REI Presents: How To Run 100 Miles

In September 2017, I stepped up to the starting line of the Run Rabbit Run 100 in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, alongside my friend Jayson Sime. The race is a ultramarathon with 20, 000 feet of elevation gain, which is no small feat for a couple of guys who dont know what theyre doing. Jayson had talked me into it, and if I were to be completely honest, Id say we were there to test out his life philosophy, which is basically that you can do anything you dream up, as long as you put in the work and refuse to quit. That ethic has worked for him in almost every other area of life, despite growing up in poverty, one of six children with no father, and dyslexia. In the six months leading up to the race, we figured since we werent naturally talented runners, the best thing we could do is work hard. So we ran 50 to 70mile weeks all summer, and went through a full range of feelings: fear, regret, sadness, FOMO, hunger, thirst, exhaustion, pain, and joy. And gluttony, which is not a feelin