Glasgow tae Somewhere ...: Born to Run Ultramarathon ...

The Born to Run ultra was at the end of a road trip with the best adventure co-conspirator a beard could have. Before arriving at Los Olivos, Sally and I had started in Vegas and been up through Death Valley and Yosemit - a post for another time.

Born to Run saw a whole bunch of folks I knew from the Copper Canyons run get back together for a weekend of well ...stuff ...lots of stuff. For me, these folks are more than just pals ...they are my tribal family and I love them very dearly indeed. We may come from all over ...but together, that doesn't matter.

I would try and describe it but Luis Escobar the race director and a guy I'm proud to call a friend says it better ...

Amigos,

The Born To Run Ultra Marathon Extravaganza can not be described on the static pages of a magazine. There is no adequate podcast, YouTube video or Facebook post. Until you have made the trek to the ranch in Los Olivos and spent the night under the stars and until you have literally danced in the California dirt and sang the songs and drank water from the well and until you have run through the oak groves and across the dusky ridges you will not fully appreciate the experience.

Born To Run is trail running at its finest and much, much more. We created this event as an experiment. What would happen if we invited running friends from across the country and beyond?

What would happen if more than seven hundred happy people showed up and spent three days and two nights behind the closed gate of a private cattle ranch, with no amenities? As corny as it may sound, the answer is, love. At first glance, the Born To Run Ultra Marathon is a 10 mile, 50km, 100km and 100 mile trail run. But after a few minutes on the ranch you quickly realize that something deeper and very special is happening here.

The words, Woodstock, Grateful Dead Show and Burning Man immediately come to mind. Personally, I would describe it as Summer Camp for Running Hippies. Three days of camping, running games, bola races, beer miles, live music, dancing, archery, arts, tattoos, guitars, cowboy hats, rattlesnakes, shotguns, piñatas, food, drink, socializing, Tarahumara Indians and running - lots and lots of running. In addition to all of that, there is more because Born To Run has become the icon of running harmony and a celebration of good things between all running cultures.

As our Tarahumara visitors taught us, "When you run on the earth, and with the earth, you can run forever." 2014 marked the forth edition of the event and it continues to be a wild success. The Born To Run Ultra Marathon has matured into it’s own living, breathing, organic, weird, friendly animal. I honestly can't imagine where we are going from here, but I am very excited to find out. The greatest gift that we have to share with each other is the gift of opportunity. Give the people around you a chance, give them the opportunity to succeed. Scatter good seeds and soon good things will grow. Registration for Born To Run 2015 will be open soon and I hope that you have an opportunity to join us. www.allwedoisrun.com

At the risk of omitting someone, I want to thank everyone who participated. Each one of you brought something special to the event. You all pitched in to support the ranch owners, musicians, sound technicians and support crews. Your contributions helped enhance the lives of our young Tarahumara visitors. Your participation as responsible, self sufficient athletes made the run a seamless success. Congratulations to all of the runners and all of the winners. Thank you to all of the volunteers, in particular the aid station crew leaders, Bill and Paula Kee, Ken Hamada, Beverly Escobar, Karla Norling. Special thanks to Mark Eaton, Dianne Feitsche, Steve Mackel, LeAnn Zunich and all of the members of the Sole Runner Club. Thank you to Caity McCardell, creator and host of Unapologetically Ultra the podcast. Thanks to Stefan Podell our acting accountant and raffle chairman. Thank you Metalachi for being completely insane. Thank you to my Lunatic friends from the LUNA Sandal Company, Tom Norwood, Scott Smuin and Ted McDonald, I appreciate your professional support and personal friendship.

Thank you to George Plomarity and all of the fine folks at Patagonia. Thanks to Jonathan Toker the founder of SaltStick. Thank you and mahalo to my Hawaiian friends Joel Jenkins who created the finishers plaques and akabill who handcrafted the finishers amulets. Thanks to Tracy Thomas for the beautiful ceramic mugs. Thank you Greg Lowe and the Chumash Casino who generously donated the bottled water and generator. Thank you Robert Molina who is always in the background doing the work that nobody else will do. Thank you John Priester and Jill Katzer for the kick ass surfboard. Thanks to my best friend Doug Rich who is always ready to help with anything, anytime, anywhere.

Thanks to my family and sister Julie Fernandez who cooked for three days straight. Thank you Jeff Genova who came all of the way from Arkansas to document the event with his camera. Thank you Negative Split Running Company for managing the timing and results. Thank you Maria Walton, none of this could happen without you. Thanks to my local dirtbag running friends, family, posse and tribe.....you know who you are. Finally and most of all, thank you to my wife Beverly who for over thirty years has supported all (most......some) of my running shenanigans.