@whatrunsyou My position in the race took me completely by surprise midway through the second loop of 15.5. I turned to Brian and said, “don’t get excited yet, I’ve got a long way to go. I’m going to stay true to my goal of having fun out here. Whatever happens happens.” Though I could feel the competitive spirit inside of me growing as I danced from rock to rock and made the woods my playground. 🪨 🙌 I heard Brian drop back to audio message What Runs You Team Captain’s Molly & Taylor to let them know how I was doing. That made me want the win even more. I had Brian physically behind me, the WRY team rallying and my family waiting at the finish line. I could feel all of that energy. ⚡️ This race wasn’t without challenges… 4K feet of elevation, dirt, mud, sooooo much mud, gravel, switchbacks, grass, single track, leaves, rocks, roots, cold, wind. All the elements of a good Ultra. I had broken my race out into blocks of 90 minutes and planned my fueling accordingly. My ramen noodles froze, I forgot to refill my water so I could make my carb mix in my second block of 90. Then I left my fuel bag for the second 15.5 at the aid station. 🙄 It didn’t matter though. I was ready to navigate through it all. I was healthy and completely in control of my race experience. 🫶 I think one of my athletes summarize it best… ”maybe Marathon Alysha had to walk so Ultra Alysha could run.” I would not have been at this race if it wasn’t for getting the flu at CIM and a DNF. First place female overall 🏆 Wouldn’t change a thing 💙🥲 #whatrunsyou #becauseyoucan #beginnerrunner #learntorun #trailrunning #ultramarathon #marathontraining #ultrarunning #distancerunning #motherrunner #running #runningmotivation #runningcoach #runninginspiration #runningtips #mindset #runtok #roadrunning #lovetorun #iamarunner