Morning Run

Evening Walk

Been wanting to do this one for a long time! This race has such a storied history and it was an honor to finally be able to participate. My goal heading in was to put together a complete 100 and be competitive. Probably my first race ever where I didn’t have a hard-set time goal which I think allowed me to run more free (No spreadsheet this go round 🙃). I had an absolutely stellar crew (Emily Slabach, Jordan Chang🌋🐼, Jared Goff, Andrea Chestnut, and Thaddeus W) who probably had more fun than me (the more the merrier right?). They kept me loaded with ice and I really didn’t get that hot throughout the day. 

At the mile 32 aid station, I was 5 minutes back of John Kelly and Andrew Simpson. They continued duking it out at course record pace and maintained a 20ish minute gap on me through Elizabeth Furnace (mile 75). Unfortunately, Andrew had a wrong turn around mile 64 while in the lead. I came into Elizabeth Furnace in 2nd. As I started the climb up Sherman’s Gap, John’s lead only grew. Jordan was my “safety runner” for this section and we decided for me to try to puke and rally at Veach Gap. I had success with this and started moving better but the gap only grew. Friday evening, we observed  that 9pm (17 hours) was the slowest one could run without needing a headlamp to finish. I shifted my focus on breaking 17 hours and did so with 3 minutes to spare, finishing in 2nd. Massive congrats to John for a gutsy race going after the course record! He ended up running the 3rd fastest time in race history and fastest time since 1992 🤯)

So much thanks to the many volunteers who make this event what it is and keep it going year after year. I might just have to come back 😏

I am forever grateful for my wife and friends who selflessly give their time and energy to help me test my limits 🙏❤️

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Butch Slabach (Aaron)

Old Dominion 100

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