“Stories have to be told or they die, and when they die, we can't remember who we are or why we're here.” - Sue Monk Kidd
“Doing 1 crazy thing is never enough when you can do 3”
It’s July 2011, in a major turning point of my life - I’m a few months into my first real job out of college. I am working as a project engineer just outside Detroit, Michigan. I had to negotiate my Ironman Race weekend into my salary negotiation because they don’t allow staff vacation the first year.
It’s Wednesday morning and the clock goes off at 3:00am. Groggy and disoriented - I manage to get myself out the door and on my way to Island Lake Recreation center. It’s a 20 minute drive on these mornings but I still have to unpack my bike, grab an extra tube, and get going by 4am - - The group ride leaves promptly at 4:00am. It’s a 40 minute drive home during rush hour so timing is critical.
These rides always felt like a crazy adventure in the Millennium Falcon - how I stayed upright, and managed myself through the exhaustion was nothing short of a miracle. Raccoons and various other flora and fauna would present themselves in front of my bike light at varying speeds at this time of day. We’d often get in 40-50 miles before the sun was fully rising, providing us a reason to stash the bike lights. We were using the park while it was closed, so if you were new - it was a learning experience if you didn’t know where the gates were.
By August 2011, I would cross the finish line of Ironman Louisville in a memorable 11:23 - (I was born November, 23rd). On that hot and very sticky day I left my passion, love, and desire to continue triathlon somewhere on the bike at about mile 90. The marathon at the end would go down to be my slowest road marathon I would ever run - somewhere near the 4.5 hour mark. Fifty percent slower than the Chicago marathon I ran a month later breaking 3 hours, for my second time in 2:57.
Crazy people make great friends
If you’ve been in the Kalamazoo running scene for very long - you’ll get to know Scott VanLoo. Much to the chagrin of his wife (at least in the early years) - Scott was and still is nothing short of obsessed with running. In much the same story as I’ve shared with you all; running gave Scott life to his days. A heavier guy - he learned that running spoke to his mind body and soul.
At some point in the summer of 2011 - while I was back home for the weekend running in Kalamazoo; Scott presented a rather ridiculous idea. Let’s join the Marathon Maniacs but not ‘just by running 3 marathons in 90 days’…anyone can do that. Let’s tackle the 5 star level - 3 Marathons in 8 days.
In these days we were the notorious ‘bad boys’ of the Kalamazoo Area Runners (KAR). Showing up to the banquet in short shorts, and just being the crew that did things that were just a little more…Epic. This is where and how the Epic Crew was born. A few misfit runners that just wanted to have fun - our way.
A Plan is Born
Was it over a post long-run brunch? Hatched during one of the dozen or so 20 milers I did that summer? It’s tough to say where the idea grew from but it was undoubtedly born from a passion for pushing our limits. The limits of what we knew to be possible, and what we wanted to be possible. When you add in my Ironman in August - there was only one way to find out. Go for it!
1-Breaking Bread - Chicago | 2:57
2011 was the first year I’d see myself dip under the 3 hour mark. Paced in to a big finish by Ken Brooks at the inaugural Kalamazoo Marathon made for a very memorable experience. The fact that this was only 6 weeks after my first Ironman and I had dropped another 2 minutes from my time was something very special.
I remember how I felt walking through Grant Park after that race. Legs aching, stomach in knots from dehydration - my mind focused on getting to the hotel for a shower and a nap. How the hell am I going to 2 of these back to back in 6 days time? It was Sunday and after a short nap I was going to hop in the car and get back home for a nerve wracking and exhausting work week. During the car ride across the state I kept wondering - how would I ever recover?
I wasn’t alone in this endeavor - Michael Reygaert, Brett Beir, Scott VanLoo, Ryan Geers, Jonathan Marsh, and Ralph Meyer all jumped aboard for this adventure. With the help of a local design studio - we took to every race with the modified logo above and made it into a jersey I still relish to this day. Something special about a jersey made for an occasion; it holds all the memories and moments that made this adventure so epic.
2-Indianapolis - Top 10 | 3:07
To qualify we didn’t just have to run 3 sanctioned races in 8 days. We had to run them in 3 different states in those 8 days. Boy did we get lucky having Chicago, Indianapolis, and Grand Rapids all in an 8 day span. Once we knew that we all got in to Chicago, we all signed up for Indy and GR. We knew that if we could all make it to the start line of Indianapolis - we would finish. Getting back in the car for a 4 hour journey home to turn and burn another one the next day would be the trick.
Brett, Ralph. Andrew (me), Scott, Ryan, Michael, Jonathon
Once we got going, we knew the atmosphere from the prior weekend would be hard to match. No streets lined with half naked, mostly drunken spectators. We were due for long stretches of quiet reflection. I started off at what felt like a normal, steady pace. My watch clicking off splits in the 7:30 range - the fatigue of last week seemingly forgotten and distant.
It wouldn’t be long before I had a look over my shoulder to realize that Ryan and Jonathan weren’t far behind me. It was then that we decided that we were a band of brothers. A young group of gentleman who decided that there was nothing better to do with our weekend but journey through 2 cities for 52.4 miles.
Grabbing water cups and energy gels for one another, sharing stories and riling up the crowd when there was one was the task bestowed on us all. There were a few low points in this race but by majority my mental and physical training from Ironman kept me pretty even and focused so I shifted my focus to lifting others. If I could keep them moving - stopping wouldn’t remotely be an option. It’s who I am - service of others before self. We neared an out and back section and realized that as we counted back towards the turn around cone we made up #’s 6,7, and 8.
Not only would this be our second race in the last 6 days - we were going to close out the Top 10. The fire was burning as we came into the finish, 3 abreast we finished together. It was a big moment to finish the 2nd of 3 in such a great time. The excitement was short lived as we realized that the recovery clock was now ticking. We had less than 24 hours to get home (a 4 hour drive), sleep, eat, recover, wake up, and run all over again.
3-GRand Rapids #2 - 3:17
Hitting the start line in Grand Rapids held a lot of emotion for me, it was the site of my very first marathon 2 years prior in 2009. I saw the race director Don Kern doing his last minute preparations and I will never forget the big hug he gave me. He knew about our marathon efforts from what we shared on Facebook. The announcer giving us a shout out as we shook out our legs entering the start corral.
This morning was particularly dark for October - the sky a deep dark blue. I was hoping it wouldn’t rain because I knew the additional challenge it would provide. In my attempt to stay loose and warm I did a few vertical jumps and tried to shake loose the feeling that this one was going to hurt. This one could be the one that derails my chances of finishing. What about that long and lonely section at Mile 22? Will it feel like that first race? All of that suffering, the hopelessness, the joy of the final 200 meters?
The gun went off and I shifted from a place of doubt to a place of service. It has served me well yesterday perhaps I can tag along with the 3:20 group and see how long I can hang on. I hadn’t paced a marathon before but I sure did know how to create conversation and pass the time. It also helped to have a crazy jersey and interesting story. I once again found myself getting 2 cups at aid stations, grabbing extra gels, and making sure that even the pacers had what they need.
By the 30k mark we began to pick up a few athletes from ahead and a few from behind. One in particular Erin Young had caught us from behind and was on a tear to go under 3:20. I had made my peace with the group and tagged on with Erin. I knew I would be able to dig a little deeper if we had a mission. I held a steady 7:30 pace from that point on. We hit one of the hardest sections of the race - a long lonely treeless section just outside of town on the bike path. This was when Erin really started to show that the pace was wearing on her - eat this, drink that, and just try to top the tank off. She was in a really low spot and we just needed to finish, we had banked a bunch of time.
As we hit the down hill onto the roads from the bike path we had more people, more cheers, and the reality of what was happening was becoming very real for both of us. We were going to do it - I would finish my 3rd marathon in 3 days, she would crush 3:20.
Feeling a 78 miles in the last 8 days
I was completely trashed at this point too. Neither of us wanted to show the other how much it was hurting - the stretch to the finish seemed to push further and further away - I looked at her and she looked at me. She told me to go and finish strong. I mustered what little energy I had, fixed my Ironman Louisville cap down a little lower and put in what little kick I could muster.
I had done it - crushed the doubt in the start corral. I had managed to put down 3 full marathons in 8 days across 3 states. This would go down as one of the single hardest efforts to date in my racing journey but easily one of the most rewarding. What was more rewarding was the brotherhood it created amongst the crew. It goes without saying that when we see each other, we always make a point to reminisce. We didn’t have to all finish together - we ran the same courses, on the same days and had different experiences. Something we wouldn’t change for a moment.