When Shannon Mick started running it was doing a bunch of 5Ks for several years. A few years later she graduated to the marathon distance where over-crowded corrals, pushy runners and the whole road aspect just left a sour taste in her mouth. In fact, she hated a lot about it and was left unsatisfied.

It wasn't until a rough day when she was home alone where she turned on the tv to decompress and her life was altered. Staring at the screen in front of her was a Badwater 135 documentary and it triggered something deep inside.Shannon was hooked immediately by the intense and grueling race that played out in front of her.

What happened next was simply unimaginable. Shannon literally did a Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde transformation and threw road races to the curb and embraced nature and the trails. She soon became obsessed with the 50 mile distance and has not looked back. In fact, she has even dragged her husband along for the run to fuel the competitiveness between each other and spend more time together.

Through this episode with Shannon Mick, a national certified counselor and licensed professional counselor from Pennsylvania, I learn a lot about her passion of trail running and what fuels her to keep going when she faces adversity head on. We also dive into the basics of survival that an ultra- runner needs when running these long distances: training, hydration, mental toughness and desire to keep going.

I hope you will enjoy this episode as much as I did. I hope you will follow her on social media or YouTube if you have not already. @instagram -be.short.run.ultra - YouTube - @shannonbeshortrunultra 

See you down the trail,

The Scarecrow Runner