On this episode, you will hear about my experience running the Mt. Mitchell Heartbreaker 55K that took place on Saturday, March 23, 2024. Somehow I came in first lady and 11th overall with a time of 6:59:59...right under that 7 hours! Turned out to be a beautiful day of running with unexpected views, new friends, and lots of grumbling about gravel roads. :) Needless to say, it was an amazing day to be out on the trails. Thank you to Brandon Thrower, with Tanawha Adventures, for putting on this event. Also thank you to the sponsors for the sick awards...beautifully handcrafted logo wood carving by Jonathan Ibach, a handmade medal by Hannah Thrower, a free pair of shoes from La Sportiva, gift card from Mountain Running Company, and some delicious coffee from Victoire Coffee Company. Wow! Also thank you to Kim Greene for crewing me at Neal's Creek, to my family for cheering me to the finish, to all the volunteers for your encouragement and service, and to all the athletes that were out there grinding like me. A special thank you to the fierce and strong ladies that pushed me to run my best, especially Becca Morris and Becca Johnson (2nd and 3rd female). You are beasts, and it was an honor to race with you. Congratulations to all who ran both the 55K and the 50 miler. So proud of every single one of you! Sorry it is just my voice on this one, but I hope you enjoy!

Tanawha Adventures

La Sportiva

Mountain Running Company

Jonathan Ibach (woodworks)

Message me via Instagram, @facingvert, or email me at [email protected].

My gear: Nike Wildhorse Trail Shoes, Black Diamond Poles, Salomon 12 pack

Nutrition: Untapped Maple, Gu Liquid Energy, Gu Roctane, Probar Chews, Cliffs Bloks

Thank you for listening!

Such a fun experience meeting and chatting with coach, ultra runner, business owner, mom and wife-Tera Pruett. Instantly, I was struck by her confidence, her vibrant spirit and her sense of adventure. Tera's goal is to help others accomplish their goals...whether that is on the trails, in the gym, or simply being brave enough to take on adventure that didn't think was possible. She genuinely cares about the success of her athletes, showing them how capable they are even when they feel they are not. I would have her as my cheerleader any day! Besides all the other hats she wears, Tera is the force behind the Asheville Trail Running Film Festival for the past few years. The film festival will take place on April 21st at 4:30 PM at the Orange Peel, and I look so forward to attending this event! For more information, go to https://trailfilmfest.com/event/asheville-north-carolina/. Hope to see you all there! Thank you, Tera, for ALL you do for our trail running community and for sitting down to chat with me.

Listen and see how UNSTOPPABLE she truly is.

Tera's website: https://www.terapruett.com/

Tera's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tera_pruett/

Tera's Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tera.pruett.3

Follow Facing Vert on Instagram, @facingvert, and also please message me there. Thank you thank you thank you for listening!

The Mt. Mitchell Heartbreaker 50M/55K is coming up on March 23, 2024, and both events are sold out! On this episode, I sit down with race director, Brandon Thrower, to go through every detail of these two events. As it says on Tanawha Adventures website, "The Mount Mitchell Heartbreaker 50M/55K is an extremely scenic tour of "the other Pisgah" in the shadow of Mount Mitchell.  Starting at the foot of the mountains in Old Fort, NC at Camp Grier, the race takes runners up and down some of the most stunning, quad-busting, and heart-pounding trails in all of Western North Carolina, eventually taking the 50 milers over three 6,000 ft+ peaks including Mount Mitchell itself, making this the highest 50 miler east of the Mississippi!"

I think you will definitely find this episode important if you are running the race, crewing, thinking about running this race in the future, or simply a fan. Brandon describes the required gear, important info for crew and spectators, a thorough course description and more. Thank you, Brandon, once again for coming on the podcast and giving us the inside scoop on another beautiful race. Enjoy!

Visit Tanawha's website for more info:

Tanawha Adventures: https://www.tanawhaadventures.com/mountmitchellheartbreaker

Tanawha Adventures' Instagram: @tanawha_adventures

Message me via Instagram, @facingvert, with any questions or comments. Thank you, as always, for listening!

*Warning...sensitive material is discussed in this episode*

Resilient. This one word sums up Rachel Blinn. I was looking forward to meeting Rachel and discussing how she recently crushed the Fierce Dragon H9 200 miler (unbelievable). But, I was also told she had a story that needed to be shared. Little did I know, Rachel has lived 100 lifetimes in her short 29 years. A life she tried to control which just caused it to spin wildly out of control. Insecurity, pain, addiction had her in its clutches, but finally, she fought her way out and allowed herself to recover. A horribly, beautiful story. From the very first few words, my jaw dropped, and I don't think I picked it up until the end. I think you will feel the same. Now running is where Rachel turns...it has always been there, but now it is a constant in her life. And boy, what she has accomplished out there on the trails is nothing short of amazing. "Life is a gift," she said, but Rachel, so are you. Thank you for sharing your story.

Rachel's Instagram: gothicfather777

Rachel's Strava

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I love doing this podcast, because I get to meet and get to know so many incredible people, and Randy Elliott is one of those. Randy continues to get stronger as a trail runner as the races come his way, but he is also an extremely talented musician, rock climber, owns and runs a successful business...all while juggling family life with his beautiful wife and two kiddos. I first heard of Randy when my husband was on a bike ride with some friends, and Randy came running up beside them as they were CLIMBING and carried on a conversation like it was nothing. He was so impressed with Randy, that it was the first thing he told me about when he got home after the ride. Since then, I have personally been able to see him crush the Hellbender 100 (4th overall), Shut-In Ridge Race (7th overall) and The Looking Glass 100k (4th overall). Randy, I am so glad we met, and I am so grateful for the time you spent with me sharing your passions and your struggles in both life and in running. I know we will run into each other many more times in the future, and I am looking forward to it. Again, thank you.

Randy's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rocknrandy/

Randy's Strava

Randy's Business: Mountain Town Electric

Follow Facing Vert on Instagram! @facingvert

Thank you, as always, for listening and for your encouragement.

Ally Carlton...beautiful, strong, brave and extremely fast. Ally and I met at the Hellbender 100 where she took 2nd overall female. I was fortunate enough to share a several miles with her during the first portion of the race, and instantly she struck me as genuine, humble, and one that truly seemed to care for others. Fast forward, and we have run into each other many times at cross country meets since she is the coach for Brevard Middle School. Then, on Thanksgiving Day, Ally goes out and captures the FKT for the Art Loeb Northbound while I was stuffing my face with turkey and mac and cheese! Not only that, but she then goes on to grab the Art Loeb FKT Southbound just 3 weeks later! What!? I was so delighted when she agreed to come on the podcast to talk about these two days, but also about how she discovered running, details of other races and simply life. We have already planned to chat again in the near future after she crushes another 100 this spring. Ally, thank you. You're all around awesome.

Ally doesn't have social media, but she does have Strava! Check her out here: https://www.strava.com/athletes/6894903

Thank you, thank you for listening! Follow us on Instagram and message me there...@facingvert

First of all, I want to wish all of you a happy new year! I am so excited what 2024 has to hold, and I would love to hear about the goals and aspirations you have for this new year.

Sheridan Byers-quiet, shy, humble, unassuming, completely kind, selfless, and an absolute savage on the trails. He would disagree of course, but he is always in the top tier of runners and he knows the trails in the Pisgah Forest area better than anyone I know. As we talked, he shared the health issues that he has had to learn to navigate through and how his body will respond. Through these adversities, he is only becoming stronger. Yes, he is competitive, but it truly is all about the joy of running for Sheridan and the peace the woods bring. We also talk about his amazing wife, Suzanne, and her ultra adventures, and he gives us insight on some of his favorite races and trails. Thank you, Sheridan, for the person you are. What a wonderful example you set for all of us. And THANK YOU for your willingness to come on Facing Vert...meant so much.

Sheridan's Strava

Thank you for listening to Facing Vert! I would love to hear from you. Please message me through Facing Vert's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/facingvert/

Brandon Thrower, with Tanawha Adventures, is back on the podcast to run through every detail of the upcoming South Mountain Marathons. The 50K and the marathon are both taking place on Saturday, January 6th followed by the half marathon on Sunday, January 7th. The South Mountains Marathons are held in the beautiful South Mountains State Park in North Carolina. I could tell that Brandon absolutely loves these trails, and his excitement to share it with the running community was palpable. Brandon, I am praying for perfect weather and a wonderful day! If you are running in one of these races, I must say, I am a little jealous. This is one I will put on my calendar for the future!

Tanawha Adventures' website

Tanawha Adventure's instagram

Brandon's instagram

Follow Facing Vert on Instagram and feel free to message me there! Thank you, as always, for listening!

I had the privilege of having Tim Nooney back on the podcast to talk about his experience running the Grindstone 100K and Looking Glass 100K. Listen as he gives us the details on what led to his DNF at Grindstone, but how it made stepping up to the start line of Looking Glass even sweeter. Let's just say...the stoke was high, and he was ready. Tim led the entire race until mile 57, and I so appreciate is openness to talk about what happened, how he felt, and how he will apply everything he learned to come back even stronger in 2024. Tim, you are amazing. You are just in the beginning of your race career, which makes it even more exciting to see what you are truly capable of. Watch out world.

Tim's Strava

Tim's Instagram: @timnooney

Tim's coach: Ryne Anderson- [email protected]

Tim's Sponsors:

La Sportiva

Mountain Running Company

Precision Hydration

Follow us on Instagram: @facingvert

Thank you for listening!

Once again, I had the privilege to sit down with the queen, Marisa Romeo. Marisa just absolutely demolished the Looking Glass 100k by coming in 1st female beating second place by almost 3 HOURS (and these are some super fast, super strong women). She also gave the men a run for their money, placing 6th overall in an extremely strong field. Listen as we run through every detail of her race...the highs and the definite lows. How she battled stomach issues throughout, and what she did to win the mental game. Marisa, you are amazing. Can't wait for more podcasts together.