My next run that I decided to do was 200 miles. My goal was to complete the run and raise money for CHOC Children’s again. The course was the same as my 100 mile run, but I was going to complete the 100 mile loop twice.
My first 100 mile charity run was a success and I think because of that, support was easier to come by. Also, this was back in 2007 and running 200 miles had only been done by a few people. People were interested in seeing an 18 year old push his body.
It was an unusually cold Southern California winter when I toed the line for my 200 mile run.
I remember my body just felt tired. I even told my Dad at one point that my legs just didn’t feel the way they should. Sometimes when running ultras, you just feel that way, so I ignored it and pushed on. at about 85 miles, my legs just started to hurt. We decided to change my course and run to El Toro High School and I would complete the run on the track. Yes, that’s correct I would run 100+ miles around a 400 meter track. Crazy I know, but we felt that the soft track would be better on my legs.
After running about 30 miles around the track, my temperature began to drop. That was an issue that kept happening. We would get my temperature up, but it would drop right back down. After battling this issue for a few hours, my crew and I decided it would be best if I stopped. At about 124 miles my 200 mile attempt was done.
I was heart broken. I felt as If I let a bunch of people down.
It took 10 years for me to build up the courage to attempt 200 miles again.
Fast forward to 2016. My wife Jenel and I are expecting our first child. I get that itch that only endurance athletes can relate to. I wanted to attempt 200 miles again. This time is a bit different though, I had to convince by pregnant wife to let me run 200 miles before our son is born. This was not a hard thing to accomplish, after all, my wife has always been very supportive with my running and she quickly agrees to me attempting this distance again.
I plot a slightly different 200 mile course around Southern Orange County and pick a date of February 10, 2017. Again, I chose CHOC Children’s for my charity. To make a long story short and not bore you with the details, I was able to complete this run.
Fast forward to today, I have that same itch. I want to see how far the human body can be pushed. That is why in 2020 I will be running 400 miles nonstop and raise money for The Ryan Seacrest Foundation. Follow me in my journey.