David, Joelle and Johnnie Besnette

I was asked to be a “pacer” for Ray Churgovich, or “Hawaiian Shirt Ray” for the Leadville 100. Basically, a pacer runs a section with the runner to keep him/her company, carry gear, keep an eye on health, hydration, etc. I ran with Ray from Twin Lakes to the Fish Hatchery (almost 17 miles) from about 6pm until after 10pm. Neeraj Engineer picked him up there, and ran another 17 or so. Lina Kelso was with Ray from Winfield to Twin Lakes – another long stretch. Ray finished in 25 hours, 7 minutes – beating his 2009 time by over 4 hours. It was an amazing experience. Here is a clip:

Hawaiian Shirt Ray – Leadville 100 from David Besnette on Vimeo.

I completed this really great and enormously challenging marathon this weekend – it has a 4,000 + vertical gain, in snow and lots of mud (yummy). The race was great – Salida puts on a good show. More photos here

This photo taken around mile 10 or 11..