The Stubborn Tortoise

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.

I had Easter lunch with my friend, Jessica. Over the course of our conversation, we agreed to do the Wild Hare 50K in November. We also agreed to hold each other accountable in our respective training plans.

Another form of commitment is that I am signing up to be the team captain for The Flying Chanclas relay team this year at Snowdrop.

I'm looking for a few folks willing to loop around a .69-mile course for a couple of hours throughout the 55-hour event. That would likely mean you would have three shifts, or be...

I reached WAAAAAY into the archives and uprooted this old gem from the early days of this podcast. This is about the relationships you make while on the trails. It's fun, short and sweet. Enjoy!

I have talked to my fair share of gritty runners, but Lisa Tuckwood may be the grittiest.

Maybe it's her background in the Army or maybe it's just how she is, but regardless, Lisa is one tough lady.

She's always been athletic, but didn't start running races until 2015 -- three months after back surgery.

Her record speaks for itself. No DNFs, but enduring some incredible challenges.

She's got a 200-miler this month in Georgia, followed by a couple of hundos later this year.

Feel inspired. I was.

This week, I thought it might be helpful to offer advice and tips to those who are new to trail running. You generally won't see people holding signs and cheering for you in the woods, like you might on the road. I go over things like shoes, hydration, sports watches and more. I don't cover everything, but there are some useful tidbits if you want to hit the dirt.

After years of running at Colorado Bend State Park at night, I finally got to see it during daylight hours. It's almost more gnarly because you can see stealth rocks that catch your toes, the narrow, terrifying rock ledges and tombstone-sized rocks.

I also found new parts of the park where I'd never been. I learned that you should never ignore the race director's pre-race briefing, where they go over the details of the course. Had I listened, I would have heard about the multitude of water crossings, like seven of them (I didn't count, but someone...

Two of my San Antonio Off-Road-Running friends joined me this week to talk about completing their first 100K (62 miles).

What sets this effort apart from others is that they tackled it under extraordinary conditions: extreme water, mud and roots.

Huntsville State Park, on a good day, is challenging with its crazy tree roots cluttering the trails.

This one sounded insane: knee-deep water in sections, wet feet and MUD.

We talk about their experiences and background.

Plus, I recount a fairly epic cold/windy 10K I signed up for on...

Steve Carter is a Michigan-born, San Antonio-based retired Air Force veteran. He is also an accomplished cyclist and ultrarunner. We chronicle his running and cycling career, including him crewing for Kenneth Anderlitch, who spent 19 days in 2022, running across Texas. Steve has some big ultra goals coming up, along with a couple of cycling events. Oh, and he finished Rocky Raccoon 50-miler this past weekend, with an impressive 10:19 finishing time.

Kate Motsko and I share a common conceit: we've both received the Spirit of Dan Keitz award, the highest honor bestowed by Tejas Trails. I won it in 2022 (and had no idea that it existed) and Kate got it this year. It is well-deserved.

She has a storied career as an ultrarunner but also has sustained some epic injuries along the way.

She's taken up cycling in the meanwhile and has some ambitious goals.

Last fall she was the assistant race director for the inaugural Great Springs trail race in San Marcos.

Timothy Sneed, admittedly, dealt with addiction to stimulants, off and on, for years. He is finally clean and is living away from bad influences in Kerrville, Texas. He is wicked fast on 50Ks and loves the trail scene. I cajoled him into doing the Cactus Rose 100K next year and offered to crew for him. I love that runners are so suggestible. (I should know.)