I haven’t blogged in probably five years, but I’m doing so — possibly just for posterity for myself, but also because I’ve heard from some people that they want to follow along with my training on my journey training for the 2021 Badwater 135. So here goes …

Quick background, I created this site in 2009 when I decided that I’d attempt to run 60 full marathons in 2010 to raise money for autism charities in honor of my son Jack, who is severely autistic and now 17 years old. I ran those marathons (ended up being 61), raised close to $90K, created a race called the Operation Jack Marathon and have done many things with my running over the past 11-12 years to raise money for charity. Running the Badwater 135 will no doubt be something I use to try to help charities. I’ll have more on that in April.

Anyways, in 2017, a good friend of mine, Jonathan “Gundy” Gunderson, invited me to pace/crew for him at the Badwater 135. I was afraid because of the race’s notoriety (135 miles with more than 18,000 feet of gain through temps exceeding 120 degrees … how do people survive that???) but I did the training and went and had an amazing experience, logging about 40 miles with him. In 2019, I paced/crewed for him again (went about 45 miles with him this time) and before I went, my wife told me that if I ever got into the race, she’d be ok with it. GOALS! I was amazed at how hard I saw people pushing themselves the first time I went and in the back of my mind, I wanted to know what it felt like to have the satisfaction of being able to finish that race.

Just to apply, you have to run at least three 100-mile races. I started training for those in 2019. My first attempt in September 2019 was derailed by a hip injury and I didn’t even get to the start line, but I completed my first in October 2019 and another in February 2020. I DNF’d one in May 2020 that I wasn’t mentally prepared for, but bounced back six weeks later with my third finish in July. I DNF’d one at mile 81 in Kansas last October (sooooo frustrating, but hypothermia is what it is, I guess). I bounced back again six weeks later, putting together the best start-to-finish 100-miler I’ve run yet. I knew when I finished that I was done with my body of work for my first Badwater application, although I went down to Brazil in January to pace/crew Gundy in the Brazil 135 and that likely factored into my application.

Applications were due Feb 19, I turned mine in on the 16th and waited until the Facebook Live field announcement show on March 6. To say I was anxious is an understatement. I so badly wanted to hear my name called, although I knew that an immediate sense of urgency would immediately set in. There’s no winging the Badwater 135! I wasn’t prepared for the rejection. I just wasn’t mentally prepared for it. Fortunately, I was invited to participate and mentally everything changed. It’s my job now. First step of this was getting into the race, now I need to get ready for the race so that I can get through the race. I want to get to the finish line, not just the start line.

I had workouts last Saturday and Sunday (6th and 7th), but mentally, I feel like Monday morning (March 8th) is when it was game on. I’ve been working with a sports nutritionist because I’ve known that’s important and I’m in the process of dropping weight (I’ve been at or around 225 pounds for several years after running at a weight of about 205 for about a decade, down to 212 now) and getting my fueling strategies intact. That being said, here’s a recap of week one.

Training:

• Monday:
  • 8.25 easy miles in the morning
  • 3.5 miles at 9.5 incline on the treadmill at lunch
• Tuesday:
  • 10.29 miles with 2×2 miles tempo w 400m recovery in the morning
  • 3.5 miles at 9.5 incline with a 20-pound weighted vest on the treadmill at lunch
• Wednesday:
  • 7.25 miles easy in the morning.
• Thursday
  • 3.5 miles at 9.5 incline with 20-pound weighted vest on the treadmill at lunch
  • 10.15 miles with strides after work. Legs were heavy for that run, which made it tough, but I have a mentality that I have to finish everything nowadays, so I did.
• Friday:
  • Rest day from running. Lifted chest/arms/back/shoulders at the gym. I do lighter weights, higher reps. This workout was eight stations, each station five sets of 15-20 reps.
• Saturday:
  • Went to Boston to run with some friends and ran the Boston Marathon course, had a great time, total 26.45 miles. Love being able to run that course, so nice that it’s only a 5-6 hour drive for me. I was testing some nutrition strategies and was encouraged. I have a 100-mile race in Kansas on March 27 to give my nutrition strategies a better test.
• Sunday:
  • Weights at the gym, back/shoulders/abs. 7 stations, 5 sets of 20 reps each.
  • 8.25 recovery miles
• Totals for the week: 70.64 miles running, 10.5 miles power hiking on the treadmill, two lifting sessions.

Logistics planning:

• Selected my crew (I’ll cover this in another post)
• Booked my flight out west for the race
• Secured a house for my crew before the race (I’m arriving 6 days early to acclimate, their plans TBD, but no later than two days before the race for arrival)
• Secured hotel rooms for the finish
• Reserved the crew van as well as a backup van

That was week one. I’m hoping to continue to drop weight next week, as well as doing a better job of getting to the gym to lift and staying consistent with those add-on treadmill power hikes. I’ll probably start heat training in the sauna after Kansas on March 27 because I have the Keys 100 on May 15 as a dry run with a heat race.

This coming up week I have 54 miles on my schedule, tapering down for that 100-miler on the 27th.

Thanks for reading!

For close to five years now, I’ve been doing everything I can through my Operation Jack Autism Foundation to try to raise money for autism-related charities, one dollar at a time. It’s always one idea at a time, and the latest thing I’m going with is building a team at the Mount Desert Island Marathon in October. It’s a great race and all the money raised will be split between two autism-related charities in Maine: Springy Pond Farm and the Autism Society of Maine.

I’m offering what I think is about the best package for the lowest threshold out there: With just a $100 fundraising commitment, Operation Jack will provide you with a free entry into the race, an Operation Jack tech shirt and a custom hand-created canvas painting with an MDI Marathon theme created by members of L’Arche Mobile, an organization in Alabama that provides a group-living situation for mentally disabled adults. More on that in just a minute.

Springy Pond Farm’s mission is to provide therapy that is fun, meaningful, motivating and rewarding by engaging with animals, nature and purposeful activities. They support the mission of every learner with an individualized, holistic and measurable approach.

The Autism Society of Maine’s mission is to provide education and resources to support the valued lives of of individuals on the autism spectrum and their families.

I’m looking to build a team of 10 runners, who can participate in the half marathon, full marathon or marathon relay. My basic principal is that for something like this, the money I spend on race entries will turn into donations that are at least equal to the expense of those entries. The money going to Springy Pond and ASM will be at least equal to the money leaving Operation Jack.

But what’s always the case is that people aim for $100 and it’s so easy, they hit $200 without even trying. Or $300. I love turning money I’ve raised into even more money for autism charities that can use the resources. And on top of that, people who join the team get to run the race for free!

I haven’t run this race before, but I’m looking forward to it. Two of my friends and longtime Operation Jack supporters, Sarah Emerson and Danielle Sterling, rave about the scenery. They also warn of the hills but that’s OK. I’m also excited to be able to have Operation Jack participate with MDI because the race director, Gary Allen, is a charity-minded class act (and a great runner). Can’t argue about associating with people like him!

Here’s some shots of the course:

I can handle 26.2 of that, that’s for sure.

Also, as I mentioned, I like to give out a few goodies. As I mentioned, there’s the tech shirt.

 

And there’s also those canvas paintings I mentioned. I love them — I got one as an age-group award at a race in Alabama in 2010 that was put on as a fundraiser for L’Arche Mobile, which is part of an international federation of communities in which people with intellectual disabilities, can live, work and share their lives together. I order them every year as age-group awards for the Operation Jack Marathon and everybody loves them. It works as a fundraiser for L’Arche and the residents enjoy creating them.

Here’s a couple of pictures:

Join the team!

EDIT: THE TEAM HAS REACHED ITS 10-MEMBER CAPACITY. IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT PARTICIPATING, PLEASE EMAIL ME AT SAM@OPERATIONJACK.ORG.

To join the team, it’s simple: Go to the Operation Jack MDI team fundraising page and create a page with a minimum goal of $100. It’s about a two-minute process. I’ll contact you shortly thereafter and get your information and get you registered in the race. I’ll also send you out a tech shirt. It’s going to be an on-your-honor thing to reach your goal. You don’t have to put a credit card in and nobody is going to charge you if you don’t hit it. I trust that you’ll get there.

If you have any questions, shoot me an email at sam@operationjack.org. I’ve got 10 spots — hope to see you out there![subscribe2]

Four or five years ago, my dad told me that my grandpa had the beginning stages of Alzheimer’s. So the next time I saw my grandpa, I was having a nice time visiting and he told me …

Sam, I need to tell you, it’s ok, it’s not as bad as it sounds, but I have … uh … it’s … I have … oh I don’t remember. Ask your dad, he’ll tell you what I have.

I guess the proof was in the way he told me. Now, as I’m just over six months away from turning 40 (that’s when I’m officially old, right?), I don’t have Alzheimer’s, but I think I’m definitely losing it, too. I’m just going to use Facebook to prove my case. These are all within the past 10 days.

Reminds me of when we were living in Colorado a couple of years ago and I went out of town for a few days. I got back and she let eight days go by and finally she told me that she painted a wall in the living room when I was gone. She wanted to see how long it would take me to notice.

I guess she gave up after eight days. But she wanted me to at least go take look and tell her what I thought. So, I went in, took a look, then went back to the kitchen. And I said, “What wall did you paint?“

I’m losing it. I’ve been losing it. But at least … at least … oh, I don’t remember what I was going to say. I don’t care. I’m almost old.

If you’re losing it, at least that means you had it, right?[subscribe2]

On New Year’s Eve, I got a call from one of my favorite autism charities, Talk About Curing Autism, asking me if I could help out with developing a program to help people train for races as charity runners. I was flattered and honored. I mean, I’m just a guy doing my thing, trying to figure out a way one day at a time to use my hobby (running) to make some good in the world.

For them to ask me that was the coolest thing ever. First, it gives me another way to help, which I’m excited about. I can only do so much on my own, but to able to do my thing while an organization I really stand behind that has a really good reach makes the most of my ability to combine running with fighting autism? WIN! And from a selfish standpoint, it was a really awesome pat-on-the-back that they thought enough of what I’ve done with Operation Jack to ask me to help.

Just realized, in case you’re wondering, this is a volunteer role for me. I’ve never been in a paid charity role and I don’t ever want to be in a paid charity role — fighting autism through running is my hobby, and I want to keep it that way.

Anyways, I have a fair amount of running experience, and I started a Train 4 Autism running group in Orange County, Calif. that’s going really strong now, so I feel pretty comfortable with my ability to get charity running groups going. But being in more of an official role for good-sized organization like this, I didn’t feel like I was necessarily good enough to do this. When I’m doing my own thing, training myself, running my own race, the only person impacted by me is me.

However, if I’m going to coach people through an event, and they have expectations of having fun through the training process and getting to the start line and finish line healthy, that’s much more important that when I’m working towards a good race. I take that seriously, because it’s a responsibility towards another person. As much confidence as I have in my knowledge and experience, to me that just wasn’t enough. Most people would probably tell me that I’m being ridiculous thinking I’m not able to coach people through their first half-marathon or marathon, but like I said, I take my responsibility towards other people seriously.

So, I went to Chicago last month for a two-day course to get my coaching certification through the Road Runners Club of America. It was actually a pretty interesting course. I already knew a lot of the things they taught, but I learned a lot of new things, too. A lot of the course pieced together a lot of things I’ve picked up over the years through experience. I’ve mindlessly adapted to doing things certain ways and now I figured out why I do what I do. I picked up some knowledge that will eliminate some of the guesswork and “just because” stuff and in general, I feel like I understand a lot more about running and training than I used to.

I passed the exam and my coaching certification will become official once I get my first aid certification. That will be soon, probably within the next week. I’ve worked with friends in the past, but it’s always been just a matter of using my knowledge gained from experience and reading. Now, I really feel like I have a good grip on how to coach a runner through a training cycle and I’m excited to be able to help people. I’ve been working with somebody this spring and it’s been a ton of fun to watch her progress.

Like everything else since I started Operation Jack nearly five years ago, I’m going to take this new role one day at a time and see what happens. I have no clue how it will go, but things have worked themselves out and everything has been OK. Fingers crossed that trend continues, since I’m going to be responsible for coaching autism parents from the couch to their first race. It’s going to be a great opportunity to help them find a positive outlet, plus it will also help TACA. After going through that training and filling in some gaps in my knowledge, I really feel like I’m equipped to lead the way now.

That’s all I have for today. Who’s in Philly? Come out at start with us on May 4![subscribe2]

 

I opened up registration for the Operation Jack Marathon today (who’s gonna be first?) and there are a few changes this year, all for the better in my opinion.

First, in case you’ve never been here, the Operation Jack Marathon isn’t just another marathon. It’s a race that’s put on solely as a fundraiser for the Operation Jack Autism Foundation, which is run completely on a volunteer basis and exists to raise money for autism-related charities and encourage autism parents to find a positive outlet and turn lemons into lemonade. 1 in 68 kids have autism nowadays, and my Jack is 1 of those 68, and my positive outlet is to help others find their positive outlet. And of course to raise money for charities! $250,000+ brought in through Operation Jack and the Operation Jack Marathon since 2010! (Check out an awesome difference Operation Jack made in Uganda — we just found this out last week!)

Anyways, registration is open for this year. A few things for you to know if you’re an OJM veteran:

– Registration will start at just $45/half, $55/full (original 2010 prices!), but starting in June, fees will increase $5/month. So register early! I’m always most interested in participation, and if you’re a past participant and want to return, I want you to come back at a good price!

– We’ll be donating $25 for each volunteer shift worked to the charity of the volunteer’s choice. OJ exists to raise money to give it away, so I want to spread it around to those who want to help. If you’re part of a group or an organization, this could be an easy fundraiser for you.

– Race 4 Free will have a $100 threshold, down from $150, hopefully making participation easier and more affordable. Also, anybody who hits that goal will receive a free Operation Jack tech shirt. Just ask Danielle Sterling — aiming for $100 is easy, and there’s a chance you might even go a little bit beyond that. Hit $100 though, and your entry into the race is free. No risk to try, no obligation and we’re not going to charge your credit card.

– Age group awards will go three-deep this year. Lots of you saw those custom paintings we’ve had the past two years and liked them. I love those paintings and I know you all do, too, and they work great as a fundraiser for L’Arche Mobile, so I’m calling it a win-win and awarding 72 of them total between the half and the full, plus another 12 for top-3 overall! I’m also going to get some for the top fundraisers.

 

– The satellite run price is dropping from $35 to $20. Call me the worst fundraiser ever, but I don’t want the satellite runs to be about money — I want them to be about participation and awareness. I do have costs to cover, though, so I have to charge something. I’m expecting to have registration for that open in the next day or so.

I think that’s it for today? Get on the train and register while costs are cheap, register at http://bit.ly/2014OJM! Hope to see you out there, let me know if you have any questions![subscribe2]