Folks that follow me on Twitter might already know that I am involved in a wonderful company called Trason Events, headed by the amazing Ann Trason. What I have not yet made public (but hey, here we go) is that I am now Ann’s agent & representative alongside my previous role as Director of Digital, where I handled web site duties as well as a portion of the social media.
I cannot stress how honored I am to have been chosen for this role. It is, frankly, mind-blowing. And a touch terrifying, in an amazing way.
But that’s not what this post is about. This post is about the 30 seconds after I was chosen, where I thought a lot about some of the folks that are a part of this company.
- Ann Trason, legendary ultra runner. She’s won more Western States than I’ve run races. Re-read that. WON. Yep.
- Samantha Pruitt, race director at RaceSLO, and ultra distance finisher.
- Misti Sayani, co-race director of Overlook Endurance Runs & multi-time, multi-distance ultra distance finisher.
And me, The Fat Panther, who once managed to mostly fake my way through 26.2 miles of Sacramento streets & sidewalks, & who is currently so out of shape that the thought of the trail 1/2 marathon I have set up for next month leaves me a bit frightened as to whether I’ll survive. This shall not do, no, not at all.
So. Here’s the deal. As of this October, every member of the above listed team will have finished at least one ultra. Consider this fair warning, The Fat Panther is going to run an ultra. Or walk an ultra. Or do something that involves movement towards a finish line 50 kilometers from where I started. Fur will fly. I will consume things, and possibly they will eject from an orifice or 3. Hopefully not that, but hey, gonna go with probabilities here.
The Ultra I will be bouncing through like a coked up Tigger is the Overlook Endurance Run, which ambles across the same trails as some of the most legendary races on the planet. Western States. Tevis Cup. American River Canyon.
How in blazes am I going to do this? Scroll up. My team includes an amazing array of runners that will help me succeed. Ann will help me with training. Sam will kick my ass from here to Sweden if I slack off, as will Misti.
And if I can do it, YOU can do.
Who wants to make The Overlook Endurance Run their first ultra?
(Or, if you aren’t quite there, but want something a little more than a trail 1/2, you can sign up for the 30K. But you won’t be able to whip me and yell “RUN FASTER OBESE OCELOT!” for my entire run.)