Christmas Comes Early... Again

An Opportunity to Run Counter-Clockwise

Elevation Profile Comparisons

This is uncanny.  I'm not sure if I have a lot of good karma stored up or what?  For the second year in a row, my name was selected in the Hardrock lottery.  Somehow despite the long odds I made it in again.    It was certainly not something I expected and I was in mild disbelief when I returned from a run this afternoon and saw the results in the Twitter feed.  With a starting field of only 140 drawn from over 800 applicants, the organization now has three separate lotteries to handle veterans, newbies, and everyone else, with a calculus for each to weight each person based on previous applications, finishes, service, etc.  Suffice it to say, it has become quite difficult to get into this event.

Hardrock no doubt means a lot of things to a lot of people, but my experience at Hardrock this past summer was my defining moment of 2012.  When I finished the run one of the first thoughts to cross my mind was that I really wanted to come back for a chance to run this course in the counter-clockwise direction.  Normally it might take a few days or weeks to warm to the idea of a repeat, but not so for me.  And with today's lottery draw, I have just that opportunity.

As a lover of mountains, the rugged Hardrock course through the San Juans is my kind of endurance event and plays to my strengths, but I am as humbled as I was last year to once again be a part of this run.  In fact, perhaps I am feeling even more humbled this time around, knowing the challenge that lies ahead.  Afterall, ignorance was bliss.  Let the training begin again.

In spite of this good news, recent current events leave me with a heavy heart this weekend and in this season of joy, I wish for peace and healing.