PPTC Inaugural 50 Miler Recap
“Many, many random people in the park asked me what was going on. From behind a mask, none of them understood on the first pass that I was saying a 50-mile race. ”
Volunteers and crew at PPTC’s Inaugural 50 Miler
If you were in Prospect Park on Sunday, December 6, you might have noticed more runners than usual looping the park wearing race numbers. Those brave souls were running PPTC’s inaugural 50 miler – which was willed into existence thanks to our fearless race directors, Michael Ring, Douglas Olney, Stephanie Mei and Sara Devine – in honor of the club’s 50th Anniversary year.
There’s a lot that goes into race planning in ordinary times, but our directors had even more to contend with during the pandemic to plan and host the event safely. Read on for how they got this year’s race off the ground, their personal thoughts on if they’d ever run an ultra, feedback on this year’s event, and potential plans for next year.
Would you (or have you) ever run 50 miles? If it is your idea of fun, explain.
Michael: I've done many marathons, and a handful of 50K’s. But a 50 miler is a big leap from there. I think I would do too much damage to my body training for that and trying to accomplish it.
Doug: 26.2 miles is as far as I have run. Since most of my marathons ended up being a slog, I never really considered doing an ultra. And at this point in time, my marathon days are over. In fact, I haven't done a long run in excess of 10 miles in over two years!
Sara: If you’d asked me this two years ago, I would have said “no way,” but my answer now is “hell, yes.” I was a little sad not to be trained up for this particular race, but what are you gonna do? In my case, sign-up for Rock the Ridge 50 miler in September 2021.
I really enjoyed helping to put this race together, in some ways more than running it. It’s like crewing: I LOVE crewing! I love supporting other runners [as they] reach their goals, which can be even more satisfying than reaching my own. The range of emotion during long races like this – from joy to despair to joy again; the way volunteers, friends and family come out to support the runners, the elation and exhaustion at the finish. It’s epic no matter how you get to participate.
Runners having an amazing time! Don’t you want to join them in 2021?!
Stephanie: Unfortunately and fortunately, I have not run 50 miles — I haven’t even hit that distance in a week (per my Strava). The furthest I’ve run was NYRR’s 60K last November, and it was sooooooooo uncomfortable! Everything was feeling good until my sneaker (which apparently hadn't been worn in enough) started to apply pressure on my right bunionette with 30 miles left to go. At that point, I was struggling to remember how to be a human while there was a monster raging inside, and rotating through the following thoughts: “This is not as bad as Cat Hill,” “Ugh, Cat Hill,” “Oh yay, PPTC!”, and “Pickle juice!”. Overall, running long distances, let alone 50 miles, and the uninterrupted hours of discomfort are not my idea of fun.
Despite the act of running such a long distance not being fun, I’d still like to run 50 miles just to see what I’m capable of. I view it as a testament to one’s mental grit and endurance: I’m curious to see how far my brain will let me go.
While [the act of] running it may not be fun, there are parts of ultrarunning that I do love: the pre-race commiseration with other runners/suckers looking to do the same, the overwhelming support from your pacers/crew, and my fueling options. A fried chicken sandwich?! OMG, yes, please!
[Note: Though pickle juice as a fuel source may be atypical, I’ve often looked to it to soothe an upset stomach: There’s just something about the vinegar and spices that I find so comforting. Also for those who’ve run the 60K or are looking to run it, there is at least one aid station that provides pickle juice, and they’re an absolute party. It gave me something to look forward to and hopefully you!]
Why did you decide to help plan the race?
Michael: I felt that if I didn't start planning the race, it wasn't going to happen!
Doug: When a 50 miler was first proposed back in the beginning of the year, I instantly felt it was an event I wanted to be part of.
Sara: A club first and to celebrate our 50th year: How could I not? I have been on the Race Committee for about three years now but have hesitated to RD, mostly because I see how much time it takes and I haven’t felt like I was able to commit. I just had to for this race. Having participated in the ultra community as a volunteer, crew chief, and runner, I felt I’d have a helpful perspective. Plus, I knew I’d be able to ask our UMTG crew for advice, which I did. Thanks to Adam, Brian, Carmen, and Juliette for letting me run ideas by you and giving me your feedback!
Stephanie: I wanted to pitch in with and be a part of our club’s 50th Anniversary celebrations. Just like any other club volunteer, I like helping because it’s fun.
Additionally, I am always looking to learn from our club’s experienced RDs, such as Doug Olney and Michael Ring – as well as ultrarunners like Juliette Ciaccia, Adam Devine, Sara Devine, and Brian Schwartz – while also identifying areas where I can add value. It was an opportunity to interact with other club members that I’m not normally around, and in a capacity other than physically running.
What was your role on the planning committee?
Michael: I think my role was to make sure that we didn't decide not to do it. And to keep it simple.
Doug: As long-time members of the Race Committee – and as former Race Directors – I think Michael and I got designated by default. Once our planning kicked into high gear, I guess my role fell more into the technical logistics category: Working on the event schedule and developing a site plan, identifying the supplies needed for the race, creating a race scoring plan.
A lot of what we did was truly collaborative - each of us contributed ideas and prepared various working documents that were shared for commenting and editing. And using Zoom for our planning meetings actually worked: Steph was really good at keeping us older guys focused!
Sara: At first, I was just supposed to be a race committee member supporting Doug and Michael as the RDs. But as planning got into full swing, it was clear we needed more than 2 RDs. Putting on a race like this during COVID on a tight timeline is a lot of work! My main role was putting together the COVID safety plans (which is a responsibility of mine professionally as well so I have experience with this), and participant communications. Tom, Michael, and I also met with the Parks events team to walk them through the plans, and get the green light for an in-person race. Otherwise, it was chipping in on the work we were all doing: Meetings, logistics, getting supplies from storage, reporting to the Race Committee on progress and the like. On race day, I was the point person for volunteers; I assigned roles and coordinated tasks.
“Watching cases in the City rise, I kept waiting for the Park to email us, even up until the night before, to cancel our permit. At the same time, I was confident we were putting on a safe race. Thankfully, the powers that be agreed and we were able to do it. ”
Michael and volunteers, braving the cold (all day!) to ensure all runners had a great time.
Stephanie: Initially, I was there to take notes for our permit submission and to ensure things were organized for planning. I like to document, centralize, and archive so that information from past discussions and open items are readily available (and also because I don’t have the greatest memory)!
At some point, Sara and I got more involved with the race orchestration, and there was a mutual recognition that we were also serving as RDs. So, we added ourselves as RDs to the playbill. My objective was to ensure we were organized, by putting together checklists for race-day equipment needs, and maintaining momentum in the planning. I handled meeting and task coordination, brought in David Halloran (Catskills Timing Co), some site and volunteer planning, RunSignUp troubleshooting, and worked with Evy Barnett (Note: “Evy” is short for Evelyn, and is pronounced with a soft “E”) and Park Slope Copy Center to produce our race day signs. Essentially having a hand in almost every pot...but then also dialing it back.
In addition to that, Sara and I implemented small ways we could change the race event culture to be more attuned to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) issues from removing (binary) gender selection requirements from registration, including our photos and pronouns in our email signatures, to preparing a land acknowledgment, which is a practice of self-reflection and paying respects to the land that settlers took from Indigenous peoples, and the ongoing erasure of the people and the culture.
Paying this type of respect is becoming common in Canada and Australia, and my hope is that it will gain traction in the US, too. We more often amplify Black & Brown voices, but it’s equally important to be aware of the genocide of indigenous lives, which is still part of the anti-racist objective.
In hindsight, I felt like my being a part of the race planning was kismet. I was inspired by Ben Chan, who was criticized and excluded from Lazarus Lake’s ultra events (Why Did a Virtual Ultra Ban "Black Lives Matter"? & For BIPOC, Running—and Its Online Forums—Is Not a Refuge From Racial Discrimination); Natalie Randall who ran 50 miles in protest of the systematically problematic police-related killings of Black and Brown lives and who was looking to collect her first of many ultra belt buckles; Alison Désir, Jason Fulford, David Coleman, Coffey, Power Malu, and countless others who shared their experiences of running and being Black/BIPOC in America.
Each of the RDs agreed to manage certain areas on race day: Sara and the volunteers/scoring, Doug and race central/scoring, Michael and greeting/traffic direction, myself and temperature checks/the runner area. While I did not originally see myself monitoring the runner area and temperature checks, some last-minute changes brought me there. I’m incredibly grateful for those, because I think the universe wanted me there.
Why? Because I was in this awesome position to be with the runners, and all I could think about was everyone’s safety — whether it was physical (COVID-19, their possessions, their hydration), or mental. I imagined the anxiety or nervousness they must have felt as the clock counted down their start time while fumbling to pin their race bibs to the backs of their shirts, because it was too cold to flip their shirt around as they lost some dexterity in their fingers. All the while, I offered repeated reassurances that I got them (the runners) and that they’ve got this (the race). I wanted to do everything that I could to protect everyone, but I know I cannot control the weather (mid-30 temps and winds in the high-teens), nor can I cure the pandemic.
All I could do was make sure everyone was in a good mental space by welcoming them back to the runner area, memorizing their names (with the help of my runner list), using “hey, friend” when asking them to keep their faces covered, checking in to see how they were feeling, and reminding them that they’re not alone, even though their support crew was not permitted in the area. Did my insecurities and my fears come up? You betcha! But their smiles and thumbs up were all I needed to know that they were okay.
Steph gives Natalie a high-five (or really, a a high 10!) for encouragement.
I’ve responded to this question with a bit of a personal race day recap: That’s because I feel like a bit of a fraud when it comes to being a race director for an ultra event: I do not have much experience with ultras, and relied heavily on our experienced ultrarunners to answer questions, but one of my most important roles was to make sure Natalie finished and got her first ultra belt buckle. Had I had zero exposure to ultras, I would have never known that a common regret/mistake when a runner calls it quits is because they don’t think they can run anymore.
I learned that our job as non-runners was to do everything possible to convince them otherwise: That they are just tired, recommend they rest and see how they feel in a few minutes, and say anything to dispel the false narrative in their heads.
When a reasonably tired-looking Natalie approached me about dropping, I almost agreed and allowed her to. But my instincts kicked in, and I asked her to sit down on the chair I set out for her, to refuel and give it a few minutes thought. I looked over and saw that her pacer (Alex Kolod) was nearby, so I knew she’d be okay: Alex was my rock when I ran the 60K. With reassurances that everyone will be waiting for her at the finish with her buckle – and that we would not pack up and leave early – Natalie set off on her second-to-last lap.
A bit nervous about her finish, I checked with the scorers and saw that she would still make it with time to spare if she did not stop to rest. After telling Sara that I worried and I was going to do the last lap with Natalie, we agreed that she could use the boost from some company. Sara spotted Natalie approaching the scorer table walking alone, called out to me, and I dashed over to ask if I could keep her company on her last lap.
In that hour and a half, we caught Marta Cabral just before Zoo Hill, were entertained by my exceptional(ly bad) singing and dancing, talked about racism and destigmatizing running in the Black community, and learned of her aspirations to get funding and partner with running orgs to provide gear and remove financial barriers for low-income runners. After a few rounds of convincing that her pinky toenail did not fall off – and a shoe exchange – Natalie finished.
I don’t think I could have been the best version of myself on that day and throughout the planning, if it weren’t for all that I’ve learned through Natalie and Ben’s experiences and the other brave voices that spoke up and out about racist and discriminatory treatment they’ve experienced while running. Had I not come across 300 Pounds and Running’s Open Letter to RDs from the Back of the Pack just the other day while educating myself on body-image and feelings of being othered as a back of the packer in preparation for Runner Safety Awareness Week, I would not have understood the fear that came up for Natalie when she asked for several reassurances that we would not pack up before the 15-hour cut off and that we’d be waiting for her at the finish with a buckle, nor would I have come to know additional areas of runner safety in need of addressing.
That sounds like such a rewarding experience for all of you (as well as the runners!), yet it sounds like you didn’t have much time to get the race together...which I’m sure added to your stress. Can you explain how this was problematic and/or not normal?
Michael: There's so many levels of not normal about what we did.
Doug: Well, the idea of a 50 mile race was raised way back in January/February. We got as far as picking a date and sketching out some vague ideas, but then the pandemic hit in March. That put planning on the back burner for many months, although we did proceed with the belt buckle. We really didn't get our act together until late September, when Prospect Park Special Events asked us if we were going to use our permit. Then out of necessity, everything quickly fell into place as we responded to their requirements and worked out our plans.
This is definitely not the usual way to organize a race! The short planning timeframe forced us to keep things simple, and some of the more elaborate plans to have more participants fell by the wayside.
Sara: Our very first planning meeting was sometime last year. But we didn’t get to really plan in any kind of detail until about 6 weeks before race day, which is a very short lead time! Essentially we start planning our races a year in advance: As soon as a race is over, we do a postmortem recap at the next Race Comm meeting. We then start planning in earnest about 6 months out for our races.
Stephanie: I think this question has two answers. Our first rounds of planning took place last summer, and it was spent putting together details for our permit application. Because of the pandemic, the permit approval was a bit of a bottleneck because the more conservative voices (hint: me!) were not comfortable with opening registration before we had some sort of guarantee. I didn’t really start getting involved until we were about a month out. Prior to the pandemic, our race planning would start as early as 4 months out.
How did you navigate any planning hurdles with permits, dealing with the city, etc?
Michael: That was the crazy part: We applied for the permit about a year ago and we had to amend it to keep it approved. In the world of COVID, we had to limit our capacity to 50 participants, changed from 100 starting at staggered times. The Parks Department said they couldn't approve a permit for more than 50 people. And I tried to tell them that we would have 100 people but they would be spread out over the entire park roadway. I did some back-of-the-envelope math and even told them that these 100 participants would be spread out over just under a quarter million square feet. That did not help.
But it turned out having fifty participants was just right. We were able to do everything very well for all of them. Having a hundred might have been a little stressful on our systems.
Doug: In addition to the usual permit requirements – event insurance and an event timeline – we had to follow a detailed list of COVID safety requirements, and submit a narrative of our specific COVID plans. Fortunately, Sara had worked on similar COVID safety plans at her job with the Brooklyn Museum, so she was able to create a document that dotted all the i's and crossed the t's on the first try! We also had an in-person lunch planning meeting over pizza with Special Events. I'm sure that helped too.
The event baggage and pre/post-race area.
Sara: Permits definitely were the big variable this year, given COVID. We were asked to resubmit all permits with COVID safety protocols, which we did. We then sat down with two of the Events team and talked them through it. They made some changes, such as no shared water supply and fewer participants (down to 50 from our original request of 100), and after some email exchanges, we were approved.
Watching cases in the City rise, I kept waiting for the Park to email us, even up until the night before, to cancel our permit. At the same time, I was confident we were putting on a safe race. Thankfully, the powers that be agreed and we were able to do it.
Stephanie: With the number of RDs present, I was in a position where I didn’t have to: Tom Meany, Doug, and Michael have decades of experience in obtaining Special Events permits, and Sara had already done a lot of work putting together COVID-19 safety protocols at the Brooklyn Museum. We did not need to reinvent the wheel. The only hurdle we faced in obtaining the permit was having to make amendments to our original submission to include our safety plan, and to reduce the event to 50 runners.
With this 50-miler, the challenge was to keep costs as low as possible because we would have only grossed $2,500 with a goal to break even. We started off by identifying the race equipment we’d normally need/rent, and then talked through each item to see how we could keep the cost low. For example, we’d normally rent the delineators to partition the Event Area, but Doug suggested that we buy a box of garden stakes and tape the area. Instead of ordering customized bibs that would sport the graphic skills of some of our talented club creatives, we bought plain Tyvek bibs which doubled in maintaining the grassroots, barebones feel at an ultra event. Michael also borrowed extra tables and chairs from his co-op.
What went well and/or not so well on race day?
Michael: The weather was just right for the participants, but a little too cold for me. I anticipated this and put myself on jobs that weren't that important on race day. Because of my neuropathy my hands and feet get really cold, and I start tripping and dropping things. Didn't want that to happen, so I went home. I was also a little disappointed that we didn’t light up the barbecues…
Doug: Honestly, just about everything went well. Even starting at the god-awful hour of 4:30 am, we got the event site set up quickly, our volunteers all showed up as scheduled, and the race unfolded pretty much as we anticipated. We were able to address any little glitches very quickly.
Runners get ready to crush the inaugural 50!
That's where having four of us on board really helped: I think none of us felt that the burden of overseeing the event was falling entirely on our own shoulders. If you want to call it a screw-up, our first wave that was supposed to start at 6:00am was sent off at 6:01am. (For Tom Meany, this is a major faux-pas.)
Personally, I had one low spot around 6pm, after it got dark and colder and we still had several hours to go. I was in the scoring tent with others, but mentally I checked out for about an hour and stopped interacting with people. Eventually I was able to sit in the warm van for about a half-hour, get a small bite to eat and drink, and I finally got my groove back for the final stretch.
Sara: Overall, things went really well on race day, which I chalk up to the amount of contingency planning we did. We ran through so many scenarios “just in case” so we were ready for whatever came our way on race day.
Stephanie: I think the hallmark of a successful event is that no one was injured, and that everyone had a good time. When I put together my race day plans, I visualize how the event should go and how each moving part will operate. It’s how I put together my race day equipment needs, and how I figure out what goes where.
I’ll also put myself in the shoes of the runner and/or someone who's not familiar with the park to ensure our directions are clear and not too overwhelming. I find an event area and race day walkthrough are incredibly helpful with the planning, especially for someone who grew up in Brooklyn yet knows diddly about navigating Prospect Park. I’m getting there, though.
Any hard-earned lessons to keep in mind for next year’s race?
Sara: A few things I’d love to change for next time:
No hand-scoring. It’s hard to keep up with since there is a chance to either miss someone on a loop, or they forget to flag us down when they go back on the course. Hopefully in non-COVID times, we can have a larger race, and we’d want chip timing [for that] anyway.
Keep to a hard cut-off time and have a sweeper. This is what most (all?) other ultras do. It’s clearer and more equitable to stick to the time.
Split RD time into shifts. I would only do this if it’s really cold again. All four of us were there at 4:30am for set-up and most stayed until the very end, a 15+ hour day (with a few breaks). We wanted to be there, so I’m not complaining at all, but I do think we can divide up the day into shifts so that one RD is there at all times.
Stephanie: It is with blunt honesty that I say not everything goes according to plan! There are so many factors that are out of our control, and scenarios with which we are unfamiliar. Here’s my version of lessons learned and areas where we can improve for future races:
No viral pandemic: Admittedly, I was incredibly uncomfortable with asking runners to cover their faces as they came back to the Transition Area.
Greater control over who’s coming into the runner and event areas: We had many instances of park go-ers, crewers, and non-event staff coming into the area. Trying to prevent some people and/or being late to stop someone from coming into the area – and asking them to go another route – was incredibly stressful. I felt awkward asking them to do that, and kept forgetting that I have the right to do that as per our event permit. There is a limit to the efficacy in the preventive measures we had in place to manage that (Race Participant Only signs, barricades blowing over, limited staff, etc).
Not getting to read the land acknowledgment that Sara worked on, and that all of the RDs were supportive of.
Providing more detail with role expectations & responsibilities as part of the volunteer sign up.
Holding a pre-event huddle among the RDs to communicate our plans for our respective areas.
Getting more than three hours of sleep knowing that I’ll have to wake up at 3 am.
Staffing cyclists for 4 hours at a time might be a lot.
More hand warmers.
The ability to control the weather!
I look back on the above, and can confidently say that I am excited for the incremental improvements we can make at future races, and have also accepted the fact that when you’re in the thick of it, you sometimes forget to do certain things! Oh and also, I’ll likely never be able to control the weather in my lifetime.
Sara: For things that went well:
Our extraordinary volunteers! I can’t thank them enough, in particular our early morning crew who were right on time (4:45am!) with bells on ready to pitch in. Everyone who came out to volunteer was willing to help where needed and to be in the cold for hours. Several folks signed up for back-to-back shifts. It’s hard to run in the cold, but it’s harder to stand around!
Our COVID plan: Not to toot my own horn, but overall, I think everyone felt safe and people adhered to the protocols. We had the occasional runner forgetting to put their mask up, but otherwise it was smooth.
Our RD plan: The RDs split up race day responsibilities into zones and that helped. Steph was on race central logistics and setup, Doug on scoring, Michael on greeting, and I was volunteer coordinator.
Stephanie: The things that went well:
The RDs and David Halloran were as prepared as could be, and had all of our race equipment.
Spotting the strengths within ourselves and of our volunteers and aligning that with the event day roles.
The generous spirit and self-activating nature of those who volunteered and wanted to volunteer but weren’t able to sign up.
Everyone was on-time or early (chalking that up to event excitement)!
Race participants and volunteers had FUN, despite the uncomfortable and abnormal circumstances.
Changing the format of our email communications to be more inclusive and current with DEI issues while also celebrating the diversity of our RDs.
Spreading the emotional load of planning and execution from two RDs to four.
Speaking a second language: I predominantly speak Toisanese at home, am fluent in Cantonese and the art of dim sum (one of my love languages). I took four years of Mandarin in high school, which came in very handy when communicating with some of the (Taiwanese-speaking) Misty Mountain Running Club members.
Staging all I needed before going to sleep.
Waking up on time-ish and managing to make breakfast.
The posole that Alexis Gordon provided in a piping hot Zojirushi flask.
It didn’t rain (so maybe I can control the weather?)
We didn’t run out of toilet paper!
No one contracted COVID-19 from the event.
Did all participants enjoy the experience? Any positive or negative feedback for future events?
Michael: We didn't get any negative feedback at all from any of the participants. I was especially proud of one of our non-participants who was 14 years old who completed the entire distance. Also, many, many random people in the park asked me what was going on.
From behind a mask, none of them understood on the first pass that I was saying a 50-mile race. 5K? No, 50 miles. 5 miles? No, 50 miles. 15 miles? No, 50 miles. So it's a relay: How far does each runner go? No, it's a 50 mile race, everybody runs 50 miles.
I was also very excited to see the quantity of participants that showed up to their personal bag check area with a shopping cart.
Doug: I think so! This goes for the runners and our volunteers. Sara was handling the communications, and got most of the feedback. The messages I saw were all positive. I am gratified that everyone was happy to be there and had a good time. I think this race will be back for 2021!
Doug, manning the check-in/volunteer tent.
Sara: We got overwhelming positive feedback both during and after the race from participants. Some of the emails we received:
“I wanted to thank everyone from the team for putting on a great race yesterday! In addition to feeling safe and getting the logistics to be a breeze, everyone on the race site was super helpful and friendly! It was my first 50 and I had a great race thanks in part to the organization. Hopefully I will get to another of your races soon!”
“Thanks to race directors and all volunteers. It is a great ultra experience in cold weather. A lot of happiness.” (This person participated with his wife and her friend, who wants to join PPTC now!)
“It was clear that much went into yesterday's orchestration - and I’m sure I knew a fraction of it. To endure the cold while not running also takes mettle. I thought running 50 miles might top a list of 2020 worsts, but as soon as I saw the announcement I knew I had to try. Against my better judgment, it was a very fun day. Immense thanks. Looking forward to volunteering at one soon.”
“I wanted to send a quick email to you and the other Race Directors (can you make sure they see this?) to say THANK YOU and CONGRATULATIONS for putting on such a great event on Sunday! I find that ultra-runners and the race directors/volunteers at ultras are always a special type, but I can say that out of all the races I have done, I truly felt like you all went above and beyond to create a fun, safe, amazing event. It was a cold, long day for you all, and I didn't interact with a single person who wasn't incredibly cheerful, kind, and helpful. Who knew I would love running 15 times up the hill in Prospect Park so much (or, at least not absolutely hate it)!”
Steph meeting her PPTC white whale (Junko Matsuura) in person. Yes, she has one, too.
Stephanie: Based on feedback from runners and volunteers, yes, they had fun and enjoyed their experience. It was exciting to be a part of something. Personally, I was in a bit of a fog by the time 9:30 pm rolled around after seeing Natalie out of the park. My brain was mush after being up for 20+ hours with only three hours of sleep under my belt. Congratulatory text messages and emails came flooding during the tail-end of the event and into the following morning, but I could not process a simple thought to save my life. I was spent, and knew I needed to recover. And so I switched myself to ‘Airplane Mode’, slept for the next 16 hours, ate some food, and then slept some more until Tuesday afternoon rolled around.
In addition to the list of things I loved about this event – the manifestation of all the self-growth, knowledge and experience acquired since joining the club and the Race Committee – I loved working with Sara in her debut RD race! She is awe-inspiring with her pragmaticism, astuity, and the effortlessness in advocating her boundaries. I loved working with Doug, who was creative and resourceful in lowering costs and — much like myself — loves to analyze and talk through the many pertinent thoughts whirling around in his head. I loved working with Michael, who reminds me why I joined PPTC in the first place — for being (for better or worse!) a person who rarely ever says ‘no’.
If you were to ask me if I’d want to direct a 50-miler race again, the answer is an unequivocal ‘YES’! This experience was healthy and safe, as everyone was so honest about how they felt when met with difficult decisions. I feel blessed to have worked with everyone (runners AND volunteers!) who made it possible. As I count down to the end of the year, this reflection helps me end things on a high note. Happy 50th Anniversary (and Happy New Year, PPTC!) 🎂🥳
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PPTC is a diverse and supportive team. We want to showcase and celebrate the diversity of our club and membership, and encourage everyone to share your stories with us.
Text: Michael Ring, Doug Olney, Sara Devine, Stephanie Mei
Photos: Jimmy Leung (even more photos here)!
Edited & Produced by: Alison Kotch