There will be (green) blood. Apparently there was a massive falling out between the race director and The Little A’Le’Inn management — certainly felt like the A’Le’Inn was in the wrong but who knows? What was clear upon the bus arrival (travel time: 2.5 hours from the Vegas Strip), was that this would now be the final year of the ET Full Moon Marathon. Already it had changed from previous incarnations, all of which had happened at midnight and in mid-August.
I was still hurting quite a bit from some heretofore undiagnosed shin splint or stress fracture or overuse or alien spore creature that would burst out of my leg at the most inopportune time. But it didn’t hurt any more or less to walk on it as it did to run on it so what the hell? I figured I’d drop out of the race if it got to be too much.
In reviewing the revised course map, the marathon was a true out-and-back — come out of the A’Le’Inn and make a left. Run 13.1 miles and turnaround and come back. But the elevation was the kicker — Calico Racing is well known for putting a monster hill in their courses and this was no exception. The 1000+ foot elevation gain over 7-8 miles, topping out at just about a mile above sea level, took a massive toll on me. So much so that coming back I wasn’t able to take too much advantage of the equivalent downhill.
But a funny thing happened — whether it was the body’s inability to multi-task pain receptors or just one of those days, my leg numbed out/felt okay on the way back. It still hurt a little but not as much as a I started. So there’s that.
And then there’s the reality that if the field is small enough, I can sometimes win my age group — which is what happened in Rachel, NV, on May 10, 2025.
Although, I suppose it’s possible everyone else was abducted. The race was along the Extraterrestrial Highway, not too far from Area 51.
