he gifted us the roombecause he had been in there for
several hours that afternooninto the evening and he
contacted Denson and said hey,I'm here for a few hours.
You know, you guys helped mewith a place last night, so I'm
going to help you with thisplace tonight if you want to
(27:33):
come stay.
And I really feel like that wasGod setting the whole thing up,
because you know we didn't havea plan of where we were going
to stay that night and so youknow, thanks to Dave, it just
literally fell into our lap andso we showed up around nine
o'clock that night.
He was leaving at aboutmidnight that night, so you know
, we had a quick chat before Iwent to bed and so I slept seven
(27:57):
hours and almost felt like anew man for a little while.
But I felt like a new man for alittle while.
But I felt like a new man thenext morning and you know, my
spirit was really rejuvenatedonce I headed into day four.
Speaker 1 (28:12):
Yeah, I wanted to ask because a lot of times and we
just did an episode on like howa bunch of us kind of grouped
together and that wholeinteraction with other runners
is something that can help youpush forward for sure Did you
have aside from Steve, I guess,who's following you around?
It sounds like you met withDave down in Buxton and that
interaction was a pretty goodone for you.
(28:33):
Did you have interaction withother runners along the way or
did you find yourself kind ofrunning by yourself?
Nick?
Speaker 2 (28:40):
was sort of unofficially with us for a long
time.
So I remember him from thehouse and we ended up first
crossing paths, I guess justbefore we entered Cape Hatteras
National Seashore on day two Ithink.
And so, yeah, dent, sort of youknow, took both of us under his
(29:02):
wings really, and you know hewas primarily crewing me so
obviously I took priority but hewas able to provide uh nick
with a lot of help too off andon.
And so really, from the time wepicked nick up, you know, we
were together off and on formost of the event up until the
night before the finish yeah, soso you, uh, you guys came up to
(29:23):
where were you based the nightbefore.
Speaker 1 (29:25):
Did you stop at the Hampton Inn before you hit the
beach section?
Speaker 2 (29:29):
Yes, that's correct, hampton Inn and Corrala, so we
had about 32 miles to go fromthat point.
Speaker 1 (29:35):
So how had your return journey been from the
lighthouse up to that point?
Speaker 2 (29:39):
Nothing was as bad as day three.
Day three was when I bottomedout out, but there were still
some challenges.
In fact I would say day four.
I think we covered so muchdistance.
I think it was the night of dayfour, or was it day five, I
can't remember now, but anywaywhen I stayed at the hampton.
So we, I started it.
(30:00):
I started in pea island thatmorning at about three in the
morning, made it all the way tothe Hampton Inn in Corrales, so
that was a 43 mile day.
It was my second longest day,yeah, and my spirits were so
good for 90 percent of that day,in fact, mentally and
emotionally, I felt like I wasreveling in the potential
(30:23):
success of the event in a waythat I thought I would do on the
last day, but I didn't on thelast day.
I really had my best mental andemotional moments on the day
before, except for the last fewmiles, because by that point you
know I'm tired again, I'mgetting ill again, and then it
(30:44):
rained.
I was hoping to be in the hotelbefore it rained and I didn't
make it, and so I was rained onfor about three miles.
It doesn't sound terrible, werun in the rain all the time
right.
But for some reason, whenyou're 100 and some miles into a
journey run, it just feels likeso much more and you know you
can't see anything.
(31:05):
The cars are coming around andwhen I came to the hotel room I
said dance.
I said man, I apologize if I'm.
I said I'm just not in a good,not in a good head space.
I said, but he said you know, Iwas totally fine.
Like he understands, you knowI'm not going to be, you know,
chipper all the time.
But he said I was fine, I wasOK.
But clearly, clearly I wasn'tin the best of the best of moods
(31:31):
when I came in that night.
I'm like, oh my goodness, canthis thing be over with already?
Speaker 1 (31:39):
Absolutely yeah, and I know from last year, getting
rained on during this event isthe worst thing, but hopefully
you got a chance to at least dryyour stuff out or change gear
at the hotel.
I did.
Speaker 2 (31:51):
So you know I'm whining a lot, I'm making it
sound a lot worse than itprobably was, but you know, in
that moment it felt likeeverything, like it felt like I
was never, ever, ever, ever,ever going to get to that hotel.
You know how it is.
Speaker 1 (32:05):
It does seem like a long way away.
Yes, it isn't, but it seemsthat way.
Speaker 2 (32:09):
It does.
It did seem that way, but yes.
So I did make it to the hotel,got there by about 10 o'clock I
think, maybe nine, nine, thirty,something like that, and then
Denson and I strategized againand set up a plan for me to be
able to finish by the next night.
Speaker 1 (32:28):
So yeah, so you must have been at the hotel the same
time that we were all at thehotel, I guess.
Speaker 2 (32:34):
I think you guys were there.
You guys got there a few hoursbefore we did.
I don't know when you left, butmaybe there was some overlap.
I'm not sure.
Speaker 1 (32:43):
Yeah, we left about 1230, not to gloat or anything,
but we were waiting for the rainto finish before we left rather
than have to run through it.
I don't think anybody in thegroup I was with really wanted
to run through the rain, so wemade a decision to just haul out
in the Hampton Inn and hit thejacuzzi while the rain came
through, and then we would goafter that while the rain came
(33:03):
through, and then we would goafter that.
Speaker 2 (33:04):
But didn't Dave Moore and the I can't think of the
other lady's name didn't they goin the rain?
Speaker 1 (33:08):
Yeah, dave and Kim Drake.
Yeah, they went through therain and we saw them on the
beach later on.
Well, that's not true.
We saw Kim on the beach lateron.
We caught up to her closer tothe finish line, but Dave was
already done.
But yeah, kudos to Dave.
Well line.
But Dave, dave was already done.
But yeah, kudos to Dave.
Well, hey, shout out to Davefor sharing his hotel room.
I think that's a.
That's a classic journey runtactic that definitely shows his
(33:32):
experience in journey runs.
That is something that happensquite a bit, I understand, in
other journey runs a lot alongthe way.
Sharing of hotel rooms, so goodon you, dave.
Speaker 2 (33:42):
Oh, and a little, a little backstory to Dave Moore,
is it?
It's funny, man, because whenhe came to the house the night
before the race, we wereintroduced to each other, but we
didn't recognize each other.
And then the next morning Ithink it was before the race, or
maybe that same night, I can'tremember, but he starts telling
this story to the whole group ofus about how the year before
(34:04):
before, some guy who he didn'tknow came up to him and gave him
a bacon sandwich and it justlifted his spirits and changed
his day.
And I'm like wait a minute, I'mthe guy, I'm the one who gave
you the bacon sandwich.
He's like.
He's like, yes, it is you.
And so we had actually formed abond the year before, but then
we didn't recognize each otherthis year until he shared the
story, and so we kind of alreadyknew each other.
(34:26):
So it was really cool for us tosort of, you know, continue
that friendship into this yearfantastic.
Speaker 1 (34:32):
I love that, and I love that about the race as well
.
It's a very social race lots ofpeople interacting and coming
back for for second years,whether that's as a runner or
whether that's as a crew Right,in your case, both.
Speaker 2 (34:47):
And in.
Speaker 1 (34:48):
Steve Dent's case both.
Steve Dent's is, if I can evensay that appropriately, case
both.
So yeah, I think that's justterrific.
So when did you set out fromthe Hampton Inn and how was your
beach run on the way back?
How long did that take you?
Speaker 2 (35:01):
We calculated everything out and I wanted to
hit the beach by nine o'clockbecause I felt like that would
give me enough time to get tothe refuge before sunset.
So we decided to get up at 4 am, roll out by 5 am, and so
everything went according toplan.
I did those 10 miles to thebeach in about four hours.
(35:22):
My last uh crew stop with denseand then I hit the beach.
The thing is is, as I alludedto before, I thought the final
day would be like sort of avictory lap mentality, like I
would just be relishing in theupcoming victory and everything
would feel great.
And actually I was.
(35:43):
I was just not, not really.
I mean, it wasn't my lowestpoint during the race,
definitely wasn't my greatestpoint.
I just I wish I had enjoyed thelast 32 miles more than more
than I did, and so it just feltlike like here we go again.
(36:08):
But Dent's a something else.
At first Dent's was going tomeet me at the finish, but my
corner had said through Dent's.
He said tell David, I'm goingto come to the state line gate
and meet him and I'm going torun in with him.
So that was the plan.
Well, when Dan and I had ourlast cruise stop before I went
onto the beach.
(36:28):
Sorry, dan, I got to do this toyou, but he got really
emotional talking with me andhe's like man, there's no way
I'm going to let you run thatbeach section alone, dude.
He's like we've been in thistogether.
He said I'm coming onto thebeach with my corner and we're
going to run it in with youtogether Awesome.
(36:50):
I don't know who else has beenable to experience that in the
history of the event, and theydidn't quite make it to the gate
by the time I got there, but Iknew they were on their way.
So after I came through thegate, I'm in Virginia.
You don't trust most of whatyou think you see when you're on
that long desolate stretch ofsand.
And so I literally had to stareat these silhouettes for a good
(37:12):
20 minutes before I trusted whatI was seeing.
But eventually the silhouettesgot bigger, eventually they
gained color, eventually theygained voices and I'm like, oh
my God, they're really here.
And so they danced swiftly,took the pack from my back, took
my trekking poles.
(37:33):
Man, I don't know where I wouldhave been in my head without
those two, the last you know, 10, 11 miles, because I mean I
didn't have a choice but tofinish by the time you're there.
You know how it is, you'reinvested at that point.
Speaker 1 (37:48):
But there's no way back.
Speaker 2 (37:49):
Yeah, there's no way back.
But mentally, emotionally, Ijust think it would have been
way worse for me to to have nothad them there.
So I just can't even express tothem my gratitude enough for
for doing that for me.
Speaker 1 (38:03):
Well, huge shout out to steve dense and mike horner
for going out.
There was a group of us at thefinish line at the time and we
actually watched them get readyand leave to go meet you at the
state line.
And I know from experience justhow desolate and lonely that
beach section can be, especiallywhen you've been on it for
hours and hours and you pass thestate line and you think, well,
(38:25):
I've still got, I've still gotmore to go here.
Speaker 2 (38:28):
It's terrible because you, you, you're chasing a
horizon that you can neverachieve it just never stops.
Speaker 1 (38:34):
It just goes on forever and ever.
And you're like this cannot.
This has got to end at somepoint, surely?
Speaker 2 (38:40):
right.
And then virginia beach showsup on the horizon and you think
for a second OK, this isevidence I'm making progress.
But then Virginia Beach tauntsyou and it's like shouldn't I be
there already?
I can see Virginia Beach andyou just still can't seem to get
there.
Speaker 1 (38:55):
You can just make out the outline, the silhouette
outline of some buildings andyou think, oh, I'm nearly there,
I must be close.
And then it takes forever toget to those.
I just it, just, you're right,it taunts you the whole way.
Oh, yeah, yeah.
And then you're looking forthat back bay brown sign because
then you know you're in, you'rein and you're like where is
this sign?
It must be here somewhere.
(39:16):
It never seems to never seemsto arrive until it does.
But yeah, it's a long that thatlast section there is really
long it is, it's brutal yeah,just mentally of challenge.
So brilliant to have those twoguys come out.
I don't know if anybody elsehas ever done that.
That would be something to ask,james and josh, whether
anyone's had their crew run outto meet someone and run back
(39:38):
with them well, you know, I didrun with dense for the entire
beach section at the end in 22and 24 so so in that sense, yes,
dents did have company the twoyears that he did it, but I
don't know that anybody's run infrom the other side and and
then run back.
That that might be new to theevent, I'm not sure yeah, I
(39:58):
guess people have had pacescoming over the beach section
before, but I wonder if anyone'sactually gone out and come back
.
Well, and you and you finished.
So how was it crossing thefinish line?
Was it everything you hadimagined?
Speaker 2 (40:11):
It was way more than I imagined.
So one of the things I reallywanted to do was finish in the
daylight.
I just felt like it would beeasier mentally and emotionally.
You kind of feel like you'restill with the world if you
don't finish in the middle ofthe night, and so, you know,
that was one thing I was reallyexcited to be able to do is
finish in the daylight.
However, I couldn't haveanticipated the type of
(40:34):
reception that I would get.
I knew I was going to be one ofthe last runners.
I knew a lot of the earlierrunners would already be gone.
So, other than dance and therace staff, you know, I kind of
wasn't expecting anybody else tobe there, but you and the party
pack were still there and justhappened to be having dinner at
(40:54):
the place where the finish linewas, and so the way things just
worked out time-wise was justabsolutely perfect.
Like I couldn't have set it upany better if I had tried to
orchestrate all of that.
So it was just so wonderful to,you know, walk into all of the
cheers and finishers likeyourself and the others in your
(41:16):
group, and then you know therace staff and of course you
know, dance, dance earned thefirst hug when I came in,
because he's the one that got methrough.
It was like golly man.
I just wouldn't even acceptsuccess until I was probably in
that last half mile, and thenI'm like.
I just felt like a huge weightwas being lifted off.
(41:41):
Finally, I can accept that thisis going to become a reality
and I don't have any moredistance left to face, you know
and that was just a huge relieffor me Total jubilation for sure
, absolutely.
Speaker 1 (41:55):
And that last, probably mile or so road section
, that seems pretty long too.
When you turn on the roadyou're like, oh, I'm nearly done
, I'm off the blue track and I'mon a road.
Speaker 2 (42:04):
It does.
And the good news is, like Isaid, I've done it with dense
before.
So I remembered from those twoyears when you get off the beach
you're still not done.
So thankfully I already hadthat mental reference.
And you know they kept sayingoh, you know, remember, we get
off, still got two miles.
Speaker 1 (42:23):
And I'm thinking to myself I know, but it's not the
beach, so this is still great,right, it's not that damn sand,
and so so I love that youfinished and we were all there.
We loved your finish too.
I'm sure there's a video of itsomewhere on the awareness and
action site.
There's usually a video of yourfinish that folks can go check
out.
I'm curious.
Curious, though, along the wayyou took some really cool photos
(42:47):
.
You're looking back now thatyou've kind of had a minute.
Was there any particularsection or parts of the race
where you think, oh, I got somereally, really cool photos?
What was your favorite photothat you took from the race?
Speaker 2 (42:58):
Well, as much as I dislike ultra running through
the sections of desolation,those are some of the most
photogenic sections, so I loveto take snapshots of that big,
open road to nothingness.
I just think it's so poetic.
I would have loved to havegotten some dune shots at Pea
Island, but I didn't travelthrough there during the daytime
(43:22):
in either direction, throughthere during the daytime in
either direction.
However, the stars therethrough that section were
phenomenal.
There was almost no lightpollution, and so it really
allowed the stars to pop out.
However, I think the mostmemorable photogenic section was
(43:42):
the of day four when, uh, I wasleaving buxton and the pamlico
sound is there to to the left.
It was.
I rarely create extra distancevoluntarily, but I decided to
create about 30 or 40 yards ofextra distance to walk down to
the sound side there because thescene was otherworldly, and so
(44:07):
the photographer and me couldn'tpass that up, not even during
an event like this, and so thatwas the only time during the
event.
I wish I'd kept my real cameraon me, because iPhones are great
, but I don't think theytranslate colors the best
sometimes.
Iphones are great, but I don'tthink they translate colors the
best sometimes, and I did thebest I could in editing to try
to duplicate what I felt like Isaw with my eye, but I just feel
(44:31):
like in person it was just waymore beautiful.
The colors were not what youtypically see.
There are purples and pinks andanyway it was just a good time
to sort of stand still for a fewseconds and sort of breathe in
the scenery.
So that was that was a reallybeautiful section to me.
Speaker 1 (44:47):
Yeah, I love that mindset.
The sunrises and sunsets outthere, generally speaking, are
pretty epic and I love the factthat you just take a moment to
sit and watch and I think anumber of us in the group I was
with especially on that last dayon the beach when we saw the
sunrise, since we'd been goingthrough the photography that
(45:12):
sort of calming aspect does thathelp you cope better or manage
with the challenges that FSHDbrings?
Speaker 2 (45:19):
Maybe I kind of joke and say that I'm always at war
with my camera during ultrasbecause it's always calling to
me from wherever I have itstashed.
But I often resist because I'mkind of like in race mode or
ultra mode and I just don't liketo fool with anything that
takes me out of my rhythm, andso sometimes I don't feel like
(45:43):
taking the camera out and Idon't feel like taking the shot.
But I also realize for methat's part of the journey and
that's part of the adventure,and so, if for nothing else,
it's good self-documentation forme to, you know, just pause for
a few seconds to get that shotthat I'll never have a chance to
get again.
Speaker 1 (46:03):
Do you feel like that's a good mental reset for
you, just like following thatcreative outlet in the midst of
something so difficult?
I guess as a 200 mile journeyrun.
Speaker 2 (46:13):
Yeah, I mean, I feel like photography while running,
while adventuring, while hikingI feel like photography is, for
me, is synonymous with thoseevents, and so it's part of what
I like to do when I'm out there, and so, yeah, it comes very
naturally for me to do that sortof a thing.
Speaker 1 (46:35):
Yeah, I'm very much an amateur in that field, but
for most of us anyway, it's agreat pictorial reference and
representation of what we did.
But I mean, you've got somereally cool images out there of
just incredible peaceful scenes.
A lot of your stuff seems verypeaceful.
I don't know if you wouldclassify it as that, but you've
got these beautiful beachpictures and the stars.
(46:58):
It's all very calming.
I wonder if that's by design orby accident, but either way
that's how it comes across, Ithink my attraction to landscape
photography is probably areflection of my introversion.
Speaker 2 (47:12):
I feel at peace when I'm in the bush or I'm in the
wilderness or I'm in, you know,a large open space, and so, you
know, I just get really inspiredto take photographs that don't
involve a lot of activity.
You know places where peoplesee them and think, wow, you
know, I can breathe in thisplace or I can think in this
(47:34):
place, or I can reflect in thisplace, because that's how I feel
when I'm in those places, andso I try to take photographs
that might make other peoplefeel the same way.
Speaker 1 (47:43):
And I think you're succeeding, whereas my pictures
are like selfie of me on a benchduring the same race.
Speaker 2 (47:49):
I got plenty of absurd selfies too, so don't let
me fool you into thinkingeverything I take is a pro shot,
because it's not.
Speaker 1 (47:58):
You're definitely a level up for me, that's for sure
.
But I can appreciate whereyou're coming from and I aspire
to take some photos like thatone of these days, if I can
figure out how to use my phoneproperly.
So when you take your phone inplace of your actual camera, are
you, like, really techie withthe phone?
Do you adjust all the settingsand the aperture and all that
(48:19):
kind of stuff, or do you justtake a picture and move on like
the rest of us?
Speaker 2 (48:23):
So I have an iPhone 15.
So that's what I use 15 Pro.
What I've learned about iPhonesover the years is they have
strengths and weaknesses, and soI've learned the types of
lighting and times of day andscenes that are going to return
decent shots versus one thataren't.
One of the great shortcomingsof iPhones is they are terrible
(48:43):
in sunlight and so they justblow everything out.
You're never going to get astarburst from the sun at least
not a very good one, I don'tthink and so those types of
shots are off the table.
But if you have settings wheremaybe you know obviously what
they call a golden hour early inthe morning or later in the
evening those are always goodtimes to shoot Cloudy days you
(49:06):
can do phenomenal things with aniPhone on cloudy days or
overcast days or sort of milkyskies.
Yeah, you can do really, reallygood things with the iPhone and
yeah, they do have somesettings so you can tweak the
lighting some.
I may not do that as much as Iwould with a regular camera, but
once you learn the strengthsand weaknesses of an iPhone, and
(49:28):
those star shots too you'restill not going to pick up as
many stars as you would with acamera and a lens, but if you
hold it super still for a fewseconds, you can still capture
quite a few stars.
Even with the iPhone too,they're really good at
collecting light.
So, yeah, everybody could do itif they aspire to for sure
(49:52):
aspire to for sure.
Speaker 1 (49:53):
Well, folks, if you want to learn about how to get
better photos with your iphonewhile you're doing your event,
definitely go check out david.
He's got some great shots outthere and there might be some
inspiration for you.
Using your iphone, like I do,I'm definitely going to try to
get better photos when I go dothis stuff.
See where I can get.
So, david, what's next for you?
Where do you go from here?
Having done a 200 journey run,what on earth do you do after
(50:14):
that?
Are you ready?
Speaker 2 (50:16):
for this.
Yes, go.
What do you got?
Eight days from now, I'm goingright back to the Outer Banks
for 100 miles along the samecourse we just did two weeks ago
.
Speaker 1 (50:28):
You're doing Blackbeard.
Speaker 2 (50:30):
Yeah, blackbeard, blackbeard's revenge 100 yeah
and that that's incredible.
Speaker 1 (50:35):
I can't believe you're going back to do more on
the same course which is wildthat one, I think, starts in
corolla, does it not?
Speaker 2 (50:43):
yes, it starts at corolla light and goes all the
way down to the museum.
So it still goes to HatterasLight and then back out that
road, like Swami does, but thenyou take a left instead of a
right and continue down forabout another 13 miles to the
museum, and that's where thefinish is.
It's one way at least.
(51:03):
Yeah, it is, it's one way yeah.
Speaker 1 (51:06):
Wow, well, good luck to you on that.
At least you'll be familiarwith the route.
Speaker 2 (51:10):
I will be familiar with the route.
It's funny because I actuallyGoogled how long does it take to
recover from a 200 mile run?
Seems like AI has an answer foreverything and I was shocked
that they had an answer for that.
And they're like yeah, they'relike could take this long for
this, this long for that, butexpect it to take, you know,
several weeks.
And I'm like great, I'm goingto be running 100 while I'm
(51:33):
recovering from the 200.
This doesn't sound like a goodidea.
Call it a long recovery run.
Yeah, exactly, so we'll seewhat happens.
I've attempted Blackbeard threetimes before.
I DNF'd all three times becauseI was either at cutoff or was
in danger of missing cutoffs tothe point that I didn't see that
(51:56):
it made any sense to continueon.
So I'm going to give it anothergo.
I know that with FSHD, you knowthe clock is kind of ticking,
you know, maybe, and so I get alittle slower every year, and so
I think you know well, I Istill am healthy enough to be
able to attempt it.
So let's give it another go andsee what happens, and I may
(52:17):
finish them, I may not, but I'mgoing to give it a shot anyway.
Speaker 1 (52:21):
Well, best of luck on that.
Where do they have the aidstations, if any, or is it more
journey style again?
Speaker 2 (52:26):
No, it's definitely not journey style.
So they have at least basic aidstations like water and
Gatorade every few miles, andthen they have bigger aid
stations like every 18 or 20miles or so, and also with those
bigger aid stations you canhave drop bags.
So a lot of people have crew.
I've never had crew out there.
I don't think you really needit, because you have the aid
(52:49):
stations and you can do yourdrop bags and if you plan them
out well, you know you shouldhave everything you need during
the course.
So yeah, so it's planned outpretty well.
I'm hoping that for a 100 milerthe clock is generous.
It's 32 hours, so that's abouta 1920 or 1930 mile.
I'm hoping that covering all ofthe same terrain again will
(53:12):
feel mentally so easy, because Ijust did it but it took me five
days to do it instead of 32hours, and so, even though the
physical challenge is morecondensed and maybe in that
sense more challenging duringthose 32 hours, I'm hoping that
mentally it will feel better andmaybe that'll be enough to push
me through.
I don't know.
Speaker 1 (53:31):
Well, best of luck to you out at Blackbeard's.
My good friend, peter Y, isalso running Blackbeard this go
around and he did Swami lastyear, I think.
Okay, look out for Pete.
Okay, you can't miss Pete, he'sa great guy, but good luck to
you running Blackbeard Now.
One of the things we do here,david, with every guest that
comes on the show, is encourageyou to pick or add a song to the
(53:57):
free Choose to Endure Spotifyplaylist.
Usually it's something to liftyou up, motivate or kind of keep
you moving while you're out onthe trail.
Do you want to tell folks whichsong you picked, if you can
remember, and why that song kindof resonates with you?
Speaker 2 (54:18):
Yes, I remember.
So actually, when we were inthe race house, I was wearing a
Striper beanie.
Striper is a band, a Christianheavy metal band, that was
formed in the 80s.
They are still writing andperforming music today, and so
that band has always resonateddeeply with me because during
the turbulent teen years, youknow, the message in music and
the style of music reallyministered to me, and back then
(54:42):
my extreme sport wasskateboarding and so I
associated their music a lotwith skateboarding.
Now I associate their musicwith running.
Actually, I saw them play atsmall venues in recent years
2016 and 2022.
And in 2022, I was givenpermission to actually
photograph the band during thefirst three songs of the set.
(55:02):
How cool.
Yes, I got a lot of reallygreat cannon shots of the band.
So, anyway, the song that Ichose is the first Striper song
that I ever heard, and still ismy favorite striper song, which
is Soldiers Under Command, andso, even if the lyrics and the
message don't necessarilyresonate with people, maybe the
(55:24):
music itself will, and that'skind of what put them on the map
was, you know, their their harded of of metal.
It's very 80s, okay, but uh,it's.
It's hard not to get a littleuh motivated when you hear it,
at least not for me anyway, andso maybe other people will feel
the same way oh yeah, I'm a big80s fan.
Speaker 1 (55:43):
I love some some 80s rock.
I love the rock and the hardrock and all that stuff.
So I I love this tune.
I thought it was terrific andit will make a nice addition to
the playlist.
It's fast, you know it doesn'tstop.
It keeps going at you.
It's definitely got thatuplifting beat.
So, from a running perspective,I imagine it's pretty cool to
listen to while you're runningtoo.
(56:04):
So I'm going to chuck it onthere and, yeah, we'll get that
added so that other people canenjoy it just as much as you do.
David, as we look to wrap up theconversation, I definitely want
to thank you again for joiningthe show and sharing your story.
I think, if anything, it'sdefinitely a really good
reminder that the human spiritis stronger than any obstacle
(56:26):
out there, whether through mileson the trails or moments behind
the camera.
David's journey, I think,reflects the beauty of
perseverance, self-expressionand finding joy along the way.
I hope you enjoyed this episode, listeners, as much as I did,
and if you want to followDavid's photography journey, you
can find his work at BelovedPeace Photography on Instagram,
(56:50):
which is awesome, perfect, andif you're out there browsing the
Internet looking for that and Ihighly suggest you do there are
some tremendous photos outthere.
Also, don't forget to subscribeto this show and that way
you'll get notified each time anew episode drops.
If you like what you hear,please follow, share and leave a
review.
That would mean the world to me.
(57:12):
Your support helps grow.
The podcast connects morerunners to this amazing ultra
community we've got out thereand spreads the word to those
who could benefit from what weshare right here.
You can find this show onInstagram and Facebook at
ChooseToEndure, or visit anytimeat ChooseToEndurecom.
I would love to hear from youguys, whether that's just to say
(57:35):
hello, suggest a topic or shareyour story or recent successes.
That way we can get to it onair.
You can also email me directlyat info at ChooseToEndurecom if
that's your preference.
Interacting with listeners justlike you is one of my favorite
(57:56):
parts of doing the show, sodon't be shy about reaching out.
Until next time, make sure yourun long, run strong, take some
kick-ass photos while you'redoing it and choose to endure.
Hello and welcome If this is your first time with us.
Thank you so much for stoppingby.
You are listening to Choose toEndure, the show dedicated to
the non-elite runners, where weshare stories, interviews, gear
and training tips specific tothe tail-end heroes of the Ultra
(00:22):
universe.
My name is Richard Gleave.
I have been running Ultras nowsince 2017.
I have taken on and finishednumerous Ultra distances, all
the way up through 220 miles,and I am unashamedly a member of
the back of the pack, just likemany of you out there.
(00:43):
Member of the back of the pack,just like many of you out there
.
Now, today, I am thrilled tointroduce you to a really quite
extraordinary guest, mr DavidSolomon.
David's story is one ofresilience, creativity and
passion.
Not only is he an accomplishedultra runner, but he is also a
really talented photographer,capturing stunning landscapes
(01:07):
under his name and moniker,beloved Peace Photography.
What makes David's journey evenmore remarkable is that he's
done all this while living withfascio scapulohumeral muscular
dystrophy FSHD moving forwards,which is a progressive muscle
disorder that presents someunique physical challenges.
(01:29):
Despite this, david has refusedto let those challenges define
his limits, and in this episode,we're going to hear about his
very recent experience finishingthe Swami Shuffle 200.
We'll explore his creativejourney behind the camera lens
and learn how he continues topush himself physically and
mentally while living with FSHD.
(01:52):
So whether you're here for theinspiration, the ultra running
insights, or just to hear areally compelling story, I think
you're in for a treat.
Let's dive in.
Discover raw, inspiring storiesfrom runners who've been right
where you are.
This is the Choose to EndureUltra Running Podcast With your
(02:15):
host he's English, notAustralian Richard Gleave.
David, welcome to the show.
Really excited to have theopportunity to chat with you
today.
I think you've had such anincredible journey.
I really think listeners aregoing to find your story
inspiring and relatable.
(02:37):
To get things kicked off, canyou share a bit about your
background and really what firstdrew you to ultra running and
also photography?
Where does that come into play?
Speaker 2 (02:49):
Well, my earliest recollection of running was when
I was a child, maybe eight ornine years old.
There was this guy that livedacross the street that was older
than me and he would do the onemile loop around the
neighborhood that we lived inand I expressed interest to go
with him, but I guess he didn'tthink I would be able to do the
(03:13):
distance.
But I did do the distance, Iseem to recall more than once,
and he was surprised that I wasable to stick with him and do
the distance, and so distancerunning has just sort of always
been just a part of who I am.
I ran track in the ninth grade.
(03:33):
I competed in the two-mileevent and I placed first once
and had three second-placefinishes.
Then I did a bit of running inthe Navy, but it wasn't until
1997.
Oh nice when I did a 5K and thatsort of kicked off consistency
(03:56):
and running.
But it actually wasn't untillater that same year that I ran
the Duke Children's 15K andplaced third in my age group and
that really permanently sealedthe deal on my passion for
endurance running.
Speaker 1 (04:15):
Nice.
And so where did the ultrarunning come in?
Speaker 2 (04:18):
So after the 15K I ran a few races and then I did
my first marathon in 1999, theMyrtle Beach Marathon, which was
a lot of fun.
And then I did a couple moremarathons and decided I wanted
to do more, but I wasn't surewhat.
And then I found out aboutultra marathons, a whole
(04:43):
different sort of subculture ofrunning that I didn't even know
existed.
And I chose for my first ultrathe JFK 50 mile in 2001.
And it was such an incredibleexperience, running over that
type of terrain and being inthat type of environment,
(05:05):
running over that type ofterrain and being in that type
of environment, that I knew Iwas home.
Like marathons are fun, otherdistances are fun, but nothing
just you know, spoke to my soulthe same way the ultra marathons
have?
Speaker 1 (05:19):
Had you always been into the photography side of
things, or did that come aboutas a result of the ultra running
as you were out in theseawesome places like how and
where does the photography piecefit in?
So, ever since I?
Speaker 2 (05:30):
was a child, I've had an interest in photography, but
of course, I grew up during thefilm age and coming up at it.
Uh, you know, we didn't have alot of money when I was coming
up and so you just couldn't takea lot of shots on mom's camera
when I was a kid.
So the interest was alwaysthere, but the resources were
not.
But then, as cell phones camealong and cameras came on cell
(05:52):
phones and the cameras on thecell phones became better, I
started snapping images with mycell phone pretty consistently,
I guess in 2017.
And, to my surprise, peoplewere requesting to purchase
prints that I would post, andI'm like you know, I just
snapped this.
To my surprise, people wererequesting to purchase prints
that I would post, and I'm likeyou know, I just snapped this
with my phone, right and theywere like well, we don't care,
(06:13):
it's a great image, and sothat's what started it.
I did get my first real camerain 2018 and have accumulated
additional gear since then.
So I do have a couple ofsmaller cameras that I normally
take with me on runs and hikesso that the weight isn't as much
of a factor.
I did carry some during Swami,but I eventually ditched the
(06:37):
camera because I found that Ireally didn't have a lot of
interest in fooling with thecamera while I was running, but
I did so all of those shotsfooling with the camera while I
was running, but I did so all ofthose shots were taken with my
phone.
Speaker 1 (06:47):
I mean truly.
You probably wouldn't knowunless you had asked.
There's some really good shotsout there.
Do you go looking for shotsspecifically or do you just find
and see them and go oh, that'ssomething I've got to take a
shot of.
Speaker 2 (06:58):
You know I'm not trying to toot my own horn, but
there's this thing when peoplesay you've got the eye, and I
realized I've got the eye.
So it's like, you know, I'llcome along a scene and it's like
boom, all of a suddeneverything in the scene aligns
and I'm like, okay, I need tosnap this sort of a thing.
And so that's where a lot of myimages came in, Swami.
(07:21):
So yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1 (07:22):
There's some really good ones out there.
Definitely encourage folks togo have a look.
I think you're on mainlyInstagram, is that right?
Yes, sir, that's correct.
Speaker 2 (07:29):
Yeah, thank you.
Speaker 1 (07:30):
So we'll link that in the show notes here and
definitely folks go out thereand have a look at that.
Now, as far as the FSHD, haveyou always had that, or where in
your running journey did thatkick in?
If you haven't always had that?
Speaker 2 (07:46):
Yeah, sure, so it's genetic.
So technically I've always hadit, but it didn't manifest
itself until later in my life.
It is sometimes hereditary, butin my case it was not, so my
genes mutated, so no one passedit down to me, but I can pass it
down to my kids.
I'm not sure if they have it ornot, but it can be passed down.
(08:09):
Mine was adult onset, so, exceptfor some subtle signs I may
have realized going back someyears, it really didn't show up
until I was 37, 38 years old in2011, I think it was and I
remember we were moving oneweekend and I was trying to
(08:32):
reach some shelves in the closetand all of a sudden my right
arm wouldn't go above myshoulder anymore.
It didn't hurt, there was nopain associated with it, but I
just noticed that I, you know, Icouldn't do what I used to be
able to do with that arm, and soeventually I went to the doctor
(08:53):
.
They referred me to a bunch ofpeople who didn't know what was
going on, and finally I gotreferred to duke, and they did
some tests and discovered that Idid have the gene defect that
causes the FSHD.
Speaker 1 (09:10):
So yeah, for those out there that may be wondering
I think you alluded to it rightthere but how does it impact
your day-to-day life?
And then, secondly, how didthat then impact your approach
to the running and any otherendurance sports that you might
have participated in afteryou've had this onset?
Speaker 2 (09:27):
Yeah.
So the good news is I don'tlike to make the situation sound
worse than it is, because thereare a lot of people that I've
seen with FSHD that arewheelchair bound.
It's progressed much fartherwith them.
There's just huge variationsbetween symptoms and effects
that people have, so adult onsetis normally less severe, so
(09:51):
thankfully mine is less severe.
So far it has not really been adebilitating disease for me.
I can still do 85% of thethings I've always done, but the
disease does progress veryslowly but it does progress, and
so things that I've always doneare just more difficult for me
(10:14):
to do and take more recoverytime sometimes.
Also, the FSHD doesn't affectevery muscle everywhere.
It only affects certain musclegroups.
So different types of musculardystrophy affects different
muscle groups.
So for me mine is primarily inmy upper back, my triceps, my
(10:36):
quadriceps and my hips.
Those areas Also it's normallyasymmetric.
Those areas also it's normallyasymmetric, so it will usually
affect only one side and not theother.
Speaker 1 (10:51):
Or if it affects both sides, usually one side is
affected worse than the otherside so, so clearly, your fshd
hasn't affected you to the pointyet where you can't finish
something like the swami shuffle.
So let's get into your raceexperience.
What a week ago, two weeks ago,whenever it was now I don't
know, the days seem to gotogether.
(11:12):
We finished two weeks ago.
Yeah, I guess it is.
Yeah, it's almost exactly twoweeks ago at this point, yeah,
yeah.
So, first of all, I had a quicklook on your ultra signup bio
and you have a ton of ultraraces out there, but I didn't
see any other races kind of upand around the 200 mile mark.
What made you?
Speaker 2 (11:37):
decide to tackle the Swami Shuffle and a 200 miler.
So I have paced my buddy Dents,Stephen Dents, at the Swami
twice now, in 2022 and 2024.
And during those years he wasalways pushing and prodding me
to do the Swami also.
And I told him that, other thanshort distances, I really love
(11:58):
out and backs.
And I told him I just couldn'tfathom doing an out and back
that totaled 216 miles.
That's just out of the question.
Yeah, but through pacing himand crewing him and also I've
done a number of other soloadventures and races on the
Outer Banks I've kind of justbecome an expert on the course,
(12:18):
I guess.
And so it started to feel lesslike something I wouldn't want
to do and more like somethingI'm kind of already doing anyway
.
So like, why not just sign upand see what happens?
And so Vince and I switchedroles and he crewed me and the
rest is history.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
Yeah, walk us through your experience.
First of all, I think you and Imet in the runner house
pre-race.
We were doing pre-game in thehouse there.
So had you ever done 200 milesin any way, shape or form at
that point, or no?
Speaker 2 (12:51):
no, I I have done a couple of hundred milers, but I
have not finished a hundredmiler officially since 2014.
Speaker 1 (13:02):
Okay, so so to more than double that distance you
know, 11 years later wasdefinitely a significant
undertaking for me how were youfeeling that that day before,
the night before a 200 mile race, having not finished 100 since
goodness knows when?
I imagine that's got to bepretty daunting.
Speaker 2 (13:28):
Yeah, I mean, you know how the runner's mind works
because you're one yourself.
We go through periods ofexcitement and dreaming to
periods of what the heck have Igotten myself into?
And so sometimes it seemed likea really great idea, and
sometimes it seemed like areally terrible idea.
And this is all before the raceeven started.
Speaker 1 (13:51):
And then we had snow this year as well snow on the
beach and ice on the on thetrails, which is unusual for the
area and so added interest tothe 200 mile event, although
thankfully it went away, I think, as we got further south.
But yeah, it was pretty cool tostart with.
Yeah, it was all right.
So tell me how your, how yourrace went.
How did it start off?
Day one, day two you've got thebeach sections to get kicked
(14:13):
off.
How did your race go at thestart?
Speaker 2 (14:16):
so the good news is I knew all about the beach
section because I've done ittwice already but finishing,
finishing with dense.
So you know I knew what toexpect.
The beach section seemed reallyeasy to me only because the
first two times I did it was atdensest finish and by the way, I
had paced I think the secondtime I crewed and paced for him
(14:37):
I covered like 80 some milesmyself that week.
So you know, I think I was ashappy to finish that as he was,
even though he had done far moredistance than me.
So I was kind of thinking aboutall of that when I was hitting
the beach in my own race.
But now heading out, andobviously you know, the first
day for most everybody isprobably the best day, at least
(14:59):
for a while.
And so I was feeling reallygood.
I thought I would.
I thought it would take meeight hours to get off the beach
, cause when I did it a year agowith dance it took me eight
hours to get off the beach, butI actually came off the beach in
six, 48, which was a lot betterthan I thought I would be.
And uh, yeah, oh and I shouldinterject this too is I actually
(15:21):
had a really nasty fall onFebruary the 3rd, and for a
couple of weeks I wasn't evensure I would be able to run the
race at all, because I was insignificant pain in my back.
X-rays were negative, which isgreat, but I still had some pain
in my back all the way up tillthe Friday before the race.
(15:46):
But then on Saturday, when wewere traveling in, what was
lingering had disappeared, andso I was very thankful for that,
because I wasn't even I wasn'tsure if I'd be able to race at
all, and once I got started Ithought the injury might
resurface and wreak havoc on myefforts, but it actually didn't.
Speaker 1 (16:08):
Excellent, yeah, yeah .
So you got off the beach in 648, which I think is a pretty
decent effort, to be fair andthen you start your way down
from Corolla down to Nags Headand then over to over Pea Island
.
How was that for you?
Did you make good time on thosefirst few days with Mr Dents?
How did you guys work together?
How was he setting up from acrew perspective?
Speaker 2 (16:31):
Yeah, so Dents is so awesome.
I feel like I did a really goodjob crewing and pacing him, but
I also feel like he was evenbetter than I was.
I kept telling him I'm like man.
I said I feel really needy.
I said I don't know, I feellike I'm tougher for you than
(16:55):
you were for me, and maybe thatwas just me being in my head, I
don't know.
But he and I strategizedconstantly.
I mean, from the outset, wewere constantly strategizing,
shifting the game plan.
I mean you know how it is.
You were out there.
I'm sure you guys were doingthe same thing.
And so the challenge is notjust maintaining a certain
(17:17):
mileage per day, but also howdoes that coincide with places
you would like to stop and stayfor the night?
But also how does that coincidewith places you would like to
stop and stay for the night?
And so you know, those twothings together presented a lot
of challenges in the planning,for sure.
Speaker 1 (17:32):
Did you guys have a plan to stay somewhere every
night, or was there ever a planto kind of go through as far as
you can, and did it play outlike that?
Speaker 2 (17:42):
Here's the funny thing.
Ok, so dense is a.
Dense is a more gifted runnerthan I am, so he can.
He can control his plan betterby speeding up or slowing down
than I can.
For me, I'm just going to beslower, slower, okay.
So me improving my situation byspeeding up is never going to
(18:03):
happen.
I just do what I do and otherthings have to fall in place in
order to make that happen.
So when Dents did it, he coinedhis experience with Swami as
Bhuji, the Bhuji Swami.
In other words, he knew wherehe was going to stay.
Every night For the most parthe got to all of those places we
stayed, got up the next morningand continued on.
(18:25):
We both knew that my situationwas going to be different
because in order for me to logthe same amount of miles per day
, I was going to need more hourseach day to be able to
accomplish that same amount ofmileage.
So we knew that we wouldprobably stay some places along
the way, but we didn't have apreset schedule.
(18:46):
So we were just kind of seeinghow the days went and then maybe
, once we got over the halfwaypoint, sort of the finishing
plan started to come into morefocus and we kind of knew how
much we needed to do and thedestinations that we needed to
shoot for each day needed to doand the destinations that we
(19:07):
needed to shoot for each day.
Speaker 1 (19:07):
Now you I think you said you've done at least some
of this course with, with stevein particular, but other parts
of it maybe by you know, byyourself.
Are there any favorite parts ofthis course that you have or
parts that you like the least so?
Speaker 2 (19:18):
I really love running through the town of duck.
It's just such a charming,charming little beach town so I
really enjoy Duck.
Personally, I prefer runningthrough all of the little towns
more than I do the section.
I call the sections desolation.
The desolation stretches, andit isn't because they aren't
(19:38):
beautiful.
They are extremely beautifuland if I were out on a short
casual run I would probablyenjoy those sections more.
But because I'm already somentally fatigued it just seems
like some of those sectionscarry on forever and ever and so
(20:00):
I don't enjoy running ultras inthose long, desolate sections
as much as I do running throughthe little towns.
Speaker 1 (20:09):
Yeah, so down over Pea Island and then down past
well out to Avon.
That's another one that reallymesses with people's head when
you come out of Salvo and you'vegot like 15 miles of straight
road until you get to Avon downthere.
That's a tough stretch.
Speaker 2 (20:26):
Yeah, and at one point you can see it in some of
the photos I posted maybe one ortwo but I had a bucket hat on,
tried to keep some of the sunoff my face.
Man, those vehicles were flyingso fast it kept blowing my hat
off.
So then I flipped it up andmade it kind of look like a
Gilligan's hat, and it was aweird way to wear it, but that
(20:46):
was the only way I could keep iton my head.
Speaker 1 (20:50):
Yeah, we're talking about photos.
I think you have a great photoout there of you sitting there.
It's the pizza and lube photo.
I think that I like a lot.
What was going on with thepizza and lube photo.
Speaker 2 (21:03):
Man, I don't know, I, um, I.
I like to think that I'mself-sufficient and I've proven
that I can be on my solaradventures.
In fact, this is the first raceI've ever been crewed in at all
, to the best of my knowledge,and so in a sense it sort of
made me uncomfortable, justbecause I don't know that I'm
(21:24):
really like to be weighted onhand and foot, but it was.
It was clear to me that this isgoing to be my best chance of
finishing.
I did it for dance, he wasdoing it for me.
We have such a good chemistrytogether so it was just a really
fun time.
And so by the time that photowas taken, like, like we knew
what our routine was.
In fact, I would start textinghim in advance of me getting to
(21:52):
the next stop, saying I needthis, this and this, and he said
that really helped him out awhole lot, and so then when I
showed up he'd have my chair out, all of the things next to it
that I would need.
So you know we were kind of awell-oiled machine by that point
.
So it was funny to get a photoimage of what had become our
racer-crewer reality up to thatpoint.
Speaker 1 (22:12):
Yeah, well-oiled or well-lubed, I don't know.
It was definitely good.
Now, did you have a standardwhere Steve would go every two
miles and stop, or every fivemiles and stop?
Speaker 2 (22:27):
Yeah, it was kind of it just sort of depended on
where I was mentally andphysically and then so, you know
, we would tweak that.
So the more the overnights orthe or the early mornings, I
should say those are my besttimes of day, and so I feel like
I didn't need as much attentionduring those times of day, but
(22:48):
then the later we got in the day.
You know, the late afternooninto early evening is just
always really tough for me, andso at times I would say, you
know, let's do every two miles,and then a time or two I even
called him and had him come meetme even sooner than we had
planned, just because times Ijust felt unwell and things like
(23:12):
that.
And so yeah, we just kind oftweaked it as we went.
Speaker 1 (23:17):
Excellent.
Aside from the pizza and lube,were there any other specific
moments you can recall?
Speaker 2 (23:31):
either on the way out or the way back.
That really stood out to you.
Was there any point in the racewhere you thought I may not
actually finish this?
Yes, definitely.
So I have learned during mymulti-day hikes that day three
I'm sorry, day two is usuallythe worst for me.
So I anticipated day two beingthe worst for me during Swami.
But day two was worse than dayone for sure.
But it was actually day threewhen I bottomed out, and so what
(23:54):
I was really struggling with islike the first two nights.
I think the first day I logged44 miles.
Next day I logged 40 miles.
I logged 44 miles.
Next day I logged 40 miles.
But each time I wasn't gettingto the hotel or wherever we were
staying until like 1 or 2 inthe morning.
And I told him, as I said, I'mlike man, I can't keep doing
this.
Because here's the thing youknow, I've run 117 ultras up to
(24:23):
this point over a number ofyears, and where this differs
from other ultras is when yourun an ultra, you know you run
for a few hours or a day andthen you get to go home and
soothe the well, okay, but inthis you don't get to soothe
anything.
You got to get up the next dayand do it again, and then the
next day and do it again, andthen the next day and do it
again, and then the next day anddo it again.
(24:44):
So, even though in my head Iknew that that was what was
going to occur, nothing couldhave prepared me for that
experience except actuallybecome involved in the event.
And so when I got up on daythree, I mean I laid in bed
sobbing because I didn't knowhow I would go on.
(25:06):
I was chafing in really badplaces, you know.
My feet were really swollen, mylegs just hurt and ached.
I mean I looked like a cripplejust getting out of bed and
walking around the place and Ithought, I mean I really thought
I just might not be able to dothis anymore.
(25:28):
And that's so unlike me,because usually I can find some
place of motivation to get outthe door.
But I didn't have any on thisday.
And so, when I tell you, when Ifinally stepped out the door, I
don't even know what made thatpossible I just and I told Vince
(25:48):
I said I have no goals today.
Like my only goal is to takethe next step and then the next
step, and we'll just see wherethat gets me.
I ended up logging 25 milesthat day, which I felt was
pretty good, considering Ididn't want to do 25 feet.
But I realized then why thesejourney races are so incredibly
(26:11):
difficult and it really broke medown, man.
It really moved me to the core,you know, experiencing that
level of endurance to the pointwhere I just didn't want to go
anymore.
I mean really truly didn't wantto go anymore.
Speaker 1 (26:28):
But did anyway.
Yeah, and yet you did anyway,and that I think is key and
point of a lot of these races isthat you and others are somehow
finding the will to moveforwards, which I think is
absolutely incredible.
Where were you at on day three?
Were you down at the KOA?
Were you somewhere in that area, down in Salvo or Rodanthe?
(26:49):
Wherever, that is yes.
Speaker 2 (26:52):
So when I got to, I got to the halfway point, which
was Hatteras Light, and then westayed in Buxton that night,
which is about another mile anda half up.
I can't even remember the nameof the hotel and actually that
night I got the best sleep ofthe entire event.
(27:12):
I got seven hours of sleep andactually Dave Moore was very
kind and he gifted us the roombecause he had been in there for
several hours that afternooninto the evening and he
contacted Denson and said hey,I'm here for a few hours.
You know, you guys helped mewith a place last night, so I'm
going to help you with thisplace tonight if you want to
(27:33):
come stay.
And I really feel like that wasGod setting the whole thing up,
because you know we didn't havea plan of where we were going
to stay that night and so youknow, thanks to Dave, it just
literally fell into our lap andso we showed up around nine
o'clock that night.
He was leaving at aboutmidnight that night, so you know
, we had a quick chat before Iwent to bed and so I slept seven
(27:57):
hours and almost felt like anew man for a little while.
But I felt like a new man for alittle while.
But I felt like a new man thenext morning and you know, my
spirit was really rejuvenatedonce I headed into day four.
Speaker 1 (28:12):
Yeah, I wanted to ask because a lot of times and we
just did an episode on like howa bunch of us kind of grouped
together and that wholeinteraction with other runners
is something that can help youpush forward for sure Did you
have aside from Steve, I guess,who's following you around?
It sounds like you met withDave down in Buxton and that
interaction was a pretty goodone for you.
(28:33):
Did you have interaction withother runners along the way or
did you find yourself kind ofrunning by yourself?
Nick?
Speaker 2 (28:40):
was sort of unofficially with us for a long
time.
So I remember him from thehouse and we ended up first
crossing paths, I guess justbefore we entered Cape Hatteras
National Seashore on day two Ithink.
And so, yeah, dent, sort of youknow, took both of us under his
(29:02):
wings really, and you know hewas primarily crewing me so
obviously I took priority but hewas able to provide uh nick
with a lot of help too off andon.
And so really, from the time wepicked nick up, you know, we
were together off and on formost of the event up until the
night before the finish yeah, soso you, uh, you guys came up to
(29:23):
where were you based the nightbefore.
Speaker 1 (29:25):
Did you stop at the Hampton Inn before you hit the
beach section?
Speaker 2 (29:29):
Yes, that's correct, hampton Inn and Corrala, so we
had about 32 miles to go fromthat point.
Speaker 1 (29:35):
So how had your return journey been from the
lighthouse up to that point?
Speaker 2 (29:39):
Nothing was as bad as day three.
Day three was when I bottomedout out, but there were still
some challenges.
In fact I would say day four.
I think we covered so muchdistance.
I think it was the night of dayfour, or was it day five, I
can't remember now, but anywaywhen I stayed at the hampton.
So we, I started it.
(30:00):
I started in pea island thatmorning at about three in the
morning, made it all the way tothe Hampton Inn in Corrales, so
that was a 43 mile day.
It was my second longest day,yeah, and my spirits were so
good for 90 percent of that day,in fact, mentally and
emotionally, I felt like I wasreveling in the potential
(30:23):
success of the event in a waythat I thought I would do on the
last day, but I didn't on thelast day.
I really had my best mental andemotional moments on the day
before, except for the last fewmiles, because by that point you
know I'm tired again, I'mgetting ill again, and then it
(30:44):
rained.
I was hoping to be in the hotelbefore it rained and I didn't
make it, and so I was rained onfor about three miles.
It doesn't sound terrible, werun in the rain all the time
right.
But for some reason, whenyou're 100 and some miles into a
journey run, it just feels likeso much more and you know you
can't see anything.
(31:05):
The cars are coming around andwhen I came to the hotel room I
said dance.
I said man, I apologize if I'm.
I said I'm just not in a good,not in a good head space.
I said, but he said you know, Iwas totally fine.
Like he understands, you knowI'm not going to be, you know,
chipper all the time.
But he said I was fine, I wasOK.
But clearly, clearly I wasn'tin the best of the best of moods
(31:31):
when I came in that night.
I'm like, oh my goodness, canthis thing be over with already?
Speaker 1 (31:39):
Absolutely yeah, and I know from last year, getting
rained on during this event isthe worst thing, but hopefully
you got a chance to at least dryyour stuff out or change gear
at the hotel.
I did.
Speaker 2 (31:51):
So you know I'm whining a lot, I'm making it
sound a lot worse than itprobably was, but you know, in
that moment it felt likeeverything, like it felt like I
was never, ever, ever, ever,ever going to get to that hotel.
You know how it is.
Speaker 1 (32:05):
It does seem like a long way away.
Yes, it isn't, but it seemsthat way.
Speaker 2 (32:09):
It does.
It did seem that way, but yes.
So I did make it to the hotel,got there by about 10 o'clock I
think, maybe nine, nine, thirty,something like that, and then
Denson and I strategized againand set up a plan for me to be
able to finish by the next night.
Speaker 1 (32:28):
So yeah, so you must have been at the hotel the same
time that we were all at thehotel, I guess.
Speaker 2 (32:34):
I think you guys were there.
You guys got there a few hoursbefore we did.
I don't know when you left, butmaybe there was some overlap.
I'm not sure.
Speaker 1 (32:43):
Yeah, we left about 1230, not to gloat or anything,
but we were waiting for the rainto finish before we left rather
than have to run through it.
I don't think anybody in thegroup I was with really wanted
to run through the rain, so wemade a decision to just haul out
in the Hampton Inn and hit thejacuzzi while the rain came
through, and then we would goafter that while the rain came
(33:03):
through, and then we would goafter that.
Speaker 2 (33:04):
But didn't Dave Moore and the I can't think of the
other lady's name didn't they goin the rain?
Speaker 1 (33:08):
Yeah, dave and Kim Drake.
Yeah, they went through therain and we saw them on the
beach later on.
Well, that's not true.
We saw Kim on the beach lateron.
We caught up to her closer tothe finish line, but Dave was
already done.
But yeah, kudos to Dave.
Well line.
But Dave, dave was already done.
But yeah, kudos to Dave.
Well, hey, shout out to Davefor sharing his hotel room.
I think that's a.
That's a classic journey runtactic that definitely shows his
(33:32):
experience in journey runs.
That is something that happensquite a bit, I understand, in
other journey runs a lot alongthe way.
Sharing of hotel rooms, so goodon you, dave.
Speaker 2 (33:42):
Oh, and a little, a little backstory to Dave Moore,
is it?
It's funny, man, because whenhe came to the house the night
before the race, we wereintroduced to each other, but we
didn't recognize each other.
And then the next morning Ithink it was before the race, or
maybe that same night, I can'tremember, but he starts telling
this story to the whole group ofus about how the year before
(34:04):
before, some guy who he didn'tknow came up to him and gave him
a bacon sandwich and it justlifted his spirits and changed
his day.
And I'm like wait a minute, I'mthe guy, I'm the one who gave
you the bacon sandwich.
He's like.
He's like, yes, it is you.
And so we had actually formed abond the year before, but then
we didn't recognize each otherthis year until he shared the
story, and so we kind of alreadyknew each other.
(34:26):
So it was really cool for us tosort of, you know, continue
that friendship into this yearfantastic.
Speaker 1 (34:32):
I love that, and I love that about the race as well
.
It's a very social race lots ofpeople interacting and coming
back for for second years,whether that's as a runner or
whether that's as a crew Right,in your case, both.
Speaker 2 (34:47):
And in.
Speaker 1 (34:48):
Steve Dent's case both.
Steve Dent's is, if I can evensay that appropriately, case
both.
So yeah, I think that's justterrific.
So when did you set out fromthe Hampton Inn and how was your
beach run on the way back?
How long did that take you?
Speaker 2 (35:01):
We calculated everything out and I wanted to
hit the beach by nine o'clockbecause I felt like that would
give me enough time to get tothe refuge before sunset.
So we decided to get up at 4 am, roll out by 5 am, and so
everything went according toplan.
I did those 10 miles to thebeach in about four hours.
(35:22):
My last uh crew stop with denseand then I hit the beach.
The thing is is, as I alludedto before, I thought the final
day would be like sort of avictory lap mentality, like I
would just be relishing in theupcoming victory and everything
would feel great.
And actually I was.
(35:43):
I was just not, not really.
I mean, it wasn't my lowestpoint during the race,
definitely wasn't my greatestpoint.
I just I wish I had enjoyed thelast 32 miles more than more
than I did, and so it just feltlike like here we go again.
(36:08):
But Dent's a something else.
At first Dent's was going tomeet me at the finish, but my
corner had said through Dent's.
He said tell David, I'm goingto come to the state line gate
and meet him and I'm going torun in with him.
So that was the plan.
Well, when Dan and I had ourlast cruise stop before I went
onto the beach.
(36:28):
Sorry, dan, I got to do this toyou, but he got really
emotional talking with me andhe's like man, there's no way
I'm going to let you run thatbeach section alone, dude.
He's like we've been in thistogether.
He said I'm coming onto thebeach with my corner and we're
going to run it in with youtogether Awesome.
(36:50):
I don't know who else has beenable to experience that in the
history of the event, and theydidn't quite make it to the gate
by the time I got there, but Iknew they were on their way.
So after I came through thegate, I'm in Virginia.
You don't trust most of whatyou think you see when you're on
that long desolate stretch ofsand.
And so I literally had to stareat these silhouettes for a good
(37:12):
20 minutes before I trusted whatI was seeing.
But eventually the silhouettesgot bigger, eventually they
gained color, eventually theygained voices and I'm like, oh
my God, they're really here.
And so they danced swiftly,took the pack from my back, took
my trekking poles.
(37:33):
Man, I don't know where I wouldhave been in my head without
those two, the last you know, 10, 11 miles, because I mean I
didn't have a choice but tofinish by the time you're there.
You know how it is, you'reinvested at that point.
Speaker 1 (37:48):
But there's no way back.
Speaker 2 (37:49):
Yeah, there's no way back.
But mentally, emotionally, Ijust think it would have been
way worse for me to to have nothad them there.
So I just can't even express tothem my gratitude enough for
for doing that for me.
Speaker 1 (38:03):
Well, huge shout out to steve dense and mike horner
for going out.
There was a group of us at thefinish line at the time and we
actually watched them get readyand leave to go meet you at the
state line.
And I know from experience justhow desolate and lonely that
beach section can be, especiallywhen you've been on it for
hours and hours and you pass thestate line and you think, well,
(38:25):
I've still got, I've still gotmore to go here.
Speaker 2 (38:28):
It's terrible because you, you, you're chasing a
horizon that you can neverachieve it just never stops.
Speaker 1 (38:34):
It just goes on forever and ever.
And you're like this cannot.
This has got to end at somepoint, surely?
Speaker 2 (38:40):
right.
And then virginia beach showsup on the horizon and you think
for a second OK, this isevidence I'm making progress.
But then Virginia Beach tauntsyou and it's like shouldn't I be
there already?
I can see Virginia Beach andyou just still can't seem to get
there.
Speaker 1 (38:55):
You can just make out the outline, the silhouette
outline of some buildings andyou think, oh, I'm nearly there,
I must be close.
And then it takes forever toget to those.
I just it, just, you're right,it taunts you the whole way.
Oh, yeah, yeah.
And then you're looking forthat back bay brown sign because
then you know you're in, you'rein and you're like where is
this sign?
It must be here somewhere.
(39:16):
It never seems to never seemsto arrive until it does.
But yeah, it's a long that thatlast section there is really
long it is, it's brutal yeah,just mentally of challenge.
So brilliant to have those twoguys come out.
I don't know if anybody elsehas ever done that.
That would be something to ask,james and josh, whether
anyone's had their crew run outto meet someone and run back
(39:38):
with them well, you know, I didrun with dense for the entire
beach section at the end in 22and 24 so so in that sense, yes,
dents did have company the twoyears that he did it, but I
don't know that anybody's run infrom the other side and and
then run back.
That that might be new to theevent, I'm not sure yeah, I
(39:58):
guess people have had pacescoming over the beach section
before, but I wonder if anyone'sactually gone out and come back
.
Well, and you and you finished.
So how was it crossing thefinish line?
Was it everything you hadimagined?
Speaker 2 (40:11):
It was way more than I imagined.
So one of the things I reallywanted to do was finish in the
daylight.
I just felt like it would beeasier mentally and emotionally.
You kind of feel like you'restill with the world if you
don't finish in the middle ofthe night, and so, you know,
that was one thing I was reallyexcited to be able to do is
finish in the daylight.
However, I couldn't haveanticipated the type of
(40:34):
reception that I would get.
I knew I was going to be one ofthe last runners.
I knew a lot of the earlierrunners would already be gone.
So, other than dance and therace staff, you know, I kind of
wasn't expecting anybody else tobe there, but you and the party
pack were still there and justhappened to be having dinner at
(40:54):
the place where the finish linewas, and so the way things just
worked out time-wise was justabsolutely perfect.
Like I couldn't have set it upany better if I had tried to
orchestrate all of that.
So it was just so wonderful to,you know, walk into all of the
cheers and finishers likeyourself and the others in your
(41:16):
group, and then you know therace staff and of course you
know, dance, dance earned thefirst hug when I came in,
because he's the one that got methrough.
It was like golly man.
I just wouldn't even acceptsuccess until I was probably in
that last half mile, and thenI'm like.
I just felt like a huge weightwas being lifted off.
(41:41):
Finally, I can accept that thisis going to become a reality
and I don't have any moredistance left to face, you know
and that was just a huge relieffor me Total jubilation for sure
, absolutely.
Speaker 1 (41:55):
And that last, probably mile or so road section
, that seems pretty long too.
When you turn on the roadyou're like, oh, I'm nearly done
, I'm off the blue track and I'mon a road.
Speaker 2 (42:04):
It does.
And the good news is, like Isaid, I've done it with dense
before.
So I remembered from those twoyears when you get off the beach
you're still not done.
So thankfully I already hadthat mental reference.
And you know they kept sayingoh, you know, remember, we get
off, still got two miles.
Speaker 1 (42:23):
And I'm thinking to myself I know, but it's not the
beach, so this is still great,right, it's not that damn sand,
and so so I love that youfinished and we were all there.
We loved your finish too.
I'm sure there's a video of itsomewhere on the awareness and
action site.
There's usually a video of yourfinish that folks can go check
out.
I'm curious.
Curious, though, along the wayyou took some really cool photos
(42:47):
.
You're looking back now thatyou've kind of had a minute.
Was there any particularsection or parts of the race
where you think, oh, I got somereally, really cool photos?
What was your favorite photothat you took from the race?
Speaker 2 (42:58):
Well, as much as I dislike ultra running through
the sections of desolation,those are some of the most
photogenic sections, so I loveto take snapshots of that big,
open road to nothingness.
I just think it's so poetic.
I would have loved to havegotten some dune shots at Pea
Island, but I didn't travelthrough there during the daytime
(43:22):
in either direction, throughthere during the daytime in
either direction.
However, the stars therethrough that section were
phenomenal.
There was almost no lightpollution, and so it really
allowed the stars to pop out.
However, I think the mostmemorable photogenic section was
(43:42):
the of day four when, uh, I wasleaving buxton and the pamlico
sound is there to to the left.
It was.
I rarely create extra distancevoluntarily, but I decided to
create about 30 or 40 yards ofextra distance to walk down to
the sound side there because thescene was otherworldly, and so
(44:07):
the photographer and me couldn'tpass that up, not even during
an event like this, and so thatwas the only time during the
event.
I wish I'd kept my real cameraon me, because iPhones are great
, but I don't think theytranslate colors the best
sometimes.
Iphones are great, but I don'tthink they translate colors the
best sometimes, and I did thebest I could in editing to try
to duplicate what I felt like Isaw with my eye, but I just feel
(44:31):
like in person it was just waymore beautiful.
The colors were not what youtypically see.
There are purples and pinks andanyway it was just a good time
to sort of stand still for a fewseconds and sort of breathe in
the scenery.
So that was that was a reallybeautiful section to me.
Speaker 1 (44:47):
Yeah, I love that mindset.
The sunrises and sunsets outthere, generally speaking, are
pretty epic and I love the factthat you just take a moment to
sit and watch and I think anumber of us in the group I was
with especially on that last dayon the beach when we saw the
sunrise, since we'd been goingthrough the photography that
(45:12):
sort of calming aspect does thathelp you cope better or manage
with the challenges that FSHDbrings?
Speaker 2 (45:19):
Maybe I kind of joke and say that I'm always at war
with my camera during ultrasbecause it's always calling to
me from wherever I have itstashed.
But I often resist because I'mkind of like in race mode or
ultra mode and I just don't liketo fool with anything that
takes me out of my rhythm, andso sometimes I don't feel like
(45:43):
taking the camera out and Idon't feel like taking the shot.
But I also realize for methat's part of the journey and
that's part of the adventure,and so, if for nothing else,
it's good self-documentation forme to, you know, just pause for
a few seconds to get that shotthat I'll never have a chance to
get again.
Speaker 1 (46:03):
Do you feel like that's a good mental reset for
you, just like following thatcreative outlet in the midst of
something so difficult?
I guess as a 200 mile journeyrun.
Speaker 2 (46:13):
Yeah, I mean, I feel like photography while running,
while adventuring, while hikingI feel like photography is, for
me, is synonymous with thoseevents, and so it's part of what
I like to do when I'm out there, and so, yeah, it comes very
naturally for me to do that sortof a thing.
Speaker 1 (46:35):
Yeah, I'm very much an amateur in that field, but
for most of us anyway, it's agreat pictorial reference and
representation of what we did.
But I mean, you've got somereally cool images out there of
just incredible peaceful scenes.
A lot of your stuff seems verypeaceful.
I don't know if you wouldclassify it as that, but you've
got these beautiful beachpictures and the stars.
(46:58):
It's all very calming.
I wonder if that's by design orby accident, but either way
that's how it comes across, Ithink my attraction to landscape
photography is probably areflection of my introversion.
Speaker 2 (47:12):
I feel at peace when I'm in the bush or I'm in the
wilderness or I'm in, you know,a large open space, and so, you
know, I just get really inspiredto take photographs that don't
involve a lot of activity.
You know places where peoplesee them and think, wow, you
know, I can breathe in thisplace or I can think in this
(47:34):
place, or I can reflect in thisplace, because that's how I feel
when I'm in those places, andso I try to take photographs
that might make other peoplefeel the same way.
Speaker 1 (47:43):
And I think you're succeeding, whereas my pictures
are like selfie of me on a benchduring the same race.
Speaker 2 (47:49):
I got plenty of absurd selfies too, so don't let
me fool you into thinkingeverything I take is a pro shot,
because it's not.
Speaker 1 (47:58):
You're definitely a level up for me, that's for sure
.
But I can appreciate whereyou're coming from and I aspire
to take some photos like thatone of these days, if I can
figure out how to use my phoneproperly.
So when you take your phone inplace of your actual camera, are
you, like, really techie withthe phone?
Do you adjust all the settingsand the aperture and all that
(48:19):
kind of stuff, or do you justtake a picture and move on like
the rest of us?
Speaker 2 (48:23):
So I have an iPhone 15.
So that's what I use 15 Pro.
What I've learned about iPhonesover the years is they have
strengths and weaknesses, and soI've learned the types of
lighting and times of day andscenes that are going to return
decent shots versus one thataren't.
One of the great shortcomingsof iPhones is they are terrible
(48:43):
in sunlight and so they justblow everything out.
You're never going to get astarburst from the sun at least
not a very good one, I don'tthink and so those types of
shots are off the table.
But if you have settings wheremaybe you know obviously what
they call a golden hour early inthe morning or later in the
evening those are always goodtimes to shoot Cloudy days you
(49:06):
can do phenomenal things with aniPhone on cloudy days or
overcast days or sort of milkyskies.
Yeah, you can do really, reallygood things with the iPhone and
yeah, they do have somesettings so you can tweak the
lighting some.
I may not do that as much as Iwould with a regular camera, but
once you learn the strengthsand weaknesses of an iPhone, and
(49:28):
those star shots too you'restill not going to pick up as
many stars as you would with acamera and a lens, but if you
hold it super still for a fewseconds, you can still capture
quite a few stars.
Even with the iPhone too,they're really good at
collecting light.
So, yeah, everybody could do itif they aspire to for sure
(49:52):
aspire to for sure.
Speaker 1 (49:53):
Well, folks, if you want to learn about how to get
better photos with your iphonewhile you're doing your event,
definitely go check out david.
He's got some great shots outthere and there might be some
inspiration for you.
Using your iphone, like I do,I'm definitely going to try to
get better photos when I go dothis stuff.
See where I can get.
So, david, what's next for you?
Where do you go from here?
Having done a 200 journey run,what on earth do you do after
(50:14):
that?
Are you ready?
Speaker 2 (50:16):
for this.
Yes, go.
What do you got?
Eight days from now, I'm goingright back to the Outer Banks
for 100 miles along the samecourse we just did two weeks ago
.
Speaker 1 (50:28):
You're doing Blackbeard.
Speaker 2 (50:30):
Yeah, blackbeard, blackbeard's revenge 100 yeah
and that that's incredible.
Speaker 1 (50:35):
I can't believe you're going back to do more on
the same course which is wildthat one, I think, starts in
corolla, does it not?
Speaker 2 (50:43):
yes, it starts at corolla light and goes all the
way down to the museum.
So it still goes to HatterasLight and then back out that
road, like Swami does, but thenyou take a left instead of a
right and continue down forabout another 13 miles to the
museum, and that's where thefinish is.
It's one way at least.
(51:03):
Yeah, it is, it's one way yeah.
Speaker 1 (51:06):
Wow, well, good luck to you on that.
At least you'll be familiarwith the route.
Speaker 2 (51:10):
I will be familiar with the route.
It's funny because I actuallyGoogled how long does it take to
recover from a 200 mile run?
Seems like AI has an answer foreverything and I was shocked
that they had an answer for that.
And they're like yeah, they'relike could take this long for
this, this long for that, butexpect it to take, you know,
several weeks.
And I'm like great, I'm goingto be running 100 while I'm
(51:33):
recovering from the 200.
This doesn't sound like a goodidea.
Call it a long recovery run.
Yeah, exactly, so we'll seewhat happens.
I've attempted Blackbeard threetimes before.
I DNF'd all three times becauseI was either at cutoff or was
in danger of missing cutoffs tothe point that I didn't see that
(51:56):
it made any sense to continueon.
So I'm going to give it anothergo.
I know that with FSHD, you knowthe clock is kind of ticking,
you know, maybe, and so I get alittle slower every year, and so
I think you know well, I Istill am healthy enough to be
able to attempt it.
So let's give it another go andsee what happens, and I may
(52:17):
finish them, I may not, but I'mgoing to give it a shot anyway.
Speaker 1 (52:21):
Well, best of luck on that.
Where do they have the aidstations, if any, or is it more
journey style again?
Speaker 2 (52:26):
No, it's definitely not journey style.
So they have at least basic aidstations like water and
Gatorade every few miles, andthen they have bigger aid
stations like every 18 or 20miles or so, and also with those
bigger aid stations you canhave drop bags.
So a lot of people have crew.
I've never had crew out there.
I don't think you really needit, because you have the aid
(52:49):
stations and you can do yourdrop bags and if you plan them
out well, you know you shouldhave everything you need during
the course.
So yeah, so it's planned outpretty well.
I'm hoping that for a 100 milerthe clock is generous.
It's 32 hours, so that's abouta 1920 or 1930 mile.
I'm hoping that covering all ofthe same terrain again will
(53:12):
feel mentally so easy, because Ijust did it but it took me five
days to do it instead of 32hours, and so, even though the
physical challenge is morecondensed and maybe in that
sense more challenging duringthose 32 hours, I'm hoping that
mentally it will feel better andmaybe that'll be enough to push
me through.
I don't know.
Speaker 1 (53:31):
Well, best of luck to you out at Blackbeard's.
My good friend, peter Y, isalso running Blackbeard this go
around and he did Swami lastyear, I think.
Okay, look out for Pete.
Okay, you can't miss Pete, he'sa great guy, but good luck to
you running Blackbeard Now.
One of the things we do here,david, with every guest that
comes on the show, is encourageyou to pick or add a song to the
(53:57):
free Choose to Endure Spotifyplaylist.
Usually it's something to liftyou up, motivate or kind of keep
you moving while you're out onthe trail.
Do you want to tell folks whichsong you picked, if you can
remember, and why that song kindof resonates with you?
Speaker 2 (54:18):
Yes, I remember.
So actually, when we were inthe race house, I was wearing a
Striper beanie.
Striper is a band, a Christianheavy metal band, that was
formed in the 80s.
They are still writing andperforming music today, and so
that band has always resonateddeeply with me because during
the turbulent teen years, youknow, the message in music and
the style of music reallyministered to me, and back then
(54:42):
my extreme sport wasskateboarding and so I
associated their music a lotwith skateboarding.
Now I associate their musicwith running.
Actually, I saw them play atsmall venues in recent years
2016 and 2022.
And in 2022, I was givenpermission to actually
photograph the band during thefirst three songs of the set.
(55:02):
How cool.
Yes, I got a lot of reallygreat cannon shots of the band.
So, anyway, the song that Ichose is the first Striper song
that I ever heard, and still ismy favorite striper song, which
is Soldiers Under Command, andso, even if the lyrics and the
message don't necessarilyresonate with people, maybe the
(55:24):
music itself will, and that'skind of what put them on the map
was, you know, their their harded of of metal.
It's very 80s, okay, but uh,it's.
It's hard not to get a littleuh motivated when you hear it,
at least not for me anyway, andso maybe other people will feel
the same way oh yeah, I'm a big80s fan.
Speaker 1 (55:43):
I love some some 80s rock.
I love the rock and the hardrock and all that stuff.
So I I love this tune.
I thought it was terrific andit will make a nice addition to
the playlist.
It's fast, you know it doesn'tstop.
It keeps going at you.
It's definitely got thatuplifting beat.
So, from a running perspective,I imagine it's pretty cool to
listen to while you're runningtoo.
(56:04):
So I'm going to chuck it onthere and, yeah, we'll get that
added so that other people canenjoy it just as much as you do.
David, as we look to wrap up theconversation, I definitely want
to thank you again for joiningthe show and sharing your story.
I think, if anything, it'sdefinitely a really good
reminder that the human spiritis stronger than any obstacle
(56:26):
out there, whether through mileson the trails or moments behind
the camera.
David's journey, I think,reflects the beauty of
perseverance, self-expressionand finding joy along the way.
I hope you enjoyed this episode, listeners, as much as I did,
and if you want to followDavid's photography journey, you
can find his work at BelovedPeace Photography on Instagram,
(56:50):
which is awesome, perfect, andif you're out there browsing the
Internet looking for that and Ihighly suggest you do there are
some tremendous photos outthere.
Also, don't forget to subscribeto this show and that way
you'll get notified each time anew episode drops.
If you like what you hear,please follow, share and leave a
review.
That would mean the world to me.
(57:12):
Your support helps grow.
The podcast connects morerunners to this amazing ultra
community we've got out thereand spreads the word to those
who could benefit from what weshare right here.
You can find this show onInstagram and Facebook at
ChooseToEndure, or visit anytimeat ChooseToEndurecom.
I would love to hear from youguys, whether that's just to say
(57:35):
hello, suggest a topic or shareyour story or recent successes.
That way we can get to it onair.
You can also email me directlyat info at ChooseToEndurecom if
that's your preference.
Interacting with listeners justlike you is one of my favorite
(57:56):
parts of doing the show, sodon't be shy about reaching out.
Until next time, make sure yourun long, run strong, take some
kick-ass photos while you'redoing it and choose to endure.
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