Welcome to this episode of Grits, Guts, and Determination, The Leadville Race Series Podcast, a leading authority for all things Leadville! The show is hosted by Cole Chlouber, son of race founder Ken Chlouber, and it takes us on a story-telling journey of the rich, nearly forty-year history of this race. In each episode, we hear eccentric stories from Leadville community members, and along the way learn the tips and tricks to get to the line this summer! Today's episode features guest William "Doc" Wenmark, whose experience with entrepreneurship and distance running ultimately led him to where he is now: about to turn 75 as a mountain biker with 18 Leadville finishes under his belt and no stop in sight!

While most listeners know him as a biker, he started out as a runner, and more specifically a marathoner and then an ultra-marathoner. Doc explains how his 104-marathon career started in the early 70's, with a nearly 6-hour first run driving him into training for a sub-3 hour time, writing a running curriculum called ALARC, and channeling the lessons in grit he learned from family and military service into his running. ALARC evolved into different coaching efforts over time, and even took on a philanthropic nature through its annual Ice Dive! Doc has served as the ‘Ed Fitz’ race director, and in '92 he found Leadville's 100-mile run (or rather, Leadville found him!). The Leadville 100 was known, even then, as the Everest of Ultras, and it took Doc 6 attempts to finish the race - with a time of 28 hours, 39 minutes.

Outside of running and biking, Doc has faced another Everest: his day job and its efforts to change the face of healthcare in America! He has been in the medical field since his days as a military medic, and he spent much of his career creating one of the nation's first private urgent care networks. He crafted the network in his home state of Minnesota before eventually selling to a large urgent care system. Doc wrote Bill's Book as a how-to for others, has served as President of the North American Association for Ambulatory Urgent Care, and even worked on the place of urgent care in Medicare. Ultimately, he concludes, the entrepreneurial urge, desire to work hard, and commitment to accomplish great things are simply part of his DNA!

In '96, Doc's drive toward reinvention, improvement, and relevance brought him to the Leadville bike race. With 18 finishes at this point, Doc has countless stories to tell, with their bottom line being his consistent message about Leadville: you must respect it, because Leadville won't accept anything less. As the episode wraps up, Doc shares about how, as an older runner, he values the Stage Race. He also talks about how he values the Leadville race founders, has been profoundly shaped in all of life by Leadville, and would advise listeners to cheer, volunteer, trust what's between their ears, and persevere!

Thanks for tuning in! Don’t forget to like, share, and subscribe, and we hope to see you on the line in August!