About Me

Ultra'thoner

"In the process of completely exhausting myself, I connect with an inner part of me ordinarily veiled by the everyday distractions of life. During that short time spent on a trail in the mountains, my life is reduced to its simplest terms. Most ultrarunners are people who find goodness and joy in difficult times, who see beyond the misery to the beauty of nature, and who truly realize the elemental and important aspects of life. Going for a run always clears my head... but running 100 miles distills my soul." Keith Knipling - RUNNING THROUGH THE WALL

Member since Dec 8, 2007
Male
South Dakota
United States
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Personal: Married with one child, two dogs, three horses, one blue-crowned conure and I can't remember exactly how many cats...

Place of Residence: The scenic Black Hills of western South Dakota

Years Running: 10+ years total (6 years since I restarted after a 20+ year hiatus)

Ultramarathons Attempted:

Ice Age Trail 50k May 12, 2007

Kettle Moraine 38 mile All-night Fun Run June 2, 2007

Glacial Trail 50m (DNF at mile 25) October 14, 2007

Chicago Lakefront 50m October 27, 2007

Greenland Trail 50k April 19, 2008

Kettle Moraine 100k (DNF at mile 41) June 7, 2008

24 hours at Laramie (52 miles) June 28, 2008

Lean Horse Hundred (DNF at mile 64.5) August 23-24, 2008

Javelina Jundred (100-K Finish) November 15-16, 2008

Antelope Island 50 mile Buffalo Run (DNF mile 44) March 28, 2009

Strolling Jim 40 Mile Run May 2, 2009

Bighorn Wild and Scenic 50 mile (DNF mile 18!!!!) June 20, 2009

Coming up:

Lean Horse Hundred August 22/23, 2009

What is an Ultramarathon? Technically, the definition of an ultramarathon is any footrace longer than the traditional 26.2 miles of a marathon. However, most ultrarunners do not consider an event to be an ultramarathon unless it is at least 50-kilometers (31 miles) or longer in length. Many ultramarathons are done off-road and/or under difficult conditions.

My Favorite Places to Run: Just about any dirt road or hiking trail. I enjoy discovering new running trails in the Black Hills. My favorites are the Centennial Trail which is is a great single track to explore; the many trails of the Black Elk Wilderness; and the George Mickelson Trail which is a rails-to-trails multi-use biking trail that is also nice to run on. If you ever come out here to visit, bring your trail shoes!

Occupation: Physician. Board certified in Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism; Clinical Lipidology; General Internal Medicine; and Nutrition.

Other Personal Interests Outside of Ultrarunning (I don't run all the time!):

-Outdoor recreation: camping, fly-fishing, hiking, skiing, snowshoeing, canoeing

-Fruit and vegetable gardening

-Homebrewing beer and wine

-Riding/training horses, horseshoeing

-Singing and playing old-time folk music of the Western Frontier: claw-hammer banjo, ukulele-banjo, guitar, harmonica, Native American 5-hole flute