Race Happy

I feared my return to racing, and I faced that fear. I feared not being the athlete that I once was, and I’ve wrestled with my struggle to live up to those expectations in the rebuilding process.

What I haven’t talked about, however, is that there is another reason I feared returning to racing, and this one is more difficult to grapple with than worrying about sub-par race results.

I feared my own return to racing because I feared the person racing makes me.

And I didn’t want to go back to her.

For as much as I love the sport of obstacle racing, I wasn’t quite sure I actually loved the circuit of racing anymore.

As I’ve talked about repeatedly in the past (seriously, take your pick of podcasts…), I came into obstacle racing in a roundabout way. I did things backwards. I started with the ultimate sufferfests – with the 24-hour World’s Toughest Mudder, with Death Races, with races that lasted up to 72 hours. I started with Tough Mudders and not Spartan Races BECAUSE there was no timing involved. I took on GoRucks and Death Races because the only thing that mattered was finishing – there was no winning (well, Joe Desena might disagree).

The finish line of the 2012 UltraBeast, and ALL the joy

 

It took me 2 years to run a “regular” length Spartan Race, which happened to be the Spartan Race World Championships. In 2013, after crossing the finish line as the victor, I remember walking down to the lake at the bottom of the Killington Ski Resort and sitting in the water, cooling off my exhausted legs. I looked around and said to myself “this is going to change everything.”

And it did.

But not in the way you would think. Sure, with being a world champion came sponsorships, articles, magazine covers. With it came adoration and respect and feeling legitimized as an athlete. But with it also came a feeling of expectation and pressure – expectations to run races that didn’t really thrill me (hello 3 mile sprints!), the pressure of a NBC televised series – all race lengths that sounded like my worst nightmare. These were races that were all a far cry from the 24-72 hour endurance races that gave me so much joy in the beginning, that drew me into the community in the first place.

No one wins here (except frostbite). Yet I loved it.

 

Yet, I signed up. I said yes. I picked races because those are the ones I “should” do, and I sat out of others that I really wanted to do in order to save myself for the championship series, for the ones with the prize purses and the television cameras. The further I went down the rabbit hole with these shorter distances, the more of an emotional and mental wreck I became. I could hold my own at these distances, and keep it together (aside from a lot of swear words) in front of the cameras, but winning no longer became something I was thrilled about – winning was a relief. I spent days before these races an absolute wreck – crying, imagining phantom injuries, swearing my retirement, fearful of what would happen if I didn’t win, if national television documented my less-than-stellar performance. I shut out friends, I spent hours on the phone crying to my parents. My engagement fell apart in large part due to my inability to cope with juggling my professional life and the constant obligatory racing, and I watched a man I loved walk away because of the person I had become.

I hit emotional rock bottom the day I ran the Spartan Race World Championships in 2015 on a stress fracture I had told no one about, not even my physical therapist. The sad thing was I wasn’t even excited about running the championships – I was mostly upset that I had sat out the Barkley Fall Classic 3 weeks before (a race I REALLY wanted to do) in order to be “fresh” because people “expected” me to win. I spent the week leading up to the race in a walking boot, dodging anyone who might see me in it, only taking it off for the race, and hiding it in my luggage. The next morning, I strapped it back on, ashamed of what racing had brought me to.

Trying to keep the wheels on at SRWC in 2015

Through the help of loved ones and some great Tough Mudder friends, I managed to find some semblance of peace before World’s Toughest Mudder in 2015, and, after that, I thought it was finally my time to follow my heart. To shift focus to the longer endurance events that were my roots, to the ones genuinely made me smile. I’d been eyeing ultras as a new challenge, and in securing a Golden Ticket to Western States 100 in June 2016, I saw it as a natural transition.

But a case of the femurs changed all of that.

Suddenly, Western States was gone. Suddenly, OCR was taken from me. My perfectly laid out plans of shifting my focus on own terms were taken from me. Injury had (literally) stolen my ability to walk away.

So I did what any other hyper-competitive athlete would do – I got angry. And I pushed and pushed to try and make a triumphant comeback at Spartan Race World Championships 2016 and World’s Toughest Mudder 2016. I remember standing there on crutches at Western States, Diet Coke tucked into my sports bra (pro tip: sports bras hold EVERYTHING when you are on crutches), telling Rose Wetzel I couldn’t wait to come back and “crush bitches.” Not the best choice of words, but I was hungry, and I was angry.

And as I’ve talked about repeatedly, it’s almost textbook what happened: In pushing so hard through that anger, I broke myself again.

And while those five extra months on the sidelines from the sacral stress fracture were traumatic, it did force me to really step back and ask WHY. Why was I pushing so hard, and Why was I doing all of this? Why was I trying to get back to something that, if you asked so many people around me, made me miserable. When I added in race week stress on top of a stressful professional career, I was a powder keg waiting to explode. In an ironic twist of fate – the activity, the hobby, the sport that I had started back in 2011 as a “stress-release” from work ended up being more a stressor than my regular day job.

I heard a quote the other day on TED Radio Hour by David Brooks (politics and your feelings about him aside) which struck me: “The central lie of American life is that success leads to happiness. And that’s just not true.” For so long, I couldn’t understand why I wasn’t happy, even though I was winning. Even though I was at the top of the sport. In fact, the more success I had, the more miserable I became.

Parts of me thought to hang up my obstacle racing shoes after this past 18-month gap in racing. That maybe my best athletic days are behind me, but more importantly, maybe I’m just a happier person when I’m not constantly freaking out about an upcoming race. And that, for all the good racing has done for me, maybe it wasn’t worth the mental anguish of “getting back.”

But there was a different voice that was also whispering, a different kind of monkey on my back: maybe, just MAYBE – I could change my relationship with racing. Maybe that’s what I needed – maybe I could learn how to handle the pressure constructively, and maybe I could finally nut up do what was right for ME, not what I thought everyone else expected. And maybe being sidelined was the catalyst I needed to change that relationship by taking control of that relationship.

More of these, please

Someone asked me the other day if I wanted to win another world championship. “Sure,” I responded, “that’d be fantastic.” He responded that I didn’t sound that enthused.

And I wasn’t. Because I’ll let you in on my racing goals this year. There’s just one.

To race happy.

Now, I’m not going to bullshit you and pretend that I don’t care about results. Of course I do – any competitive athlete would be lying through their teeth if they said otherwise. But what I’ve realized from these past few years is that results feel hollow if there’s no joy in the racing, if you are racing out of expectation. Podiums are meaningless if you spend the weeks leading up to a race an absolute miserable human being (which isn’t fair to myself or anyone else in my life). There will come a day when I’m no longer able to race, and if I destroy everything else in my life in the meantime to be singularly fixated on that goal, then what will I have left?

So in deciding to race again, I vowed to myself that this season and this year is a new challenge – different from any one I’ve tackled in the past. I’m not racing the U.S. Championship Series, or to win a world championship. I’m racing to see if I can race like I did in the early days of the sport – with passion, gratitude, and a perspective on things that really matter in life. With smiles and high-fives beforehand, and with beers and friends afterwards.

I’ve known for a long time that the races that make me the happiest are the long, hard sufferfests (hi World’s Toughest Mudder, Ultrabeasts and ultras!).  While the circuit of the short races tore me apart on the inside, I always looked forward to a 24-hr slog in the desert with a smile. And I finally put together WHY that is: because the longer the race gets, the more the race is about others. It’s about the shared suffering. It’s about the random run-ins with other athletes at 2am when you are peeing in your wetsuit.  It’s about the stories and it’s about the bonds that are formed by that. And THAT’S the reason I started in this world so many years ago – for the process. And that’s the reason I keep coming back to it. It’s for that connection, that growth, and those memories. And the community that I love so dearly.

But the rub is that those are the races that take the longest time to build up to (when you are starting over from…zero), so in the meantime, as I rebuild, I’m using the shorter stuff as tune-ups and mile markers for when I can finally return to those. And I’m biding my time with patience, knowing that those long sufferfests I hold so dear will be in the cards once again.

Some people have questioned why I jumped back into racing before I was 100% in terms of fitness and strength. Had my goals been to stand on top of the podium, I probably would have waited. But part of the challenge to me was to see if I was happy while racing, even if I’m not standing on the podium.

Monterey this past month: the happiest I’ve raced in a LONG time.

I’m happy to report that, so far, I think it’s working. For the first time in a long time, I’m smiling before races. I’m more relaxed. I’m learning that it’s ok to say no to races you “should” do. It’s ok to not chase the money and the TV cameras and the championships if those things come at the cost of destroying other aspects of your life. It’s ok to walk away from things that aren’t meant for you. It doesn’t make you a quitter to chose a different path. 

Calm for the win, always

And my path is me plotting a schedule, not around races that have the prize purses and the TV cameras attached, but around races that I truly want to do,  and around new challenges I’ve yet to take on (including kicking it in the broadcast booth for some of the races doing my best Troy Aikman impression). For the first time in several years, I’m listening to my heart (apparently, I still have one of those) to find my joy. I’m finally giving myself permission to say “no” to races that don’t speak to me, and I’m saying “yes” to things that excite me. It may be my last obstacle racing season (or it may not); but if it is, I want to go out with the smiles that have eluded me in recent racing years. And you know what? I’ve found that the “shoulds” that I followed these past years were all internal – my sponsors and people in my life support my path, whatever I chose (THANK YOU!). I’m grateful to be out there. I’m thankful to a sport and a community that’s given me so much for some time rolling around in the mud. And I’m stoked for a season of genuine smiles, cheers, and giving back to this sport as much as it’s given me.

And you know what? By giving myself permission to say no, I’m giving myself permission to say yes.

Yes to my own path.

Yes to new adventures.

Yes to racing happy.

So if you see me out on the course this year, ask me if I’m smiling. If you are sending good vibes and well wishes to me before races, don’t tell me “good luck” or “kick ass” or (god forbid) “I hope you win,” – instead, please tell me to “have fun.”  And if you catch me after a race, give me a hug, hand me a beer, and tell me about your day.

I love this sport, I love this community, and I’m saying yes to happiness.

Podium of life, here I come.

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59 thoughts on “Race Happy”

  1. I read this thinking “holy shit that’s my life”. I started in 2014 with the Sprints (being sponsored by a gym) I felt so much pressure to place and it became unfun to do. Now I do strictly Ultras or 24 hour events, I get so much joy finishing. As opposed to doing a sprint every week so I can post a cool pic on Facebook lol

  2. Great perspective!! It would be great to meet you someday. Not “Amelia Boone” queen of pain on top of the podium. Just Amelia the girl with a beer in her hand and a smile on her face. She seems more interesting. Happy racing to you.

  3. I hope I get to see you one day, face to face, Amelia. I saw you once at a Mountain Creek Spartan Super (NJ) one misty morning coming down the mountain as I got ready to start… so thrilled to just get a glimpse. This year no trifectas or double trifectas for me – I’m volunteering at Spartan races instead just to be around people with a positive vibe and motivate participants!! Perhaps our paths will cross. Thank you for your honesty.

  4. Once again, you amaze me. I applaud you are an athlete and a wonderful role model/ young woman/mentor to so many. Continue doing what your heart says, Amanda. Life is really too short to do otherwise!

  5. Holy Crap, that was an awesome read!! Amelia is amazing.. this race thing can take over your world and force you to neglect the people and things that you once held dear.. I pray I never lose focus on what’s really important.. #whataninspiration #OCRlife

  6. This. is. everything. I race because I love it, and race in the open races because of the fun of helping others and seeing their lives change in front of my eyes as they do things they previously thought they couldn’t. I love Spartans but the Tough Mudders are closer to my heart for that reason. And your fans still adore you and respect you for this just as much as the wins. Hope to see you out there 🙂

  7. Amazing blog. Your best yet!! I am hoping to meet you at Palmerton and will certainly hand you a beer! Thank you for continuing to inspire and putting things in perspective for everyone. We can all connect in some way!!!

  8. Amelia – you are an amazing individual in every aspect of life, and I’m glad you found your center! I love doing OCR for the people I meet, not only the amazing ones I wish I could perform as well as, but also the ones that are struggling every step of the way and I realize deep inside that they have more grit than the super human athletes on the podium, like the people at Tuxedo Ridge last week that took 12 hours to complete a Sprint, but stuck with it and got it done. Amazing. After losing some weight and getting faster than I was before, I started realizing that I was spending less time helping others over obstacles, being the step off guy at the walls, encouraging people with a fear of heights at the top of an obstacle, and it bothered me. I’m going back to my first OCR this weekend, the Mount Snow Tough Mudder, and will revel in the fact that it’s not timed, and fun, and that there are obstacles designed to force teamwork with total strangers! I hope to meet you some day at a race, assuming you spend a lot of time after finishing at the grounds, LOL, because I couldn’t personally keep up to you if I had a rocket strapped to my back! Best of luck in the future!

  9. Seeing you on tv (in Europe) inspired me to get into OCR. However it was never about your podium place. It was about you smiling with all that mud on your face that inspired. Keep having fun. In the end, that is what we all remember.

  10. Amelia, I can tell this one is from the heart and you’ve dumped out the basket… I hope what you choose to put back is only what you love! Looking forward ​to seeing you in desert if not before!

  11. I hope you enjoy every race you attend this year Amelia! Most importantly have fun out there and keep on smiling !

  12. So grateful to Rich Roll for sharing your beautiful post. So moving, and never ceases to fascinate me how within our struggles is the power to bring about our greatest strengths. Without the angst, we may never have the opportunity to share such inspiration. In facing my own unique fears, and launching a personality profile, I can’t help but make the connections to Amelia’s type (Rich shares the same “Core25 Type”; determined based on both psychological and physiological traits). Common challenges for this type relate to a fear of being left behind (such as missing out on activities) and finding their own identity. Identity is often tightly connected with their relationship with a partner or with their work; taking on the required identity so not to be left behind, which often results in being overachievers. I love this piece from Amelia so incredibly much – sharing a truer Amelia, a truer purpose, a truer identity. She is moving forward and taking others with her in the most positive of ways. I am confident I will share this post with others for years to come. Congrats and sincere thank you, Amelia!

  13. It’s all in the journey and every persons is different…
    You live
    You learn
    You upgrade…
    Keep smiling and having fun xx

  14. Wow, such a great blog post. I just left a high power career to spend more time with my family; just a complete life shakeup. What you have written really resonates with me. Success isn’t what its cracked up to be. I am happy for those who can reach the pinnacle of their chosen path and remain happy and centered. That just wasn’t the case for me. More was less.

    I am still dealing with the adjustment. Re-learning that happiness is more fulfilling than money and achievement and to walk away takes strength, it does not make me a quitter who couldn’t hack it.

    It is great to be on this journey with you. I wish you happiness.

    1. Exactly! Thanks for sharing, Jessica. It could be racing, it could be career moves – we all struggle with being at peace with our chosen paths. Best to you in your journey!

  15. Thanks for that. Excellent progress, heartfelt writing…next goal….. just “being happy” …no need to race either 😉

  16. Beautiful!!! Everything you’ve said applies not only to racing, but to Life at large. We often get obsessed about a goal without really asking why…

  17. In the words of Bearclaw; “you have come far Pilgrim”. The wonderful way self-assess and put it all into words – perhaps your best feat yet!

  18. Thanks you for the article. What an amazing life lesson – and a lesson that can be hard to learn for many (myself included).

    Thanks for sharing this for with the world and happy racing (or whatever else you choose to do).

  19. Awesome post! I ran into you after the Austin Super last month and introduced myself and told you you inspired me! Your article only further reinforces that notion! You are a class act and an inspiration to many, especially me, a recreational racer who doesnt give a shit about podiums! I just love being out there with the awesome people on race day and having a purpose to guide my training throughout the year! Cheers to many more years of loving racing!

  20. Your story is so powerful and eye opening! Thank you for sharing. Have fun, while racing, living, loving!

  21. Thanks for that. I recently came second in my division at the abu dhabi bjj world champs. Leading up to the event was…let’s call it stressful… and when I came back to training all the fun had drained out of the sport. I’m slowly regaining my sense of play that took me so far in the first place. This article really struck home. Stay awesome 🙂

  22. Amelia – Being hopeless fast-twitched, I love the sprints. Your race happy attitude encourages me to run the races I enjoy running while still pushing me to go outside of my comfort level. Thanks. – Dan

    currunt ad esse beatus

  23. Fantastic blog!! Thank you for sharing.
    I am going to keep referring to this quote to get me through my current decision making at the moment: ‘It doesn’t make you a quitter to chose a different path.’

    Keep on running 🙂

  24. Thank you so much for sharing this! You are such an inspiration and it’s nice to know that even badasses like you have these worries and anxieties about racing. God knows I do! You fracking rock 🙂 Stay happy!

  25. I’m glad to hear you confirm what, as a middle-of-the-pack 1/2 marathoner, I’ve settled into over time: If it’s not fun, don’t do it. I turn 50 next month and have recently started doing more trail races. I’m thankful I can, and hope, with continued moderation, I’ll be doing them for decades more. 🙂

  26. Really inspiring Amelia!!. Due to a severe surgery in my bicpe and shoulder, I had to stop doing Crossfit for three months. Then I discovered running and fell in love with it. Lots of people are telling me to compete, but I just prefer the feeling of freedom and joy that makes me run. Life is not a destiny but a journey…and we all have to enjoy it. Thanks for your toughts.

  27. I enjoyed reading this while drinking a Leinenkugel grapefruit shandy. Well, actually I popped a second shandy before finishing. Toast to you and here’s to “racing happy”

  28. Your mindset seems to be the force of change, success and also obsession. I’m just getting back into the swing of things and much less of an athlete at this stage in the game. Obsession sucks but dedication and love go a long way!! Best wishes and know you are keeping many 39 year olds motivated to keep moving.

  29. A wonderful blog. Thank you for being so open and brutally honest. As a former professional runner myself (albeit a middle distance track athlete – ‘3 mile sprint’ = oxymoron in my world!) I can relate to so much of what you have written. In a selfish way, it’s comforting to know there are others that regret having abused their bodies in the pursuit of ‘success’ (not to mention the cringeful things they may have said to the press!). But I guess you have to go through those experiences to reach a greater, more stable level of contentment and wisdom, hey? Wisdom I’m endeavouring to impart to the hot-headed young athletes I now coach. Blogs like yours are a great tool in getting them to listen – so thank you again!
    I loved the bit about how peeing in your wetsuit connects you to a sense of community BTW… Reminded me about how the word ‘compete’ comes from the Latin ‘compire’: to seek with (also to reek with?!).
    Anyway, I really hope your fun-back (see what I did there?!) is going well! Keep up your genuine, generous and inspiring work both on and off the obstacles x

  30. Amelia- you are an amazing person. You inspire me for everything that you do and we, your fans, only wants whatever makes you happy. Please continue to inspire people and I promise to say hi to you and to tell you how much of a big fan I am when I see you again (saw you in Monterey but too shy to say hi -__- ). Thank you for this wonderful blog!

  31. Thank you so much for the whole read. and especially this….

    “I always looked forward to a 24-hr slog in the desert with a smile. And I finally put together WHY that is: because the longer the race gets, the more the race is about others.”

    this nails exactly where i’ve been after 7 years of Ironman training, loving it until it all went sideways. Now finally, after a long break, allowing myself to just enjoy it again. To let go, surrender and simply “become”

  32. Inspiring. Sometimes I think we make it too easy for ourselves and believe that we can generate “total happiness” out of one aspect of our lives. But without the right balance and reasons there will always be something missing. Thanks for sharing. And may much happiness come your way. Good Vibes from Germany.

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