Posts
a smiling angel
appeared out of the dark clouds
her wings carried you… 🦊❤️
Infinitus 2022 was chock full of folks being there for other folks who were struggling. With 18 miles to go in the 100 mile race, Phil LaCroix was hurting badly and felt he was unable to go back out into the night to complete the race. That’s when Jason Mozel jumped in and treated Phil’s feet even though he was horribly sleep deprived from supporting and pacing his wife Amber who went on to win the 250 mile race. Then there was Maia Buckingham who assisted in getting Phil ready to push off. Then there was Prem Linskey who jumped in to pace Phil to the next aid station 6 miles away. He too was sleep deprived and neck deep in helping out at the event and was also committed to pace Amber in her 250 mile effort at midnight. Then there was Nicole Hufford Leach* who was recovering from her own medical issues who volunteered to pace Phil for the final 12 miles after Prem had done his job. And then came Ben Feinson who convinced two other runners including Maia (wish I knew the other’s names) to accompany him into the woods to meet Nicole and Phil as they wound their way back down to the finish. And then there was Jeff Arnold who shuttled back and forth between aid stations to help out as he could and stood as watchman waiting for headlamps to show up in the dark. A procession of headlamps finally appeared and snaked through the trails and into the finishing roadway. Phil led the way with “The Safety Dance” playing on the speaker he had tethered to his pack. It was amazing to see them moving as a group toward the finish. This is what friends do… this is Infinitus. 🦊❤️
* I used the term “smiling angel” in the haiku because the first time I met Nicole years ago at Infinitus she was running the 100 miler and was pretty much destroyed as she moved through the night… with a big smile on her face. Always a big smile… Well done Nicole.
