Stop Failing Ahead of Time

Runners worry they won’t be able to get out of the late aid stations in a 100-mile race.

Why?

Because of the “be able to” part.

That turns it from an aid station into a feat you have to accomplish. 

A feat where it’s going to be dark and cold, you’ll be tired, sleepy and getting slower…and it’s all going to keep getting worse. 

You'll try really hard and still DNF.

So you conclude, “I’ve already failed. I should drop now and save the effort.”

That’s the real cause.

Anticipating failure and doom like this is one of the worst things you can do in a race. You’ll find something to turn into evidence you’ve already failed…when you’re still in the race.

What if you were unable to think, “I’ve already failed”?

What if you could only say, “I’m still in the race, so it’s still possible”?

And make the most of the possibility?

That’s what I do.

Decades ago, I dropped at 50 miles in Leadville 100 when an aid station worker said I only had 15 minutes on cutoff. 

It was too close. I’d worked so hard over 12,000’ Hope Pass to get here. I’d be slower going back over it on the return trip to the finish so I’d end up timing out at the next aid station, all for nothing.

So I dropped.

But…and this shows the power of thoughts…I never looked at my watch.

I never even looked to see if 15 minutes was true because I already believed finishing was impossible.

Flash forward twenty years to my first War Hammer 100.

I ran into the third to last aid station around 80 miles with three minutes on cutoff.

THREE minutes.

This time, I was ready. 

“I’m still in the race,” I thought.

Three minutes was three minutes on the side of possible, and I was going to take it.

As much as I needed food from my drop bag lying right in front of me, I skipped it, filled my water bottle and took off running.

I busted my ass on the long, paved uphill that followed.

I sped through the next aid station.

I made the best time my 80+ mile body manage could on the single track.

And by the last, 95-mile aid station, I’d built up 15 minutes on cutoff. 

Better, but still tight when I didn’t know the finish.

So I didn’t let up.

I never allowed myself to think I wouldn’t make it in time. 

I pushed every last bit of pavement. 

I cranked hard up the last impossibly steep dirt climb. 

I pushed pace even though I couldn’t see or hear the finish.

And then I finally rounded one more corner…and finished.

Second-place woman after being less than three minutes from getting pulled.

You CAN go from where I was at Leadville to War Hammer too.

In the twenty years between the two, I didn’t get any faster, use crew or pacers, or get any less tired and stiff with lots of miles on my feet. 

The difference was learning to manage my thinking instead of being the victim of it.

You have the same ability. You can do the same thing.

And I can help you do it faster.

What if you never allowed yourself to believe you failed ahead of time?

What if you committed to making the most of the race as long as you were in it?

What could you do?

Email me to schedule a free consult call.

It’s time to drop the failure thinking and see what you can really do.