This past Saturday, I participated in a company-funded 20-miler that took me all around Philadelphia. A Nathan rep was present, and generous enough to supply everyone with some sort of hydration device. Brooks was also present, giving out free stuff and using cornstarch to show off their very cool DNA technology. Also present was Anne Mahlum, founder and president of Back on My Feet (the organization which puts on The Lone Ranger Ultra).

There was a time when I wouldn’t have thought twice about a 20-miler. It wouldn’t even have been the long run of my week. But that time was over half a year ago; concerning long distance, I am out of practice. I’ve been putting in relatively low mileage, running with my high-school racers and then doing extensions afterward.

I was therefore a little apprehensive. The longest run I’d done since the ultra was 10.5 miles. I knew that the jump to 20 was going to be… uncomfortable.

What I did not know was that I was actually jumping to 23 miles, or that I would do it with Maggie, a pleasant– but inconveniently skilled– marathoner. She was in much better shape than I, and running alongside her forced me to keep my pace up.

(Good luck in the Philly marathon, Maggie!)

Anyway, my body held up well under my recklessness. I used this run to test my HPL #020 pack, and I think that the steady hydration contributed to my success. Or at least, it contributed to the fact that I could walk around later that day.

As part of trend that I hope to see grow, I’ve decided to provide you, my readers, with pictures from the ultra. Because every internet surfer loves pictures– even the semi-literate ones.

Here I am right before starting the race. Just look at the optimism and faith in my eyes. That’ll change.

After 2 laps (about 17 miles in):

Some of my pacers:

Coming in on lap 3:

After completing the race. My optimism has been replaced with endorphins… look at the dopey smile. I look little the worse for wear, however:

I had an epiphany yesterday, regarding Back on My Feet‘s ultramarathon.

My brother’s been extremely helpful with the ultra, eliminating my concerns with parking and driving home afterwards (I doubt I’ll be in any condition to drive, after all). He, together with my fiance and some old teammates, plan on standing on the sidelines and offering whatever help is needed. They also want to jump in as pacers at the end of the race, to keep me focused and motivated.

Their support– which is by no means limited to this weekend– enables me to do great things. Without my pit crew, I wouldn’t have the focus I’ll need to complete a 50-miler.

I understand just how lucky I am. After all, there are many people in our world who never had such an amazing support system– Among them, the urban homeless represented by Back on My Feet. These are men and women who can achieve great things, if they just have the support.

Tomorrow, we will be their support. The relay teams, the joggers and ultramarathoners. The volunteers, whose sacrifices utterly dwarf mine. That was my realization.

My race is just one tiny struggle in a world of struggles. By perservering, I am joining, supporting, and being supported by our common humanity.

Today, as (implicitly) promised, I’ll provide you all with a little more information on Back on My Feet. This organization has been all over the news and, recently, The Today Show. Many of you have probably heard of it, but for those of you who haven’t, here goes.

Back on My Feet is an organization that uses running to develop healthy and productive habits in urban homeless. By joining this program and consistently running with the group, homeless people can earn funding for job training programs, scholarships, and housing. BOMF doesn’t provide food or shelter, focusing instead on long-term goals like employment and housing. In other words, getting people back on their feet.

There are also less measurable, though no less important, benefits to running with BOMF. I think that any runner can relate to the transformative power of our sport. It gives us something to be proud of, a sense of achievement. There are people in shelters throughout the US who can’t remember ever having felt proud of themselves. Who could better benefit from a running-induced boost in confidence, discipline, and self-esteem?

As I said before, BOMF’s message resonates strongly with my personal experience. In my short life, I’ve learned that a person can rise from any circumstance, to become exactly who they want to be. When you’re in a dark place though, it becomes easy to lose sight of that truth. I can attest to running’s capacity for lighting dark places, and for revealing human potential. It proves that we, and the world around us, can be greater than we are today. In this way, we are unlimited.

So, if this is a cause that you believe in strongly enough to support, you can do it here through team Turtlerunner.

Today I got an email that suggested my old Facebook was not entirely useless. I was dubious, but further examination only supported this possibility; indeed, I had been invited, via Facebook, to do something constructive.

The invitation came from Pat, an old cross country buddy who ran with me in high school. Well, that doesn’t quite describe our relationship. He ran his ass off all around our home town, and I desperately tried to keep up. He beat the crap out of me day after day, and showed me just how intense running can be. He’s a nut- the kind of nut that champion runners are made of.

This being the case, Pat has decided to raise money for Back on My Feet by participating in their 20in24 Relay. But not just that- Pat will attempt to run 100 miles over the course of the event. He’s trying to raise $600 by the 18th, so he’s looking for sponsors.

Thus we get back to my contrived introduction: He’s been inviting people (via facebook) to sponser this act of nuttiness. I thought that I would try and help spread the word. BOMF has such an amazing philosophy on helping people (check their site out if you haven’t heard of them), and this would be a good opportunity to show them some support. And of course there’s Pat, who deserves to succeed with such a noble goal.