Fans of the National Lampoon Vacation films will recognize this homage to the scene from European Vacation when the Griswolds get stuck in a roundabout in London and can’t move to the left to get out.  They keep passing the same scenery over and over for hours.  This is what I expected from my first foray into a fixed time race.  However, it wasn’t as bad as I expected.
Back on Sunday November 14^th, I participated in the Rhode Island 6 Hour Ultramarathon and Relay in Warwick, RI.  Being busy at work and going on vacation around Thanksgiving, I never finished my race report.  So I waited for a slow time on the Bimbler website and resurrected by uncompleted report.  So here it is.

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Sweet and Savory, Cats and Dogs, Fire and Ice, Yin and Yang… How do these pairs “fit”? Seemingly, they fit purely because they do not. They are opposites, utterly unfit to be in each others’ presence, and yet, in their differences, they somehow thrive on their reactions to each other. [Read more...]

Since Dec 12, 2009 I have been awaiting this event. I asked Mr. Bimble to put Hellgate on the upcoming events list… 364 days until Hellgate. There had been multiple times throughout the past year when I thought going back was a brilliant idea and multiple time when I thought going back was a miserable idea. Either way I knew I had to go back. [Read more...]

It is a journey of tradition and right of passage, who will be next?

A Thursday departure to Hamburg, PA, a short stay at the Mirotel and quick pilgrimage to Cabala’s. This year, the cycle was unexpectedly broken with a flat car battery and a brief moment of concern about the time it was going to take to reach the Virginia. We were gathered with Loopy, hoping to banish the gremlins of a DNF from last year, Forrest providing support and seeking vicarious experience in preparation for his Beast bid in 2011. ET calmly studying in the background, was looking to repeat his impressive performance of 2009, while Spuds and I, ‘old hands’ at the Hellgate experience, were going to be crew less in Virginia. Hmm, maybe there is a movie in that!
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Since the first time I have heard of the Spring Loop, I have been trying to get out of running it. As it turned out the times it had been run by other Bimbler’s I had not been able to go. For a short time I thought I might see how long I could hold out from getting roped into running it. Deemed by Ultra to be the significant mental and possibly physical challenge to training for long distance events it seemed fitting to run the Spring Loop before Hellgate. It also happened that the best date for me to run it was on my birthday. So on Nov.14th I ran my first Spring Loop!! [Read more...]