Part 2 DirtyGirlZ100 Epic Adventure - Into the Desert

Because every good story has a part about whiskey.
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Destination Zion finally reached! Woohoo!! You just don't know how good it felt to have our tent set up and the miles (of car driving anyway) behind us. Since we had arrived somewhat late-ish we decided to grab a bite to eat at the Pizza and Noodle Restaurant. And since we traded having a campfire for food we were happy to see heaters on the patio. So, so happy. No really. So VERY happy.

Heater Love. Don't ask.

So with bellies full of grub we drove back to the campground to open the mystery box that was gifted to Maggie by our fellow Folsom Trail Runner and friend, Matt. Not only is Matt one of the coolest guys to hang out and run with, he was our official DirtyGirlZ crew member in spirit. Not being able to join us due to familial obligations (but really? What guy would be brave enough to join five crazy bitches to run stupid fucking miles in the desert - most of whom which were on, going to be on, or just had finished their periods -  Answer: No smart guy.)

So to say Matt was there in spirit was appropriate. Especially once we opened the box.

Matt totally hooked us up with some serious celebratory libations! He had packed a favorite "spirit" for every crew member. There was beer, whiskey, wine, mead... oh... and Gu. Cuz what better to pair a fine wine or whiskey with than... um... Gu. But it was running theme and I suppose he needed to throw some sort of "nutrition" in there. Matt, if you're reading this post...DUDE. YOU ARE AWESOME! THANK YOU, FROM ALL OF US!

So a sip of whiskey and a gaze at the stars later we were in our beds snoozing away. Sorta. At least for the most part. Until my and Charito's air mattress decided to deflate halfway and force us together like a human taco. But it was a cold night (there was frost all over everything the next morning) and as long as neither of us sleepily mistook the other for their spouse it was all good. I should say Charito is a great spooner. Girl's got spooning skilz!

So day one came as fast as it went and we all woke up the next morning to... FIRE. 

No the campground hadn't burnt down. Apparently Charito and Kristina were the early birds who drove to the store to buy some firewood to make a fire which burned REAL fast so they had to go scouting for other people's leftovers. Yeah. You so much as loaded your car with an ice chest and those girls were standing over your campsite like salivating hyenas ready to steal your wood. They were all business. They even stole the embers from one campsite.

Stealing wood. Apparently Kristina's sticks qualify as "wood."

Those girls have some serious boyscout skilz!

It was time to get rolling. We had some scouting of our own to do that day and were checking into a hotel room for a little pre-race comfort. Our plan: To find the aid stations in broad daylight so there would be no question as to directions even when it got dark. We also needed to know how far apart the aid stations were and how long it took to get from one to the next in case Mags needed us to meet her at an unexpected stop.

But first we all needed coffee. Jen was in charge of bringing the Starbucks Via.

Apparently, Jen was working on her sleeping-while-standing-up skill. She was scheduled to pace Mags through part of the night. It's always good to have well prepared pacers. 

Chillin in the mornin with coffee.

Maggie being her adorable self.

Chillin in an epic place.

So we packed up the car and made sure we had plenty of hydration options...

...and headed off to check Maggie into the hotel while we researched and scouted the course...

Maps. Maps. Maps. Turns out asking a local for directions is a little more effective.

I was designated driver on scout day. I ignore all crazy bitches in the backseat.

 Distracted by pretty flowers.

Oh lookie! There's a steep cliff off the side of a mesa!

Let's pretend to jump off!

We did plenty of driving that day... but we still had to get back to pick up Maggie to head over to bib pickup. 

Charito documenting all papers in transit.

"THE PAPER" - ETAs of Maggie's best guesstimates for times at each aid station. Little did we know that this little paper would be talked about so much at the Smithsonian Flat water station.

We would be passing by one of the aid stations on the way to bib pickup which turned out to be my favorite aid station of all on course. Whiskey Town Aid. Awwwwwyeah. I don't have any good pics of this place in daylight but it was like Disneyland... for alcoholics... or people who have really funky, rad taste like me. Ha!

On our way to bib pickup we spotted some people riding their horses on the edge of the mesas. Words or pictures can't possibly describe how beautiful that place was.

Bib pickup was just a show up and leave event. No orientation. No hub-nubbing, not that we had anyone to hub-nub with except maybe Shacky and Vanessa who I was hoping to see. They were running the 100 miler as well but were short pacers. It was great seeing fellow blogger/runner buddies out there. 

Mags got a slice of free pizza, we drove back to the Noodle and Pizza restaurant where she picked up dinner #2 (Damn! That girl can eat! Which was a good thing since loading up for this race would be important) then the rest of the crew went out to Thai food while Maggie crammed for her morning hundo exam. Really. We came back to papers and gear all strewn about on her hotel bed. It was like 9pm so we decided to go chill in the hot-tub so that Mags could get herself all sorted for the race.

Then it was lights out.

And then lights back on at 4:45am. We had less than an hour to get Mags to the start line.

To be continued...
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Majority of the photos in this post are courtesy of Charito, Jen, Maggie and Kristina.

DirtyGirlZ100 Epic Adventure - Into the Desert PART 1

DirtyGirlZ100
Charito, Krista, Kristina, Jen & Maggie

PART 1: Because every good story needs to be told in parts.
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If setting up a tent the size of a hotel with 5 minutes to spare before dark with four other crazy, hungry, car fatigued bitches is any indication of how well this crew would work together and get along, then that challenge alone was a great prediction of ultra success. Seriously. We had that thing up in less than five minutes. Okay. That might be an exaggeration but it was definitely a smooth operation. Or at least it was until some random freak blast of a wind lifted up the entire right side and nearly all of us in it too. Oops. I guess we forgot to stake a few corners. But it was all good.

T minus 15 minutes before dark.

Needless to say, my trip out to Virgin, Utah to crew and pace my friend Maggie in her first 100 miler was nothing short of epic good times. 

Bam! Tent up!

Now let me back up a little because this running adventure was predefined epic even earlier than our tent raising. In fact, I think it was somewhere in the middle of the Nevada desert, just after Walker Lake (300 miles into our trip. I'm totally guessing here. It must have been at LEAST 300 freakin nowhere miles into the desert) that our ultra shenanigans began. Maggie was jonesin' for a run and couldn't keep her running legs in the car. You could tell that girl was going through some serious withdrawals. She had been scouting trail alongside the freeway for who knows how long before we finally picked a spot near a small peak to pull over. I had no idea the desert could be so cold and windy in the middle of the day. It looked hot and dry from inside our toasty car. Mother nature can be quite deceptive that way.

We pull over. Doors fling open. It looks like we are all about to institute a Chinese fire drill. Everybody's putting on jackets, shoes and buffs to cover their ears. Then we're off to explore "public lands." 

But first we gotta get through the gate. Good thing Jen and I have our running minions along to close the technically challenging gate behind us. Really. Why should we do all the work?

Then we were off to run for 20 minutes. Maybe more, but not a minute less. GO!

"Hey Mom! This is where they hide the dead bodies!" This was Charito's joke about this picture. I was totally cracking up. Seriously, Jen looks like she found a dead body.

Is that prehistoric man squatting in the distance?

Nope. Its just a couple crazy bitches licking rocks in the desert.

 

Seriously. WTF? Shouldn't we be running? Or at least driving?

And THIS is where the theme of the weekend began. I dared Maggie to lick a rock or she dared me, I don't remember exactly. The dirt looked like it had a layer of salt or sulfur or something salty or alkaline or toxic or radioactive (the Nevada desert is known for bomb testing) which had crystallized on top and I wanted to find out what it tasted like. Ok. I'll admit that's weird, but you shouldn't be surprised. So... I said...

"LICK IT!"

And we both did.

It tasted like dirt. Go figure.

From then on "Lickit!" became our signature for this adventure. Because every race needs a good cheer and "Lickit!" was just as good as any cheer. And it seemed fun... and stupid... and a little naughty. Afterall, our team name was the DirtyGirlZ. We even had team tees designed by yours truly, Zap. 

Our Team Shirt

"We like our runs Rock Hard and All Night Long"

So we piled back in the car to continue the 12 hour - now 13 hour plus - journey to Utah. Needless to say, we are easily distracted by things like...

Suggestive signage...

 

Old and creepy cemetaries...

 

And even creepier motels...

Seriously? Apparently, it was SOMEONE's dream to open a clown motel someday. I'm all on board with the entrepreneurial spirit, but a clown motel? Someone's pipe dreams... apparently, straight from the pipe. Crazy.

And... 

Pulling over just to... jump?

 

And art relics of Burning Man's Past...

...which we couldn't resist making into our own, personal, DirtyGirlZ album cover entitled Tonopah Station. Jen knows how to strike the awkward rocker pose. She's practiced this look before - complete with gang signs. And we laughed at how much of a vandal Maggie was being trying to be sneaky and break into the van on the right side of the picture while the rest of us were "posing." Endless amounts of laughter with tears ensued after this stop.

 

It was one long ass car trip. No really. My ass complained. In fact, it was so fed up with being stuck in a car for 13 plus hours that it decided to break out of jail just as we pulled into the small town of Beatty before we hit Vegas. So I ended up wearing pants with a big hole in the left ass cheek all weekend. That's right. Cuz ya'll know I like to be classy (and that was my only pair of long pants). Don't worry, I wore a pair of long underwear underneath lest you be blinded by the white flash.

We were feeling pretty cramped and carbound as we crossed the Utah state border and we breathed a sigh of relief as we pulled into camp around 8:30pm or so, just as the sun was setting. The view of Watchman Peak towering close to 2500 ft above our campsite was stunning. We were all instantly in love with Zion.

DirtyGirlZ100 Epic Adventure Post to be continued... 

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Majority of the photos in this post are courtesy of Charito, Jen, Maggie and Kristina.

Go Maggie! Run yerself some stupid miles, girl!

My crewing duties as the official map girl.  

I'm packin' and gettin' ready to help my friend Maggie run some stupid miles in the desert of Zion, Virgin Utah. Life is busy right now so this post is going to be el shorto.

I just want to put this out there before I go... I haven't known Maggie for too long now - maybe about eight months - but what I do know of this girl is amazing, inspiring and nothing short of fiyah! If I ever get to be half the runner she is I would be a happy girl.

So I want to wish her luck in her first 100 miler. Honestly, I don't think she even needs it. She's totally got this. Just her fire alone is gonna get her ass across the finish line (not to mention she's hella strong.) And she's already lit up the Zion facebook page with her endearing honesty and trouble-making ways insisting that this race be "officially" measured by the inch to exactly 100 miles or more and nothing less. Yup. That's my girl! She doesn't want to have to explain to people that her hundred miler was actually a measly 99.63 miles just because the website said so. She's a woman of integrity. If she's gonna put a sticker on her car she will have put in the work and ran the miles and nothing less. I have a lot of respect for that. Damn straight. I will support her. And with a celebratory shot of whiskey at the finish line!

Me, Maggie and Kristina

You will do this girl!

But I know she's not just in this thing to say she ran a hundred miles. She's in it to learn about herself and enjoy the journey. I'm lucky to be a small part of this journey with her.

But we all know that sometimes what we expect from a race isn't always what we get, so even if she doesn't get that belt buckle I will have had the heartfelt pleasure of crewing and pacing her. I'm really looking forward to this little road trip. All these girls are awesome! Every single one of them inspires me. I look forward to sharing the experience with them!

Alrighty, girls. I'm packed and ready and got all the maps! Awwwwwyeah... just like Jen said, "Once we step foot in that state, Utah will never be the same."
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The Ranch Athletics - My New Sanctuary

The Ranch Athletics - My new sanctuary.

If you're wondering why I've been MIA lately its because life has kinda sucked. Literally. I feel like I've been sucked into a spiraling abyss of work with the Quick Quack Car Wash duck at the center of it - spinning like in those old Twilight Zone movies. Then just when I seem to crawl out of that space I get sucked into another hole with HTML/CSS/JS/ fucking numbers, slashes and code everywhere and when I finally surface the sun is gone or its beer o' clock and time to go to the gym - not for beer (although my coaches know that a couple Loomis Basin Brewery growlers make me very happy), but to work off the stress of work and deadlines and the random call from the principal that my kid just intentionally peed on the floor of the bathroom at school just for giggles. It seems my only sanctuary now has finally arrived.

My ball slam fail. I fell over. My coaches were amused.

The Ranch Athletics.

Yes. They are finally open and they are a full blown, freakin heavy lifting, heavy pulling, get your ass in real shape training and gym facility now.

And, now, I feel like I need them more than ever. My confidence is quickly waning for this looming 100 miler coming up in September. I'm trying to stay positive, but honestly I felt my motivation take a nose dive about two and a half months ago, which scares me. I'm not trying hard enough. I'm not working hard enough. I'm not doing shit. I was the kitty snack at the VERY back of the pack on my all-nighter 20 miler out on the Western States a couple weeks ago. Struggling to climb out of the canyons I was dealing with some phantom quad cramping and a rolled ankle. Oh... and I forgot to bring my hand warmers and ended up with numb fingers halfway through. I also failed to bring extra batteries for my handheld and headlamp. Luckily, one of the other runners was kind enough to give me some hand warmers, and both lights were just enough to get me back out of the canyons in the dark and my new Merrell Mix Masters + new socks worked out great - drying quickly within almost five miles after my stream fail.

I must have been this kitty's snack.

OK. So I was running on no sleep. Literally. I had been awake since 5am and our run didn't start until around midnight that night. I was entitled to a few fails, but really, I had no excuse. Yeah it was some rough elevation from Michigan Bluff to Dardanelles and back up, but I should have been stronger. I should have been STRONGER. I wasn't.

Which is a little disappointing.

Apparently this kitty lost a toenail.
Maybe this kitty runs ultras.

So my plan is to get my ass in gear and step up my training. Transitioning to the new gym has been a bit of an adjustment for me. I'm not quick to latch onto a new routine (well... I'm not quick at anything really) and I feel a bit like the "stupid girl" always coming in last place, not being able to count the reps accurately, failing to figure out how much time I have left on the clock, etc... Despite my complete ineptness so far (I've already whacked my head on the bar in the squat rack) everyone is super supportive and cheers each other on. This gym is everything I hoped it would be and I know I just have to give myself a few weeks to get into the swing of things. I'm feeling really crappy about myself lately and I need to turn my shit around.

I'm hoping that my road trip with the DirtyGirlZ is gonna do just that. I'll be crewing and pacing my friend Maggie for her hundred at the Zion 100 in a couple weeks. This is more of an adventure than a race for all of us and as busy moms we all need this. We met last week to discuss crewing logistics, camping/lodging, planning and do a little pre-race fueling - with wine of course. We've all ordered our team shirts (designed by yours truly of course) and are preparing for our epic adventure. I'm really excited to be able to run the mesas and take in the beauty of Utah. Our drive will be epic in and of itself with 12 hours of non-stop driving to Virgin so we're planning on arriving with an extra day to work out our locked up car-bound muscles.

So the next few weeks are imbued with the busy and not the chill. But hopefully the busy will be of the inspiring sort and when the chill comes I will be very happy to embrace it.

Hoo-rag Winners and Update

Alrighty then... did you win a black/white Hoo-rag? If you are comments number 3 and 7 the answer is YES! So Jeff and Scott you'll need to contact me soon at zapmamak[at]gmail.com to claim your prize!

Thank you to everyone who participated in my little poll on my Zaps Threads designs. Even a little bit of feedback helps and is very much appreciated. It looks like the Original Barefoot Runner Tee Design won favorite design with the Zombie Pacer Tee coming in second. I'm also currently working on a new design and will have it for sale at the Born To Run Ultra (that's my plan anyway) and will have another Zaps Threads Tshirt giveaway shortly after the race in May which will include that design as well so stay tuned.

So life is busy right now... here's the clif notes version:

Not only am I currently training for my hundred miler, but I'm getting ready to pace/crew a friend for her first hundo in April. My friend Maggie is running the Zion 100 in Utah on April 19. HOLY CRAP that race gonna be beautiful!!! So me and three other girls are currently prepping for an exciting adventure of road tripping, running, hot springs, running, running, crewing, not sleeping, running, and finally celebrating (it's more than just a hundo it's Maggie's birthday).

So this little adventure is very spontaneous - as of 10am this morning Maggie still has yet to register -but there are still spots left and we are starting to threaten her because we all KNOW she can do this and she KNOWS she can do it. Its going to be an epic race for her - its her birthday for pete's sake - and what an epic way to celebrate! I don't think she'll regret it for one second.

In the meantime, in addition to working on my new design for BTR, I'll be working on our running shirts/crew shirts for Maggie's race - DirtyGirlZ100 which will be a ton of fun to design. I'm also preparing to run an all nighter training run along a portion of the Western States route this coming Friday night with Maggie and some other Folsom Trail Runners who are getting ready to run the Western States 100 in June. The plan is to simulate sleep deprivation and running, watch the sunrise and do pancakes after. These runs (which are few and far between for me) will give me some more experience with stupid miles at night and allow me the opportunity to try out some of my new shoes like my Merrell Mix Masters (which Merrell was awesome enough to send to me to try out!! Yippee!) - AND which I like much better than the Saucony Peregrine 2s so far. I've only ran a few miles at a time in the Merrell's so Friday's run will give me an even better idea of how my feet will fair. It will be my first LONG run in a padded shoe with a 4mm drop. All my 50ks and beyond have been done in my Merrell Pace Gloves which are zero drop and almost no padding. I'm curious to see how I feel afterward. I almost can't wait. Let the experiment begin!
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Another Hoo-Rag Giveaway and Some Flim Flam

Beyoncé would totally rock the Hoo-rag!

{this giveaway closed March 17th, 2013}
Alrighty then... are you ready for another Hoo-rag giveaway? Cuz I need a little favor to ask and I'm hoping ya'll will kindly oblige.

You see... I'm getting ready for the upcoming Born To Run Ultramarathon in May. This year, unlike last year, I intend to experience the flavor of the event a bit more. You know - only run 31 miles instead of 62, hang by the bonfire, listen to some cool music, hoola hoop, maybe do a little salsa dancing and possibly sell some Zaps Threads shirts. Yup. That is, if I get my shit together.

I have a special design that I want to do and sorta "showcase" at the event. It won't be sold or printed through Spreadshirt (although I will add it to the shop after the race.) I will be printing this design - along with maybe three others - through a badass screen printer on some quality ringspun shirts. This is a design that I want to really speak to the ultra runner in all of us no matter how far we run whether its stupid miles or just five or ten. I want the design to be sorta "tattoo" in nature, but on a shirt. I can't go into a whole lotta detail because for one, I have no idea what its going to look like since I design organically. Seriously. It just happens. Usually with a bit of wine or beer or sometimes even whiskey. Its kinda like when Beyoncé gets all possessed by Sasha Fierce and she goes all crazy-sexy-bitch on everyone and you go... who the fuck is that? Yeah. That's kinda what happens with me except without all the goatheads, satanic symbols, boobage and shit. I just sit at my boring computer with the music blaring super loud and design. There's no stage - just an office chair. And I'm usually in my jam jams.

So this design is going to be a bit of a surprise and revealed at the Born To Run Ultra and I'm not sure that anyone who reads this blog will even be there (which is why I will eventually post about it). And I'm not sure that anyone is even going to buy my shirts, but I thought it might be kinda fun to "vend" and really participate in the communal artsy aspects of the race since its a bit like a mini village for that weekend.

So back to the favor from you. Oh... and the giveaway.

What I need from YOU, is your opinion on some Zaps Threads designs. I want to know which designs you would actually wear and buy if you were to happen to see me at the Born To Run Ultramarathon selling shirts.

Cuz, really... I have no clue what ya'll like. I just design shit and sell it. If you like it, you like it - if you don't, then I don't really give a shit. But I will give a shit if I see you in person and you say "hey... Zap, what about designing a shirt like... (insert your totally fucked up crazy idea here)," cuz I'm really a very down-to-earth girl once you get to know me and despite what it seems I do actually care a lot about people. In fact, I LOVE people. Even the crazy ones. In fact, the crazy ones totally make life worth living cuz I make up all sorts of shit about them in my head.

But I'm getting derailed from my original thought here.

So I'm setting up a poll on my Zaps Threads Facebook page and I am asking you to pick your favorite designs. In return for the favor I will enter you into another giveaway to win another Hoo-rag. This time its for the Black and White Hoo-rag and I will pick TWO LUCKY WINNERS.

Hoo-Rags

People. These things are the BEST EVER RUNNING BELT!!!!... and snot wiper, and face warmer, and hair tamer, and whatever the fuck idea you can come up with that incorporates this cool stretchy piece of killer designed fabric. Some of my local running buds are starting to catch on to this great little trend of wearing The Hoo-rag and totally agree with me.

Hoo-Rag Best Ever Running Belt

So below are the designs I will ask you about in the poll. You get to pick your favorite. If you don't have a favorite then pick a fucking design anyway for pete's sake. Just don't leave my Zaps Threads Facebook Page without taking the goddam poll. *smile* I NEED YOU.


So here are the "official" rules and pics of the shirts:
1) Go like Hoo-rag on Facebook (if you haven't already).

2) Go take my poll on Zaps Threads Facebook page.

3) Come back here and leave a comment and tell me what your favorite color t-shirt is.

4) If you win a Hoo-rag, you don't get to enter again to win another. Sorry.

That's it! Then check back here for the winners which I will pick on Saturday March 16th. Good luck!

Here are the designs I need you to vote on over at my Zaps Threads Facebook Page:

Zaps Threads Hill Killer Tee

Zaps Threads Zombie Pacer Tee

Zaps Threads Original Barefoot Runner Tee

Zaps Threads Dirt Diva Tee

Zaps Threads Fiyah! Tee

Zaps Threads Fiyah Flower Tee

Zaps Threads Trail Bruiser Tee

Zaps Threads Run Dirt Tee

Go vote!