I guess I should say something here as a follow up to my previous post and the shocking amount of response it has generated.
More than anything I want to say thanks to everyone for the passionate responses. This post generated more response in every regard than I ever expected. Thanks to many kind donations my Iditarod Invitational Entry Fee is almost certainly going to be in the mail next week! The supportive comments have been very appreciated, but also the critical comments have a lot of value to them as well (at least most of them do).
My response is this: It's not as black and white as many people would like it to be. A life that is based upon financial ambition works for many people. I have no problem with that. Where I do have a problem is when people try to make others feel guilty for not having that same financial ambition. Striving to make a lot of money is not a duty or a responsibility, it is a choice. If you do not have that financial ambition it does not necessarily mean that you are lazy and unmotivated. There are many ways for personal drive and ambition to manifest themselves that have very little to do with money. This direction is of course not for everyone either, but that doesn't make it wrong.
As the comments on my previous post would indicate people fall all over the spectrum on this issue, but none of them are wrong. What is wrong is when people try to diminish or disrespect someone else because they don't place the same value on financial ambition. It might be hard for some people who do feel very motivated by making money to understand, but the truth is that I just don't care if I make a lot of money, that's just not something that's important to me. Trust me, it's just as hard for me to understand those of you who do have a strong drive to try to make a lot of money, but that doesn't cause me to disrespect you or diminish you. We're just different and there really shouldn't be anything wrong with that.
As far as where I am at specifically and how my running fits into my life I could go on for a long time but I will try to keep it short. Ultra running is something that I've been doing for almost 3 years now. It started out on a whim to run a 50k and has now grown to the point where I base many of my decisions in life around my running.
I love racing. I love being out in all the places that my running regularly takes me. I love being good at racing and I love the satisfaction I get when I perform well. I'm still regularly embarrassed by the attention that this sometimes brings but I'm slowly learning how to accept this as part of it. I love when I finish a race and there are 2 or 3 people gathered at the finish line. That is comfortable. I'm still a bit uncomfortable about races in which there are hundreds of people gathered around at the finish. This doesn't mean that I don't want to run big races, but I'm still working on becoming comfortable with this. More than anything I love running with all the people that I get to run with. I thrive on the competition. And it has very little to do with winning. Having the opportunity to line up with other people who have trained for the same event and then going out and racing with them is what keeps me motivated the most. I love when I get to see other people win, and the energy I get from this. At Crow Pass this year I finished 4th (the first time I'd finished that far back in a running race in two years) and yet I was about as content with what I had gained from competing in that race as any race I've ever run. Eric Strabel won that race and I felt just as pleased with that than if I'd won myself. He was rebounding from a long injury and I think I learned as much from his accomplishment that day as I would have had I been able to win myself. That's the way it works. Running can be about individual accomplishment but the satisfaction one takes from their own accomplishments is so much greater because of what others are accomplishing as well.
Anyway, the point is that my running is a huge part of my life. I don't feel like it has anything to do with running away from something, but rather I see it as a self perpetuating passion that gets stronger everytime I go out for a run. I'm still getting faster and that is a huge part of the drive for me. I feel very motivated and passionate about pushing myself to see how much better of a runner I can become.
I have been a runner since 8th grade and I'm quite certain that I will be a runner for the rest of my life, but the passion that I have right now for ultra running goes well beyond what running was for me when I was younger and what it will likely be for me when I am older. Running will always be there to help me keep in shape and get out and enjoy the outdoors, but the drive I currently have for competing at as high a level as possible is something that I feel relies upon my ability to get better and faster. If I am lucky I might have 5 more years in which I'm able to do this. After that running goes back to being more of a hobby and less of a lifestyle. The last thing I intend to be doing 5 years from now though is thinking that maybe I could have been a good ultra runner had I put more energy into it.
Anyway, enough about all this... Time to go out for a run.
29 comments:
Excellent entry Geoff.
ALthough I am not familiar with your sport, I certainly appreciate and respect the pursuit of your passion and living life on your own terms as best as possible.
Best wishes and thank you for sharing.
Kazimer - "Kaz"
C'mon Geoff, don't try and blow sunshine up our butts. You resent people who make focusing on money a major point in their lives. I've seen your attitude in previous posts over the past year. You also don't like urban sprawl or today's consumer society as a whole. Don't sugarcoat it by trying to change your story now.
And what's with this crap of not caring if you win or not when you enter races ?. Do you seriously expect corporate sponsors to pony up with the bucks just so you can go out and have fun ?. Now you ask for blog donations to support your hobby. People support winners, not losers. If I were to donate money to you I'd be out at the races chasing you with a bullwhip to make sure I got my money's worth.
This just makes things look worse for you, not better. To ask for donations in order to win some big prize money at a race is one thing. At least people might get the satisfaction that they helped support a winner. But to ask for money, then say it's basically a hobby you're pursuing, and you really don't care if you win or not, is mind boggling. I think I'd be better off donating my money to a worthwhile charity instead.
Well, your last post (and Jill's most recent too) sure brought people out of the woodwork, eh Geoff? I just wanted to say that I hope you sustain your running and competition to the extent you want. I loved Jill's comment that "he won't be fine if gives up running." Good on you for trying to figure out just how you're going to manage.
I sure as hell enjoy both your blogs and I think you're both striving to live the "right" life; right for you I mean. Keep it up. I continue to read and continue being inspired to lead my own "right" life. What else can one do?!
Right on Geoff. Pursuit of happiness does not equal pursuit of fame or fortune. Happiness is time spent with simple pleasures, gaining wisdom from experience. Those that learn to live simply will not be bound by commerce.
DG
I think you and everyone should have the option to pursue what ever they want in life; whether its having fun or working toward a financial goal.
BUT, I take issue with you begging for money. You are asking people who work hard to support them selves and to support their hobbies / interests to support you??? It seems really inappropriate.
I have expensive hobbies and I work for them. I would rather not work, but I have to. It’s a reality that most of us have to accept at some point. I also give a decent percentage of my income to charities (roughly 12%), but there is no way I'm going to give any to someone who can work, but chooses to play rather than support him self.
Holy S**t, so don't give him any money. or get a blog so that you can have a forum to discuss your philosophies on life, or when it is appropriate or not appropriate to donate money.
First, let me say that I appreciate where you're coming from, and that I hope you find a way to pursue your ultra-running dream to the fullest extent possible. You have a level of talent (combined with serious training, of course) that most of us could only dream of. You should do the most you can with that while you still can.
That said, I can see where some people take issue w/ the "begging for money" (though I don't see it as quite that extreme, myself). You try to distinguish yourself from those of us with work-a-day lives by saying we're only after financial ambition, with the implication that you're above that. I think you oversimply your audience when you do that though.
I have no great desire to be ultra-wealthy either; just dont' see the point in wasting my life in the pursuit of material things. However, that still doesn't mean that I can just abandon reality and think that I don't have to work for things. I have to work to earn money for food, utilities, mortgage/rent, insurance, etc.; not just for me, but also my family. And with what's left, that's how I also pay for my race entry fees and travel. No job means no bikes and no racing. No one's going to give me a handout to do it.
I don't say this to criticize or discourage, but rather to just give you some food for thought. Look at the top 10 (or 20 or 100...) races you'd like to do next year. Then cut that list in half, forcing yourself to choose the ones you REALLY want to do. How much will it cost to enter, travel to them , etc.? What's the cheapest you can live (rent, food, etc.).? Add it all up, then find the job that will pay for that with the least amount of hours required, allowing you the flexibily to still train a lot. And with any luck, hopefully you'll get some donations rolling in, too. I don't think you can realistically expect to keep riding the credit train forever though, and I doubt you'll be able to make it off donations alone.
Also, think of how it would sound if put in a different context. Let's say I wanted to check out of the work force to spend everyday playing with my daughters at the park, as they're growing up fast, and I'll never get those years back. I love 'em to death, and would give anything to spend my days doing that. However, do you think anyone's going to send me donations so that I can live my life that way, while they keep slugging way, not getting that same time with their kids? No, because just about everybody else wishes they could do the same thing, but also can't. Why should they send me money to do it?
I know you said it's not your thing, but maybe you should give the road races a thought, given that they pay out. They could fund your trail running habit. May not be ideal for you, but still beats working a desk, doesn't it? I know if I had the talent, I wouldn't mind making a living that well.
Also, I think all of us that follow your blog really enjoy reading about your races afterwards. It's not just hearing about the race, but also in how you tell it. You have a knack for putting us right there in the experience. Could you write about the sport you love for some trade mags, and possibly make some cash that way? Something to think about...
Anyway, best of luck to you. No matter how it ends up working out for you, I hope that it does indeed work out for you, and you can really go at it full steam. I know I, and many others, can't wait to hear about your future training and races.
Sincerely,
Ryan
I had zero problem donating money to Geoff, even though I don't know him personally. I enjoyed following his and Jill's Iditarod experience last year. I do not feel like he was "begging" for money but reaching out to people like me who want to see others succeed in what they love no matter their background.
There is no set path folks. Just because you didn't follow your heart doesn't mean you can be angry at others for following theirs.
if the comments are read correctly, those comments from the other anons, perceived as negative or however they're written...don't look to be written out of jealousy for the success Geoff has gained over the last while competing, but more as a wake up call. Geoff has managed to not work(much)and train and race by footing the bill with credit cards, no? Then gets applauded for the sacrifices he's made? Not sure what they are, we all make sacrifices in our lives, not sure why he has to quit running outright to fix his situation, racing(on the scale he has for sure though maybe)...which is why his "donation" box won't get clicked by me...yeah, I think it's a bummer he's in debt, but he make the choice, not a sacrifice, as it wasn't his money to begin with...nothing inspiring about that, wake up people, maybe the US wouldn't be in such a hole if folks could exist on they're own means, this is just another sad tale....
as other s have said maybe start looking for some sponsors...howabout a credit card company? could kill 2 birds with one stone....
I read in your blog that you did not except a pacer during the Wasatch 100 because you wanted to beat the course on your own. To me life is the biggest most brutal race there is and you do not mind mulling at all. In fact you are asking for the help. If you need people to carry you through life then you might as well use it in a race. Jurek and the other top guys all work jobs and succeed at the next level. AJW had a pacer in the Wasatch but he didnt need help getting to the start line. Which one is tougher? Just a thought.
BY THE SWEAT OF A MANS BACK HE WILL MAKE HIS WAY IN THE WORLD
TJ
Wow. I had an Iditarod fund last year and no one gave me this much crap about it. Well, I guess a few people did.
The way I see it is this: Donations are a personal venture. Some people like to donate to cure cancer (I've donated a fair amount to cancer research this year, through others' awareness races and also Internet drives.) But while this is an extremely important cause, does this mean no one should allocate money for "frivolous" humanities ventures like PBS, NPR and artist foundations. Geoff's running may be frivolous to some, but to others, maybe not so much. Does it really benefit everyone to belittle their contributions?
As to his financial situation, he is a few K in dept. He was before he moved to Alaska, and has largely managed to live within his means for the past three years. He extended himself a little thin this summer. He confronted that in this post. He recognized that this may prevent him from running the Iditarod in 2009. He could either give up on that dream or reach out, so he reached out. I think those who want to give find inspiration in that pursuit, the same way the person who gives to a local theatre company finds inspiration in their plays. The admonish them to give up or cut back their art and get a real job has merit, but I think misses the larger picture.
Anyway, that's just my view about it, as a person who views running and cycling as an art, not a science (and I know many, many disagree with me.) But I should let Geoff defend himself if he chooses.
I went back and read the previous post, which has prompted all the reponses, and I just realized I commented on something other than you posted. You're asking for donations specifically for your Iditarod attempt, not for living/racing in general. My response was really reacting to the later scenario, which isn't even what you proposed. My response might still be food for thought going forward, but doesn't really apply to this specific situation. Sorry for wasting "ink" on that... :)
Jill, you make a good point regarding non-charitable donations, such as NPR, PBS, etc. What those organizations all have in common though, is that, even though they're accepting "donations", they still offer something in return. They have different "rewards" for different donation levels, and even if you choose to forego that bonus, you get something in return in that you know what quality programming you'll get in return. You yourself have even followed this model. With your Iditabike fund, you offered a photo CD with all your wonderous photos in exchange for a donation. Beyond that, people also felt pretty much guaranteed that they'd get quality daily (or almost daily) postings from you, with great writing and great photos. We pretty much KNOW that with you we will get a quality race report as soon as humanly possible after one of your epic races or tours. Likewise, we get all the great training/life stories nearly daily up until the big events.
I'm not against what Geoff is doing here, but just playing devil's advocate. You have to at least be able to understand the flipside of the coin...
"Jill said...
Wow. I had an Iditarod fund last year and no one gave me this much crap about it."
The difference between you and Geoff is that you have a steady 9-5 job to support your hobbies. Also, you don't have the attitude that he does about people that having to work for a living are in it for the money only. That's what kills me the most about him asking for money. He has the attitude that "I'm not living my life chasing after money like some people, I'm living my dream and pursuing my lifestyle" basically. What he's doing is insulting the very people he's asking for money from. His attitude is that we're all 9-5 whores chasing a buck, while he's better than everyone else because he hasn't sold his soul for money. He should have been an Art major in college, because that's the same attitude they have towards life in general. The "Trust fund bitch" comment in the previous blog really hits home here. He doesn't work enough to support himself, so he asks for handouts, then he criticizes the people that he asks for money from that DO work to support themselves.
Personally I wouldn't send him any money to support his hobby. I have several hobbies including cycling, hiking, and photography, and I've busted my ass over the years working hard to support myself and my hobbies without asking for outside assistance. I've worked 60+ hour weeks, and 12-14 hour shifts in physically demanding jobs to support myself and my hobbies. There's no way in hell I'd send Geoff money if he's only working 10 hours a week in a dead end job as a cook. Get a real job, or get a 2nd part-time job, to support yourself if you need money so bad.
I see Geoff as an exercise addict. Now he's asking for handouts to support his fix. He's not even 100% fully functional in the world, as he said he can't find the motivation to do simple things in life that need to be done outside of his running hobby. He has no real job, he's not making enough to support himself much less his hobby, he's relying on outside help from others to get him by, and he's become a one-dimensional person with a single minded obsession with getting his "fix". He has no clear goals or focus in life outside of his races, and his personal relationships take a back seat to his running hobby. Those are signs of an addiction.
Geoff,
Michelle (sis again).
So few people ever even find passion in their life, let alone pursue it. Just wanted you to know that you are an inspiration to me.
You have given up a lot in your life to live the way you see fit, and as far as I know, have never asked for any help along the way. You had plenty of opportunities to live that "dream" everyone seems to think we all "should", but you saw the person you wanted to be at a young age and you became him.
People seem to think you're being selfish and spoiled, or a lazy miss- manager of funds. But I have always seen you as the polar opposite of that. You have given gifts to me, my family and others that will never be measured in dollars and cents, but will always mean more than any you could have bought.
You have an amazing talent and the drive to get there. There are plenty of amateur athletes (think olympics) who train so hard and have so much love for what they are doing and only a small window of time to accomplish their goals. Yet, we give to olympic funds to finance their success. Is it only acceptable in those venues?
Anyway, you're a hero to me.........
The whole argument is an ancient one. Been going on for a long time in this world. Nothing new here. The key to life is balance, and Geoff's life is out of balance. It is fun to live simply, run like a spirited child, and ask for alms...but it will not make next year's Iditarod race as pleasurable, to have gained entry through begging. It is like wanting more and more toys at Christmas. Sometimes one toy is enough. Maybe skip Iditarod and work hard, and then race it the following year. Maybe volunteer at races all year and not race a single one, even though your legs are in their prime. Legs in themselves do not make a full human.
anon,
(yes you, the one who's left about a half dozen pathetic comments here and on jill's blog this weekend. no wonder you aren't posting with any name attached to your comments so as to avoid it being fully obvious just how obsessive and over the top you are being... as though anyone reading these comments has any doubts as to the fact that you've left more than a few of them that end up more or less saying the same thing over and over),
i get the point very clearly, you think i'm a loser. you have thought that for some time and you will continue to think that no matter what i say. (because you have not once responded to anything that i've actually said but rather to things that you want me to have said to make your case stronger).
i do have a couple questions though (and yes, these are rhetorical questions that aren't intended to be answered, but somehow i find it hard to believe that you will refrain from doing so):
1) if you feel that i am such a loser what exactly does that make you for spending so much time trying to convince me of your case? maybe you have something you could be doing with your time that has a positive effect on something?
2) you don't know me and you make that glaringly obvious by the things you try to assume about me, why then do you find it so important to pretend that you do? why exactly do you care so much that some random person on the internet has different views on things than you do? especially when the things being discussed have nothing to do with you personally. i have no problem with you voicing your opinion about things that are actually being discussed in my posts, but i'm not so sure why you feel the need to take it to a level of personal attack that has nothing to do with anything that i've actually talked about on my blog.
3) why do you find it so hard to accept someone asking for some help? when most people are driving down the highway and they see someone with thumb outstretched trying to catch a ride they either stop to pick them up or they drive on by. perhaps you slow down and throw something at the hitchhiker?
4) and lastly, why do you feel so convinced that me asking for help has to have so many implications? that because i'm reaching out to people to help me come up with money to be able to pay for one specific race that i'm hoping to run this winter that certainly you must know everything about me. almost every specific assumption that you have made about me is off base with reality. one thing that you may want to start with and work around is the fact that i am 32 years old, i have financially supported myself 100% since i was 18 years old. rent, food, car payments, car insurance, utilities, etc... the whole 9 yards just like everyone else. i have worked full time jobs for a good portion of my life and when i'm afforded the luxury i work less than that to enjoy my life as much as possible. i will be working full time again as soon as i have the oppurtunity. i'm only working 10 hours a week because that is all the hours my job is able to give me currently. on top of this i could not work last week because of a back injury which pretty much didn't allow me to stand in one place for more than a few minutes at a time, and i'm not really in the position to get another job right now because i am going to be moving away from juneau at some point in the next several weeks. in other words my financial situation is tight right now because of specific factors - primarily the fact that i came back to juneau hoping to be back working at least 30 hours a week right away but instead after being here for 10 days I have not yet worked a single shift. for these reasons it became very clear to me last week that i would not be able to get my money together in time to enter the iditarod invitational and i choose to reach out to people to help me with that. of course i would not be in this situation if my life were more focused on obtaining financial well being and all that, but i take full responsibility for that. i'm not asking for any help with paying off my debt (and never would ask for such help) or with paying for things going forward. the simple truth is that there is a race that i really want to take part in and without the help of others i would not be able to. lucky for me other people have been very generous about this and i'm super excited about getting a chance to run that race again. if you have a problem with that then fine, but please give it up with trying to turn it into some broader issue of me not ever working for anything and having no responsibility and no direction, because you clearly don't know me and are unwilling to hold anything i say at face value anyhow.
G if I wasn't in the same boat I'd help you bail :)
Keep at it!
Geoff says in this post that it's hard for him to understand people who have a strong drive to make a lot of money. He also says: "a life that is based upon financial ambition works for many people. I have no problem with that"
Then various anonymous responses follow both here and on jill's blog:
"You may think you are "better" than other people because you spend your entire life focusings on your hobby of running, but I see the bigger picture of how things really are."
"Your "holier than thou" attitude about how you feel morally superior to other people because you're doing running races might work with your mom, your girlfriend, and your friends, but it doesn't work with me".
"You think just because you live a non-mainstream "alternative lifestyle" and your sole focus in life is your hobby that you think you're somehow better than everyone else"
"You resent people who make focusing on money a major point in their lives"
"That's what kills me the most about him asking for money. He has the attitude that "I'm not living my life chasing after money like some people, I'm living my dream and pursuing my lifestyle" basically. What he's doing is insulting the very people he's asking for money from. His attitude is that we're all 9-5 whores chasing a buck, while he's better than everyone else because he hasn't sold his soul for money"
Anon, don't you see how much of a stretch there is from what Geoff has said and what you have heard? A little paranoid about this are we? I mean come on, you think that Geoff thinks a certain way about you because of your drive toward financial wealth? Did you consider for a moment that perhaps he disrespects you instead for the following things that you have said about him?:
"He's not even 100% fully functional in the world"
"he's become a one-dimensional person with a single minded obsession with getting his "fix". He has no clear goals or focus in life outside of his races, and his personal relationships take a back seat to his running hobby"
"at least Geoff found a woman (however temporarily) that would put up with his actions and his lifestyle. Any other woman (besides his mother) would have kicked his ass to the curb a LONG time ago. I don't know how you put up with that crap as long as you did. Most women would be looking for a man with career prospects and a definite idea of the future ahead of him"
"Geoff on the other hand, I don't know WHAT the hell he's going to do, shack up with some trustafarian chick and sponge off her ?. And a job as a "cook" ?.....did he even go to college ?. WTF is he going to do when he gets older ?"
Of course he doesn't like you or your comments. You're an ass-hole who is stating horrible things about him that you know nothing about.
I can assure you that his opinions about you have nothing to do with the fact that you have worked hard your whole life to earn a lot of money. I too have worked hard my whole life and am quite well off financially. I've known Geoff for a long time and he has been nothing but caring and respectful to me since I first met him. Then again I've never jugded him or looked down upon him because he doesn't share the same ambitions for "mainstream success" that I do.
On top of that don't you think that if he were so resentful towards people who worked hard day in and day out to earn a good buck that he probably wouldn't have been dating Jill for almost 8 years, in which time she has worked a 40 hour week virtually the entire time?
Face it Anon, you're pathetic and you have serious issues. And it's time you stop trying to project these issues onto other people who you don't even know.
I call it Blogger Rage...what this Annon is doing. It's a lot like Road Rage, but is perpetrated online. Road Rage is committed by an individual that is usually over-stressed and/or doesn't have the coping skills required to handle whatever is going on in their lives at the moment. They get behind the wheel of a car and take it all out on other users on the road. There is two ways to deal with this type of person. Rage back, or ignore them. If you realize what they are saying has nothing to do with you or anything you did, you can let it bounce off of you and move on. That's my advice. I'm not going to name call or address this individual because you can never win. This person has issues, we all have issues. This person is choosing to handle it in a negative way. Geoff, it has nothing to do with you or your life. Ignore it.
Well, after reading all the comments on both of these posts, I have to say many of the "negative" comments are anything but.
The facts are the facts, and in your 30's, with some recent physical problems, living a lifesytle of grueling long runs is perhaps not the best way to make a living. That isn't the remarks of a hater, just a realist.
Regardless, if that is what Geoff wants to do, it is his body and his life.
There is a bit of vitriol here, and I think it is a bit misplaced. If anyone can prove Geoff is collecting welfare and/or food stamps then provide it. Otherwise, seriously, go get yourself a nice big cup of shut the F up and have a nicer day.
Unless he is taking handouts from the government, he is in no way hurting you. People who can work, but choose not to while sucking off the taxpayers' teats are despicable.
People getting by on their own, whether that be a job, trust fund, or handouts are nothing to get your panties is a twist over.
I clicked over to your blog to catch up on all the action since hearing about it during yesterday's group ride. I've gotta say that I agree with much of what the anons have been writing -- it's just too bad they don't have the cajones to sign their names.
Here's my take on athletes who solicit donations: If you're good enough to be worth a sponsor's investment (and you show that kind of potential) then you should work hard to become a sponsored athlete. That doesn't mean they hand you checks and you blissfully pursue an easy lifestyle; it means you work hard as a representative of their products or services in return for money that allows you to compete as you wish.
But to ask strangers to pay your way is little more than panhandling. I never give to bloggers, or anyone else, who ask others to pay their equipment or event fees. I'm one of the millions of amateur cyclists who would love to travel to events, buy new bikes, etc. whenever I damn well please, but that's not how life works. I do what I can, when I can afford it.
I completely respect the lack of desire to pursue money as a central life goal. There are more important things. But one must be adult enough to live within his means.
You wrote, "the truth is that I just don't care if I make a lot of money, that's just not something that's important to me."
But spending money on travel and race fees is clearly important to you.
So, the question is, who is responsible for funding your lifestyle?
If your friends and family wish to do it, that's their business. But you have to be willing to take a little heat when you start hitting up strangers for their spare change, because they work for it to support their passions, and they've learned the realities of sacrifice and compromise.
I wish you all the best in your running career. You obviously have an abundance of talent. More than most of us will ever have. But I won't be funding your dream.
There are millions of people in the world with far bigger problems than getting up and going to work. And they're way farther ahead in the donation line than you are.
I think Jill's post relating Geoff's current situation to NPR/PBS is particularly apt. Those of us who read these blogs do so because we enjoy the content. Would I frequent these pages were Geoff relating stories of his day job? Unlikely. If people want to donate so Geoff can generate more experiences, run more races, and thus provide more interesting reading and inspiration for us, more power to them.
Yipes.
OK... add my comments to the mix.
I'm 45, I have 2 kids, I run about 60 miles/week. I have a full-time job - and basically have supported a family of 4 for the last several years. I've also run a number of ultras. Finally, I'm posting under my name and not "anonymous".
I support Geoff's efforts in spirit, although I'm not sending him money either. He's welcome to do what he wants, in his best interest, and canvas people who read his blog. After all, people reading this likely have some interest in his pursuits. So... it makes sense to give it a shot.
I don't believe Geoff is whining, just facing some new realities. He's still at a spot with no kids and finding he can be a top notch ultrarunner and wants to see what his potential is.
I waited to have kids until age 33, even though I got married at age 22. I wanted to find out what I could do in running (including ultras) and do some traveling. I never asked anyone for money, but I never had an appreciative audience either. I'm glad I did things the way I did.
Right now, I work hard for money for my family. I'd prefer to spend more time with my kids; yet I'm also not willing to give up my 60 MPW of running. In general, I go out for an hour each morning at 6 AM before anyone is up. Then on one day on the weekend, I get a long run in. Allows for a good balance. I work as much as I need to do provide a good home for my family; but not caught up into making more and more and sacrificing family and things that make life worth living.
For those that say to Geoff, well gee, the rest of us don't have the luxury of not working all that much - that's fine - I identify. Yet Geoff's an adult who can make his own decisions and the consequences. Some people here are providing helpful ideas.
For my thoughts? I can't presume to know Geoff's situation. The idea of focusing on a small handful of top notch events seems, on the surface, the best way to go.
Finally, I think the "anons" need to have the wherewithal to post under a real name.
Hey Geoff, hope the back is feeling better. Try a ball and sit on it where your piriformis is and do lots of kickbacks to strengthen the glutes. Maybe tight from sitting on the bike seat??
If you're looking for an epic and ridiculously challenging 100 that is pure rugged single-track and as beautiful as one can imagine, no frills like we both enjoy, you should give the Superior Sawtooth 100 a shot in the fall/first weekend of September. Let me know and I can help with transportation/lodging and crap.
I plan to move to Wyoming in the summer, hopefully Sheridan to call my new home.
Good luck with the rest of 2008. Don't be affraid to rest up either. Hopefully see you at a race next year.
oh yeah you should give Arrowhead 135 a shot sometime. You would love that race!
when I was injured I spent a lot of time X-training on elliptical/strength training, but the biggest help was lots of time fishing.
-hang hawg
Anon is just jealous because Geoff has a hot girlfriend. All Anon does in his free time is play on his PC. Anon, go outside, get a life. Thank you very much.
All I'll say is her sister Lisa's husband got the pick of the litter.
This is all totally out of &%$#ing control. Get a grip people and get out and enjoy life.
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