The Stubborn Tortoise

I read ⁠an article⁠ about how running clubs in New York City are overrun (ha ha) with singles looking to meet others. The problem is, the subjects said, these clubs are almost as useless as dating apps.

It got me thinking about my own experiences. First and foremost, the trail community is my tribe. I unwittingly found a group of like-minded people who are altruistic, tough and don't mind getting dirty. I have had a few instances where I've met some guys whom I thought shared a connection, especially an aid-station volunteer I met at Pedernales Falls in 2013, when I DNF'd due to heat exhaustion. We had some great conversations but nothing came of it, and that was fine.

I did a little crowdsourcing yesterday on some FB trail forums and found a few people who met their spouse or significant other through the trail/running scene. Others have not.

Bottom line: I don't run races or volunteer with an ulterior motive. But sometimes, friendships and potential romances are forged in the unlikliest of places.

t helps to keep things in perspective when you're beating yourself down. And other stories.

I have been attempting to recommit to running/power hiking for about a year and a half. This time, I am getting serious. I miss spending hours on my feet on weekends. I've been committed to running/hiking a few times per week and at least once on the weekend. I think I just needed the mental break.

Courtney Lumpkin Classen weighed 334 pounds in 2012. She had gastric bypass surgery and began walking, and then began to run...she has finished multiple marathons and her first 50K in March. She has her sights set on a 50-miler.

It's been a minute. I recap my trip to Florida. Despite my absolute love for where I used to live, I realized this week I can't go back. But, it will be a nice place to visit. Running on a beach is not what I remembered and it is dang hot.

I've signed up for the Big Bend 20K in January, which will be an adventure.

Just catching up.

Photo: the view from my back-row window as we finally left Miami on July 22.

My return to running is not the stellar triumph I'd imagined, but it's there. And I don't suck as bad as before.

Stories about the impending trip to Florida, smoke detector nonsense and the death of a bat. Not proud. But, I hope y'all can forgive me.

After six or so weeks, I am back at the podcasting thing. And the running thing, too.

It's been a nice break but I'm glad to be back. I have pretty much restarted running from scratch. (Like, I'm in a 10K walk-run training group.) It's humbling but necessary. I've been dealing with some aggravations in the hip and lower back but am trying to ease myself into it.

Oh, and there is talk of my YOLO summer, which involved seeing Orville Peck with my sister and a return to Florida mid-July to reconnect with some former colleagues.

And, I am continuing to work on my new podcast, "Sitting at the Kids' Table," which may also be released as a book.

So, I've been busy.

Welcome to season 6!

I've been doing this thing almost every week for close to five years. Admittedly, I've hit a wall: I'm not running, racing or volunteering like before, and it is getting to be a challenge to find weekly guests.

So, I'm going to not force this for a couple of months, or until I have some more stories to tell.

I do this as a labor of love, so it's not like it's a job.

Meanwhile, I am ramping up the training, little by little.

I've also got another podcast on a burner that I have been kicking around for years. It will be called, "Sitting at the Kids' Table," and is about being 40, leaving behind a successful journalism career to start grad school with the hopes of teaching journalism.

This notion got a nudge when I watched (and rewatched) Netflix's great show called "Baby Reindeer," which is created and acted by the amazing Richard Gadd. Our stories are personal, but his is written with a near-perfect dramatic arc.

I am not sure if my grad-school days are close to being as compelling as that show, but I do know both come from an authentic place.

Anyway, still working out how I will do this, but it won't be boring.

Looking forward to re-joining the trail-running community, getting more stories to tell, both personal and otherwise.

Until then, thanks for listening.

This is such a fun chat with two of my RGV friends, Coach and Hundo. They drove 38 hours straight from Mission, Texas to Marlboro, Mass. on April 11. By the 13th, they were setting up 10-foot-long interlocking barricades that weighed up to 30 pounds apiece, alongside 70-something local women.

The RGV duo were not volunteers. They were paid $350 per day to work on the course and to do operations. The days were long and hard, but memorable as they worked behind the scenes at the world's oldest annual marathon.

Mendoza, a retired high school coach from Donna High School ISD, first began working behind the scenes as a volunteer in 2019. From there, he returned each year, but as a paid worker.

Mendoza gained experience to help him direct South Texas International Marathon, a point-to-point race that goes through cities along the US-Mexico border.

Montalvo is a retired high school science and engineering teacher who coached the Sharyland High School robotics team. He is also an accomplished ultrarunner.

Here is their recount of working behind the scenes at the 128th Boston Marathon.

Robert Gonzales ran his first 50K about a month ago.

He is 74 years old.

He had a mishap during that race that later required surgery, but he finished the race in 8:47, well ahead of others much younger.

Gonzales tells me about his running journey, with credit to his coach, Christi Myers Faulk, and his daughter, Roxanne Lockhart.

He is not ready to stop at a 50K. He now has his sights on getting a 100-mile buckle.