Obsessing over winter, we recently visited Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah. Bryce Canyon National Park With over 35,000 acres, Bryce Canyon National Park makes for otherworldly winter hiking through white snow and colorful red and orange rock structures. Bryce is most notably famous for its distinct geological characteristics that include arches, bridges, and hoodoos. The hoodoos are colorful […]
running
22 posts
Chasing Winter Sunsets While crowds of Black Friday Shoppers were congesting the outlets and malls, we were chasing Winter. We hiked up Mt Baldy to see the sunset from the San Gabriel Mountains. Ski Lift Up I normally don’t take the ski lift up, but I can’t resist the thrill of riding up when it’s snowing. […]
Hi, if you’re just tuning in: My name is Justin Flores and I’m obsessively getting ready for Winter. I’ve run my last Ultra Marathon for the year, which you can read about here and now I’m ready to hit some trails. As we’re getting ready to start this year’s snow season, we take a look back […]
Opening Ceremonies The Opening Ceremonies began at the 100 Mile Club Headquarters atop a big hill in Norco, California. The ceremony was led by Ed Ettinghausen, a badass ultra-runner who holds the world record for completing the most 100 Mile (or more) Ultra Marathons in a year. It was said, that only 3 people in […]
Recently, both my brother John and I signed up for California’s toughest 50k: the Los Pinos 50k which boasts 31 miles and 9,000 feet of elevation gain. You can read John’s post here. Here’s my race report: San Juan Trail (Miles 1-12) The race started at 6:15am. I relaxed the first 45 minutes […]
In the olden days, brave knights would set off on quests to slay the dragon terrorizing their town. Brave knights who trained and dedicated their whole lives for adventures like these; brave knights hardened from battle. Then there were the guys who didn’t train quite as hard as they should have but showed up to […]
The Backstory Let’s start with the story of Captain Jack Sands, an American Prisoner of War held in Vietnam’s infamous Hanoi Hilton. Captain Jack was held captive for 7 years in a 6’x6’ cell. He was unable to leave his cell or communicate with any other prisoners. To keep from going insane, he would visualize […]
There’s a poster hung up on the wall right next to my computer monitor. It has a Vince Lombardi quote- “Winning is a habit. Unfortunately, so is losing!” Walt Disney also said “the difference in winning and losing is most often… not quitting.” Thinking back on my races, I realize that I have developed the […]
Hello friends, Recently I’ve had many people interested in my stories of ultramarathons and how I prepared for them. One of the main questions people have asked me is, ”how should I train for one?” Many people have had more running experience than me, or have been running marathons for years, but still can’t picture […]
If you’re ever looking for motivation, inspiration or just a great book to read I strongly recommend The Long Run by Matt Long. We always hear people saying things like, ”I want to get in shape, but I need to lose weight first,” or “I would love to workout, if my back didn’t hurt.” […]
We woke up at 4am to be ready by 5am to be in Norco by 6am. The opening ceremonies started at 6:15am. The opening ceremonies at the 100 Mile Club Endurance Challenge is always a bit of a funny glimpse into how hardcore some people really are. As they read off runner’s bio’s, we heard […]
Noble Ale Works is a microbrewery located in Anaheim, California in the Stadium Plaza Business Park. It is located between the Angels Stadium and the Honda Center: home of the Anaheim Ducks. This place has a great selection of high quality full flavored craft brews. “But wait! There’s more!” Noble Ale Works hosts a running […]
Back in October, I crewed for both my brothers in a 100 mile race. I was so inspired by how they kept it together the whole way (injuries and all) until they finally crossed the finish line less than 30 hours after they started. Watching them succeed made me want to do it also. So […]
It has often been said about ultramarathon’s that “it’s all mental.” That is not entirely true. It is definitely very physical, and the importance of training cannot be understated. However, the mind does play a big role in the success of any runner. I have put together a short list of mental hurdles that one […]
No sleep, no food, little water, trying to make it out of the Grand Canyon before sunset when temperatures were expected to drop to freezing. It sounds like a story of survival, but actually, it was just a Friday off from work. My brother, Justin, and I made the 7 hour drive from California to […]
I got up at 4am Saturday morning so that I could get ready and make the drive over to Glen Helen Raceway for this year’s SoCal Tough Mudder. This was my 3rd time competing in Tough Mudder, and my first time ever at this race course. My wife and I headed over to the event […]
A friend of mine sends me a picture of the weight bench almost every morning telling me how much he was able to bench press that day. This friend is regularly setting PR’s (personal records). This motivates to me to get up and go to the gym. I haven’t been consistent with my weightlifting routine […]
6am. Mike, my brother, the ultrarunner, sends me a text message asking if I want to go on a hike. “How far,” I ask. He tells me “not far. I have to leave for work at 8:20am.” I say, “ok” and tell him “I’m on my way.” We drive over to the Anaheim Hills trails. […]
A couple Saturday’s ago, I went with my brother, the ultrarunner, and a group of friends on a hike up the Skyline drive trail in Corona. We had never been there before but we had heard that it was a pretty nice hike. We got there close to noon and it was HOT! None of […]
Recovering from a 100 mile run- or- Might as well have been a hospital bed In retrospect, maybe my body wasn’t ready for that first 100 mile run. My mind certainly wasn’t. Only my ambition was. But that’s a story for another day. I finished. In 32 hours and 44 minutes I ran […]