A dozen years ago I happened upon a book in the middle of a dirt road surrounding a cotton field. It was a Bible. In Spanish.

I still wonder why someone who had likely carried it with them across the US-Mexico border suddenly dropped it and left it behind. Were they being chased by border patrol or some law enforcement agency? I will never know for sure.

But it got me to thinking about all of the random things trail runners find discarded in the woods, like they'll magically disappear.

A longish story about why I did not volunteer on Sunday at the Bandera trail race, plus some history. Also, why I won't be running Big Bend this weekend.

But the real story involves a terrific indoor rowing event at my favorite workout spot, overcoming mental obstacles and treating it like an ultra.

Oh, and I threw in a couple of journalism references, explained, along with a nod to my Documentary Film History class and the new Bob Dylan biopic.

I was reacquainted with some old friends from the RGV and made new ones during the Snowdrop 55-hour relay last week.

It was a great experience and I made new friends and supported a great cause.

Photo: l-r: Janelle Uroff, Silvia Garza, me, Shanty Rodriguez, Vicki Allen, Norma Lozano

Hey, it's New Year's Eve, and I am looking back a little on the year.

This episode gives you a very brief peek at Snowdrop, but more importantly, a look at some creeps from this past year.

The last of which I skillfully avoided at Snowdrop.

He does not deserve my time or attention, but here I am, outlining his creepy behavior.

For 2025, I only want to meet decent men who aren't social retards or who think they're my last hope for romance.

Yo: I'm good. I'd rather be alone than with a loser.

As I ready to embark on the Snowdrop 55-hour relay event at the end of the month, I spent some time looking back at times when I needed to muster up my own resilience to help others reach their goals. It is a well I need to rely on for the coming year.

I ran my first race in almost six months. It went well, except for the men who decided not to alert me that they were passing me, or who scared the hell out of me when they passed, or who almost ran me over on the course.

I am a 12-year veteran of trail races.

I am accustomed to the "on your left," courtesy.

Or "good job, runner!"

Yesterday, I seldom heard this, as guys nearly mowed me over because they thought they were going to win a course record.

It was a seismic shift in my experience with this sport and kind of concerned me.

One of the reasons I love this sport is for its egalitarian nature, and support of each other.

I didn't feel much of that yesterday at my FAVORITE race of the year.

Once I finished, I spotted some political signs asking people to vote Republican and mentioned Trump, Vance and Cruz.

The election was 11 days ago. Why are you showing these signs, much less at a dang trail race, where the expectation is to be egalitarian?

The offenders claimed that the "wind" (2 mph) blew away their signs of support for runners and left behind the hideous political crap.

They sat there for awhile, with those signs intimidating anyone who felt otherwise.

They obviously cared little for anyone who wasn't invested in their "cause."

Your team won. Yay. Just stop bringing your beliefs to MY happy place.

Essentially what the headline says.

You may not like the first half because of my personal views. But, I encourage you to stick around.

I'm baaaack!

Running/strong hiking is my new thing, which demonstrates that I am improving after a long hiatus.

Happy to be back.

Deepak Shukla has been a runner since he was a teenager. The sport comes easily to him, although he has had his share of finishes and DNFs.

The 38-year-old digital marketing manager did the Chicago Marathon, his first, in 4:40.

From there, he crossed over to the dark side: ultras. Rather than completing a 50K or 50-mile race, he opted for a 100K.

From there, he tackled the hundo, with mixed results.

In December, he will attempt his first 200-mile race: the Centurion Winter Downs, a single loop around the south of England (He is English, after all.) Runners get 96 hours to complete this feat.

We talk about his running career, the ups and downs of ultras and whether he listens to music on race day.

Very interesting person, now based in Northwest Italy.

It's something that every woman will experience, yet we're left feeling overwhelmed, demoralized and confused when this life change hits.

It is especially challenging when you're an active woman and it feels like overnight you've got a swim ring around your middle and your pants don't fit.

Mironda Meyer, a Concord, Vermont-based coach, is one of the administrators of Facebook's Menopausal Athletes page. She has a great website full of resources.

This is an episode for both women and men.