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Patagonia EVERmore Trail Running Shoe Review – Big Shoe in a Light Package

Summary – Big Shoe in a Light Package. Some slight quality issues.

Patagonia Evermore - It's a trail shoe. She is going to be a little dirty.

Patagonia EVERmore – It’s a trail shoe. She is going to be a little dirty.

Over the last year, Patagonia launched the EVERmore trail shoe. I received a test-drive pair and over the last three months have been wearing them in nearly everything Texas and New Mexico can throw at them – rugged rocks, toe grabbing roots, hard-pack dirt, sand, technical, groomed, steep and tame trail environments. Scampers have ranged from 5-17 miles.

Before we get to my trail experience let’s get to know the EVERmore.

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A Chat with Sabrina Little: United States 24-Hour Record Holder and Newly Texan

Have you heard the name Sabrina Little?

How about Sabrina Moran?

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Truth be told, they are the same person as Sabrina recently got married. That cover has now been fully blown. Sorry.

Sabrina is a fast-footed runner that loves the ultra distances and puts a fair amount of focus on the 24-Hour ultra events. While having both a great spirit and a jazzy sense of humor, she will smile and maybe share a joke as she smoothly runs by you.

In May of this year, Sabrina represented the United States at the 24-Hour World Championship in Steenbergen, Netherlands where she scampered 244,669 meters (152.0302 miles), finished second female, top American woman, and set a new American record! Woot bada Woot!

Over the last year, Sabrina has made her current home in Texas.

Enjoy as Sabrina was super kind in answering a couple coffee refills worth of questions and shares a bit about her running life, the 24-Hour Worlds experience, and her favorite flavor of ice cream.

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Jemez Mountain Trail Run 2013 Results

Over 500 runners laced them up, filled their hydration bottle or pack, kissed their loved ones, and spread BodyGlide in all those important areas before embarking on a half marathon, 50 km, or 50 mile adventure in the mountains of Los Alamos, New Mexico at the Jemez Mountain Trail Run.

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Copyright Jim Stein Photography / jimsteinphotography.com

Mild temps in the upper 50sF made the early morning prep quite pleasant for all. Sunny skies and rising temps that reached 80F required a bit of extra attention to hydration and electrolyte balance as a good portion of the course leaves you exposed to the elements but also able to see the beautiful images throughout your journey.

Since last year, there were a few course tweaks for the 50 km and 50 mile folks with the half marathon remaining the same.

The biggest grunt for the half marathoners is the climb up to Guaje Ridge which has you peaking out near 9000 feet.

The ultra boys and girls scamper up and down Pajarito mountain which takes you up to 10,500 feet once or twice depending on your adventure.

Results

Copyright

Copyright Jim Stein Photography / jimsteinphotography.com

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Snakebite First Aid on the Trails – Do’s, Don’ts, and Dry Bites

Scenario: You’re running out at Hill Country State Natural Area training for the Cactus Rose 100. You’re on the sotol torture trail near the Three Sisters when your left foot lands on this guy.

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Or it could have been this guy.

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Or this guy.

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It was hard to tell what brand he was because as soon he bit through your minimalist trail shoe, he disappeared under the sotol.

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Meet the Tribe: James Reeves of Arkansas

Arkansas runner, James Reeves,  is next up in our Meet the Tribe series. James can been seen pinning a bib on at races up to the 50 mile distance. James most recently ran the 25 km at the War Eagle Trail Run in northern Arkansas, where he was fifth across the line.

James at 2013 Rocky Raccoon 50 mile. (Photo: David Hanenburg)

James cruising at the 2013 Rocky Raccoon 50 mile. (Photo: David Hanenburg)

Enjoy the Q&A with the running farmer!

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Acoma Seed Run 2013 Race Report – Herd Mentality: #FAIL

My experience at the Acoma Seed Run 2013 blessed me in more ways than just getting out for a great run in some beautiful weather, with wonderful people. It taught me a lesson. And lessons, if learned, are generally valuable.

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The Acoma Seed Run is a local run put on and held by the people of the Acoma Pueblo which is located a little over an hour west of Albuquerque, New Mexico. The race takes place every Memorial Day. I fell in love with race last year when I ran it for the first time. I was taken in by the people, the support, the beauty of the area and the race itself. The miles, eight of them, mostly on dirt and sand, are kind of just a bonus of getting to spend the morning in Acoma.

Photo: Copyright

Photo: Copyright Mike Torivio

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Drop Bag Efficiency – What’s In Your Drop Bag?

olgak_articlesAs the summer fast approaches, many of us around the country are getting ready for a big goal, destination race, or simply for yet another long one. And as the newly “qualified” ultrarunning tribe, you wonder: what do I take with me to make sure I have enough to help me but not too much to distract me?

That that is the key challenge – “enough but not too much”. Back even when I started a dozen years ago the aid stations provided little besides water, soft drinks (some kind of combination of pop soda and Gatorade) and maybe a few cookies and chips if you’re lucky. And that was OK. The devices to carry fuel supply on/with you were also cumbersome and the fuel itself hadn’t become so tightly packed (and various). Yet, of course, folks ran, and ran well.

Now it is absolutely possible to go into a race up to 100 miles in distance and bring nothing beyond a water carrier (either a water bottle or a CamelBak). There is a full spread at the table! From all kind of pop drinks, electrolyte replacement drinks, sweet foods of M&Ms, PB&Js, and cookies (at least 3-4 kinds and even home-made), to nuts, various chips, boiled potatoes, grilled cheese sandwiches, soups of many names, and I am not even getting into a third of the list. Yet we keep dragging our own stuff and stuffing our own drop bags.

There are certainly reasons for that and a smartly organized drop bag can save your race. First of all, some of us have certain food intolerances or preferences tested out on training runs and other (sometimes a little shorter) races, and we’d like to have something that does not upset our stomachs, gives us perking lasting energy and lifts our spirits. Secondly, as we enter into races 50 miles and more and especially over mountainous terrain, that often means the time spent out there and the conditions (temperature, sun/rain/clouds, altitude) vary greatly, and we need to be prepared. If we’re talking some of more ragged 100km races and certainly 100 mile races, we absolutely surely hit the night time, what means warmer clothes and a light (whether a headlamp or a handheld). Also, for some races there are stretches of longer distances between aid stations where you need to carry more water than in other stretches at the same race, and you may want to pack an extra disposable water bottle for that.

So, let’s start with the bare minimal.

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