vole stare toad race: 180 hours update:.60 hours to go.for us on the rock it is roughly the same length of time as the barkley remaining.this race is not easy for anyone.runners are erxhaustedroad angels are exhaustedthe race staff is exhausted….and i dont think exhausted is a strong enough word for what the runners are.37 have now finished.over the next 5 or 6 hours the number of finishers will exceed the 40 who dropped..and so Read more
vole stare toad race: 168 hour update.it has been going on for a week now.28 have made it to the rock53 are still on the road..i will be truly surprised if any of them quit.every one of them is damaged.some of them have taken a real beating.there is still a chance someone could succumb to oprah.but the ones who remain do not quit…we know they do not quit.because if you have any quit in youthe Read more
19 have finished40 have quit62 vol staters remain on the road after 6.5 days..after nearly a week the weather seems to have broke today.after a blistering hot morningthe afternoon was filled with popup thunderstorms..the cloud cover and breezes actually felt quite good.unless you happened to be caught in one of the torrential downpours..just in case you had concerns for the welfare of the vol state staff,we actually got a break this afternoonand you can bet Read more
the vol stater was sitting on a curb in front of a gas station in a small rural town.on day 2 she had gotten extreme chafingso she stopped at a store that had only mens boxer briefs underwear.she needed something so she bought themcut the liner out of her shorts and went on with mens underwear hanging out the leg..later she fellskinning up her leg and receiving a black eye..on day 3 she developed blisters Read more
vole stare toad race: 132 hour update.it is funny how the mood swings at vol state central..during the month of fear so many runners withdrawthat it starts to feel like no one wants to run.it really sort of drags you down..and then we arrive at the rock to load up on the busand there are so many smiling facesand so much excited talk.this seems like a great thing is about to happen.the excitement is contagious.and Read more
the day begins as a lightening of the sky.then a slight pink appears along the eastern horizon..with surprising speed the first twinkle of the yellow ball of fire pierces the darkness.the light reveals a shambling, sorry lotfollowing the endless white line..bleary eyed, sunburnt.some have attempted washing their clothes in a sinkthe result is less than perfect.others have turned into topo maps of salt lines and sweat stains.when you carry all your possessions with youyou do Read more
vole stare toad race: 108 hour update.this one will be a little hurried,as matthew bird is in no hopeand on the way to the turn up sand mountain.we have to finish a quick meal and head up that way to get his finish.also to pack up stuff to begin life at the rock full time.it looks like we will have finishers coming in all night..if you can imagine,after all this time,the halfway update is not Read more
vole stare toad race: hour 96 update.yes, i am 5 hours late starting this.there are still 85 runners on the road,and it is becoming increasingly more important to sleep when i can.at some point we go to the rock to take a finish….and never get to come back!.carl has just left to pick up 6 more who have fallen along the way.for some of the ones back there fighting oprahthe constant clicking of those stiletto Read more