Saturday, July 17th was a hot day--in the 90's. A field of seven starters began the 4th annual Mule Run at 7:00 p.m., each of us hoping that sunset would bring some relief from the heat. It did, but not enough. Overnight termperatures never dipped below the 70's, and sunrise brought another oppressive onslaught of the sun, which baked the last few unshaded miles of the course.

 

Crew and pacer support was excellent, so we wera able to enjoy lavish attention and a smorgasbord of goodies at each stop. One thing that became apparent under the conditions was that the distance between aid stations, especially early on, can feel a little long. (This may inspire a change to next year's aid locations.)

 

Maintaining their good humor, every runner reached or passed the 50K mark, but ultimately only Jim Hodges reached the finish in just over 15 hours, a feat of mulish tenacity. Jim went home with a hand-made stein from Pat Miller's 16 Paws Pottery. Congratulations to Jim and to everyone who ran, and thanks to everyone who came out to help and support the runners. Next year will be a milestone, the fifth anniversary of the Mule Run. You can find all the Mule Run results here.