Badwater

Patrick McGilvray
My name is Patrick McGilvray, and I’m an experienced marathoner, ultra runner, running coach and mindset expert. I believe mindset is the most powerful and most underrated tool you have as a runner. So I’ve devoted my life to helping runners like you develop the mindset you need to fuel your inner fire and become the badass runner you were meant to be. This is The Running Mind podcast.

Welcome to The Running Mind podcast. I’m your host, Patrick McGilvray. And today, I have a very cool interview for you. I got a chance to talk to somebody that I really admire, somebody that I’ve kind of been watching from a distance, not in a weird, stalky way, more of a social media way.

And the reason I say that is because she’s an average runner, she’s a weekend warrior like me, and most likely like you, you know, she works a job. She runs for fun, she runs because she loves it. And in a short amount of time, she’s done some pretty incredible things. She’s got a pretty cool running resume.

In fact, in 2018, she ran Badwater, and actually had to pull herself out of the race. And if you don’t know anything about Badwater, Badwater 135 is a 135 mile run through Death Valley. So you start at Death Valley. In July, temperatures get above 120 degrees. I know, right? It’s crazy. So not only do you have to run through that heat, but to finish the race, you have to ascend Mount Whitney, which is the highest point in the contiguous United States.

And you don’t go to the very top of Mount Whitney, which is over 14,000 feet, but you do go up to the 8300 foot level. All in all, Badwater is not only the hardest race in the world, but it is one of the hardest because of the elevation gain, there’s something like 14,000 feet of vertical ascent in the race. So it’s challenging from many angles.

She has a really cool, inspirational story of some setbacks, but also, she talks about the mental fortitude that it takes to run a race like that. And she actually went back to Badwater in 2019. And I’ll let her tell you what happened there. And just a little side note, she talks quite a bit about Harvey Lewis.

And if you’re not familiar, who, with who Harvey Lewis is, he is a local high school teacher here in Cincinnati. But he’s also one of the top ultra runners on the planet. You know, he won Badwater back in 2014. He finished it in under 24 hours. He has, I believe, the eighth fastest known time running the Appalachian Trail. And he represents Team USA in the 24 hour World Championships. So he’s the real deal.

He’s local to Cincinnati and a friend of Melanie’s. And so she was able to connect with him. And he was able to coach her for her Badwater experience, and she’ll talk a lot about that. Lots of good stuff in this interview with Melanie Owen. So let’s just get into it right now.

Today, I’m joined by Melanie Owen. Melanie has been intriguing me over the last couple of years. And I was really excited when she agreed to come on here and talk to me on the podcast because Melanie is your average runner. She’s unassuming, meaning that she’s just humble and approachable and is not you know, professional athlete. She’s not been to the Olympics. Unless you’ve been as a spectator, Melanie.

I don’t know. She’s not, you know, qualified for Olympics. You know, she’s not some professional runner with all these accolades. She’s an average person that has done some pretty amazing things and I’ve been super excited to talk to you about those things. I’ve been following you the last couple of years Melanie, secretly stalking you, and you’re in endeavors. And you know, we’re going to talk about that.

But tell me how you got into running like, what was it about running that drew you in?

Melanie Owen
Yeah, so actually this started many, many, many years ago in the seventh grade, or actually, yeah, seventh grade, going out for the track team. And really, back at Toronto High School, Toronto Middle School, joined the track team and just love being part of, you know, a team atmosphere. And then also it was individual. So I really liked that. And I just continued running through high school and then into college. And then after college, I was like, what am I gonna do? I love this. And so then I continued with running marathons. That’s how I got what got me into it.

Patrick McGilvray
So you just started running marathons. And what got you into the ultra distances?

Melanie Owen
One of my running friends, Harvey Lewis, every Friday morning, we would do these stair runs throughout Cincinnati. And I would hear him and Jeff Harmon and some of these other runners talk about this 24 hour north coast race up in Cleveland. And so I was like 24 hours, you got to run over 24 hours.

And so I thought, I don’t know if I can run for 24 hours, that it really intrigued me. Like, I think I want to do that. Everybody thought it was crazy. But I signed up for my first 24 hour race. And I was able to run a little over 85 miles in 24 hours.

And so after I did that I didn’t even know about Badwater and had no idea the race existed. And that was about five years ago, and I heard about it, read some articles about Harvey in the paper. And I’m like, I want to do that race. And of course, then my friends were like, now you’re really crazy. You’re just an average runner that ran one 24 hour race. And now you want to jump all the way to Badwater.

Patrick McGilvray
I just want to stop you there and just say that this is not a normal progression, even for ultra runners to go from like, oh, I just ran a marathon to I think a 24 hour race would be fun. And then to go to I think I’m gonna do Badwater. Badwater is, in case people don’t know, is considered the world’s toughest foot race. It’s 135 miles through Death Valley. You start, you know, running through Death Valley, it’s 130 degrees at times.

And then you finish, you know, close to the peak of Mount Whitney, which is I think you finish at about 8300 feet, if I’m not mistaken. But 14 over 14,000 feet of total elevation gain, like, oh, my God, it’s, yeah, it’s obvious why it’s considered the world’s toughest foot race. So you went from, you know, running marathons to Badwater and what time frame was that? Like, how many years apart was like your first marathon to you running Badwater?

Melanie Owen
Yeah, so my first marathon was in 1992. It was a Columbus marathon. And I was right out of college. And I actually ran like a 3:46. And at the time, I just missed qualifying for Boston. And, you know, I didn’t even know about the Boston relay back then.

But then, you know, for years, I chased and I wanted to qualify for Boston. And I was always within a few seconds, meaning like within a minute or two minutes. And it was just really disappointing, because it kept moving the carrot, as I call it, they kept changing the qualifying times. So I finally decided, you know what, I need to try something different. I’m not succeeding with this marathon thing. And with was my job, I travel a lot.

So that’s when I decided maybe if I run slower, but longer, I’ll be good at it. And so that’s why I jumped over and thought, well, running for 24 hours, maybe I could do that. And then I heard about the Badwater raise, and I was like, wow, I want to do that. But the key to that is that Harvey approached me, who then became my running coach, because he was like, now, this is serious.

Like, you can’t just go from doing a marathon, to doing a 24 hour race, and then think you’re just going to be able to do Badwater, you need a coach, somebody who’s going to help you along the way. And I read up about Harvey and he was a friend of mine, but I didn’t know about all these amazing races he does.

So I was like, Okay, I’m gonna be trained by the best. So he became my running coach. And, you know, he really is the one we meet with him each week, either through, you know, text message or in person. And we’d put a plan in place to really get to the point of getting into Badwater and then, you know, succeeding to finish the race.

Patrick McGilvray
Yeah. So you first did Badwater in 2018. Kind of walk me through, kind of, maybe a little bit about oh, you’re training for that. But I want to hear about your experience at Badwater. Your first Badwater?

Melanie Owen
Well, maybe we should take a step back and talk about the experience to actually get to Badwater because I don’t want to do it. Yeah, the average runner to think, Oh, you could just follow miles footsteps and it’s gonna happen. It doesn’t work that way. Especially if you’re a normal person like me that works, you know, a normal job and you’re trying to fit this crazy training schedule, into your work schedule in your home life.

Like, you have to have a nice balance. And so to do that, it took me a really long time like so, and I didn’t succeed the first time. I tried to complete my first 100 miler. So to get into Badwater, you need at least three 100 mile races, the last one needs to be within 18 months of registering for the race.

Now, when I was trying to register for the race, it was within the last 12 months, but they have since changed the qualifications. And so to do that, I mean, I had to build up my resume. And you can’t just say, okay, I’m going to run this 100 miler, because not all 100 milers equal, you know, the same as running a 100 miler.

So you want to try to run races that are close to the environment that you’re going to be exposed to when you run Badwater. So like the key is 100. I’ve, I’ve run and completed that three times and building up my resume. Tunnel Hill, I did that one because it was later in the year and I needed 100 miler in order to qualify, you know, meet the qualifications to even apply for the 2018 race.

So I did meet my qualifications. Plus, I did several of these 24 hour races that I do, like I like that being out there and just run as many miles as you can do and 24 hours, those are fun. And plus, you’re seeing the same people usually it’s on a one mile, you know, track that you’re passing people and seeing the same people over and over again.

But so I met the qualifications. And that process was, you know, it’s not just you apply, and you’re in, you have to go through this application process, answer questions about yourself, I had to get resumes from folks that I crewed with, because that was another thing, they want to make sure you’ve experienced it.

And in order to do that, you need to crew a few times, so you know exactly what you’re getting into before you go out there. So I did all this in about a four year period of time. I applied in 2018. And I got in the first year that I applied. Unfortunately, though, when I toed the line, to start the race, I didn’t know that I had five kidney stones in my body. And it really caused some problems as I started to run the race. I had no urine output. And that’s not a race that you can go and run and not, you know, make sure your kidneys are functioning properly.

So it was a decision. Unfortunately, when I did get to the starting line, I felt okay. But I could tell within like three miles about three miles, something was not right with my body. And we got to about mile 42. And I was falling behind with the time limits that were allowed. And I possibly could have made the time limit. But if mile 42 I met with medics and they’re like, there’s another year for you. And it was made to drop.

And it wasn’t till after that I went home had testing done and found I had five kidney stones and a severe bladder infection. So we took care of that. Yeah. But it was disappointing, you know, to draw drop out after taking my crew out there and not being able to finish the race. So I had some unfinished business to do.

Patrick McGilvray
Yeah, no kidding. And just to backtrack a little bit. I understand that crewing Badwater is, I mean, it’s very, very challenging. It’s not like you just go out there and be like, Yeah, I’m just gonna run. I understand a lot of the crew end up in the med tents at Badwater.

Melanie Owen
Yeah, I mean, some of them could just if they didn’t properly train, because you know, they have to heat train as well and make sure that they’re taking nutrition because they may be when you pace up there, you’re not in front of the running or behind them, you’re spraying them down and sometimes you forget about yourself, so I could see how that could happen.

And so that also is really important when you’re selecting your crew who to take out there and making sure you’re giving guidance on proper heat training. And the thing about Badwater they’re really good about having a library of different training materials available, not just for the runner, but for the you know, the crew too. The expectations of the race director are that the crew and the runner, they have webcast, like many months in advance leading up to the race so that all participants, racer and crew members are prepared.

Patrick McGilvray
Oh, that’s smart. So you end up with these kidney stones, oh, my gosh, sounds terrible. You get through 40 ish miles. And you basically get pulled out of the race. So what was your mental state at that point?

Melanie Owen
Devastation, because you spend like all this money in the training, in the race, getting your crew out there, the crew and the runner is so excited you want the goal is to get to the finish line. Unfortunately, my crew, there was nothing they could have done to help me get better. And I just wanted to clarify that the race did not pull me, I made a decision with the medics. Yeah, to drop from the race.

They strongly suggested, but it was mainly because I made a promise to my husband, if there were any chances that my health could be in danger. I would stop. That was one thing that I did tell him. And I think that if for anybody, if you’re married, you better have that pact, that you’re not going to push yourself to the point where it’s really going to put you in harm’s way.

Patrick McGilvray
Yeah, yeah. And that race is no joke, like you do not mess around with that race. You know, like you said, you know, you’re not urinating or, you know, your sodium levels get too low or whatever, like, you have got to take care of yourself, because it’s such an extreme environment. Everything’s compounded. Everything’s magnified, you know,

Melanie Owen
Oh, absolutely, with the heat, and just the mileage that you’re doing. And not just, you’re going below sea level and climbing the whole way. Ups and downs, and it may not be exactly the same terrain that you’re doing your training on. I mean, in Cincinnati, I looked up trying to find the steepest mountain, or I should say, hills that I could train on, just to get ready for this race, which didn’t even compare to the, you know, running environment that I was going to be exposed to out there.

Patrick McGilvray
So how do you do that? Like, how do you train? How do you train for the heat in an environment? Like, here in the Midwest, where I mean, it gets hot and humid in the summertime, but nothing like the heat of the desert out there? How do you train for that? How do you prepare yourself?

Melanie Owen
Yeah, so what I did was my first year, I was using sauna suits, and just putting a lot of heavy clothing on, I didn’t have really access to saunas, where I could go in, you know, for maybe a few minutes each day and build up, because you don’t want to go into the sauna. And so first day, I’m not gonna be in there for 30 minutes, you maybe do five minutes, then 10 minutes, and then you build up the time that you can stay in the sauna, because it is extremely hot in there, and you’re sweating a lot.

And you need to make sure that you take plenty of fluids in there. But so, so my training was more just putting heavy clothing on and things like that. The second year, though, when I got in this past year, I did a completely different type of training, I did have exposure to saunas, because I travel a lot for work. So I would stay in hotels that had a sauna, so that I could make sure that I was using that particular type of heat training.

But I also purchased an in house, sauna, a portable one, where I can, ya know, my head wasn’t exposed, but it was up to my head. And I could sit in there. And that really helped. And then also Harvey suggested, you know, sitting in there, then go run and get a cold shower and then come back in it and just the different changes for your body. And I really feel that the heat training is probably more important than the you know, getting the distance and the running in. Because I felt like this year I was better prepared for the heat than the previous year.

Patrick McGilvray
Yeah, so let’s talk about that. So you made a decision shortly after you weren’t able to complete your first Badwater in 2018. And you were like, oh, I’ve got some unfinished business here. I’m gonna take care of this thing. So did you know like right away you were going to enter the race the following year and finish?

Melanie Owen
Well, I had always hoped that I would finish this year but with that said, that wasn’t the game plan. But yeah, so immediately after my, yeah, my DNF as we call it, in racing. You know, I had a talk with Harvey. And what makes him great as a coach is that, you know, he sat me down and said, you know what, put this one behind you, let’s focus on qualifications to get in next year.

So we thought we needed one 100 mile race, but then we found out that the qualifications changed. So I went ahead and I did the Daytona 100 uncrewed. So I just had my backpack and I ran from Atlanta beach to Daytona Beach. And I finished the race and it was a great race. And yeah, I felt great after finishing that race. Okay, I’m back in this week. Yeah, so that really, that was in December of last year. And so that gave me my qualifications, which I really didn’t need that 100 miler, but it was an added bonus. Yeah.

Patrick McGilvray
Awesome. So then you started training for Badwater 2019. And you did talk a little bit about your training and how you did some things differently, you know, what was the heat training, was there anything else you changed about the way you approached the race or your training?

Melanie Owen
Yes. So, you know, we went back and we looked, and I was working, you know, like, 70 hour work weeks, the year prior, now, I was still working 60-70 hours. But the one thing that we noticed when we compared notes, because every week, I’d give an update.

And so we looked and it was sleep, I wasn’t sleeping very well. And so I needed to make sure I was getting, you know, at least seven, eight hours of sleep. And being consistent with that, as well. As, you know, I was eating better, you know, I’m not a vegetarian or vegan, like most runners, I will have a hamburger every now and then. But I’m not going to restrict that from my diet.

And to be honest, leading up to my races, I feel if I have a hamburger, or at least more protein in my diet, it helps me do better in my longer races. But I was watching the type of foods that I was eating and also taking in more fluids. But I would say the one thing that helped me was getting better sleep leading up to the races.

Patrick McGilvray
Yeah, and sleep is really underrated. You know, and a lot of people don’t think of that as part of your training, they just think of it as like, oh, I better just get some sleep, you know, but it’s such a key ingredient, you know, you’ve got your strength training, you’ve got your endurance training, your aerobic training, and then you’ve got your nutrition, and then you’ve got your rest. And your rest is so vital.

You know, that’s when you, you know, rebuild cells, that’s when you you know, build muscle, that’s when you strengthen the neurological connections, you know, you’re building neural pathways and like, it’s just key to your overall physiologic physiology and strength as a runner. So good for you for noticing that and getting more sleep. That’s a lot of hours to be working too, by the way.

Melanie Owen
I don’t know if you talk to your boss, but I do cancer research. So it’s very rewarding. And, you know, there’s a lot of research going on right now. So, yeah, sometimes it’s not always like that, but it’s been pretty crazy. This past year.

Patrick McGilvray
So how about like, mentally? How are you mentally different going into this Badwater this year? 2019. How did you prepare for that mentally?

Melanie Owen
Yeah. So I was on my way out to Death Valley. My friend and coach Harvey, he was like, now let’s talk about the things that you already know going into this race. What are those positives that we need to focus on that are going to put you in the right mindset?

And so I had the experience of already running 42 miles, I already had that experience of knowing what went well, what didn’t go well, and I could fix those things. I had my crew from the prior year helping me on providing guidance on what they thought you know, I should change up with. Because I did select a different crew for 2019.

And so that helped having, you know, eight people now because there’s four members on a crew, and so I had eight people that really could come together and help me even though the truth as an ‘18 crew, we didn’t get to the finish line. They were very much still part of my training, and also my preparation to get the Badwater.

Patrick McGilvray
That’s awesome. What a great community. I love the running community.

Melanie Owen
Yeah, it’s great. But that’s what I did was focus on those positives. And also, there were a lot of Cincinnati runners that were returning from the prior year. And so I had all of them that were going to be out there. And I saw many of them on the course. And I don’t know if we’re gonna go into 2019. But one of those runners, I really feel running with him for I think it was like, we ran 70 some miles together. Really got me to the finish line.

Patrick McGilvray
Who was that?

Melanie Owen
Nick leboff.

Patrick McGilvray
Awesome. Yeah, yeah, I was just looking at the stats. And there were like four or five people from Cincinnati running Badwater this year. I mean, that’s cool. That’s really cool. What a fun community to be a part of, you know. So you’re out there, you’re running Badwater this year, you’re feeling better. I know that there were times when things were getting tough for you out there, I know that there’s no way you’re going to tell me that it was a piece of cake. So how do you deal with that? Mentally, especially when things get hard in a race like that?

Melanie Owen
So I don’t know if I sent you my story of a Badwater. If not, I will send it to you after this. But I did write. So it’s about 25 pages long. But it talks about, you know, from five years ago, my start to my big dream I had to getting across the finish line. So I’ll share that with you.

But to answer your question regarding you know, in any race that you do that is even in America, and you could have dark moments, and you just have to know yourself and find a way to get out of them. And so my crew that I selected, my crew chief was Jack Corey. And Jack and I have been running together for about five years and definitely knows me quite well, we actually were at tri state running and we were pacers there to help the marathon runners, so he knows me very well.

And there were moments where I’m gonna be honest, I was about at mile 67. And you’re going down into the Panamint Valley and Springs Valley. And it was extremely hot, there were like 30 mile an hour winds coming at you. And I think the temperatures were over 120, it was really, really hot. And it was really affecting me.

And at one point, I did go into the vehicle in front of the AC and I was like, I’m not having fun. I think I’m gonna stop. And so that’s where the crew can really help the runner because your mind is just in a bad place. You know, you don’t, you feel like you ran 67 miles in, you know, Death Valley in, you know, over 100 degree temperatures.

And so that’s where the crew can really help you and say, you know what, that’s how you’re supposed to feel. And quite honestly, you probably should feel worse than that. But I don’t know if you know, but I was in last place coming into mile 72, like the last runner that came in to meet the cut off.

And so I came in, and they were like, oh, here’s the last runner. And it was at that point where I was debating, should I go on? Should I stop? And you know, I just got something to eat, took a shower, and we decided, let’s go up this mountain. We’ll try to get to the next cut off. If we make it we’ll continue on. If not, that’s the end of my race. So I never, I felt like I wanted to give up but I never did.

I wasn’t entirely there and that it takes the crew to help you get out of that place. Because sometimes if you’re by yourself, you’re just gonna say maybe this is it for me. And it really took the crew to just rally around me and say, man, you look way better than some of these other runners. Now let’s get going. And that’s what we did. We really did.

Patrick McGilvray
Yeah, and being in you know, you said last place that in that race, it doesn’t mean anything. It means you’re still you know, in contention to finish Badwater. What does that mean?

Melanie Owen
Well, the funniest part about this is many people were tracking me and there was a big delay, and I had people sending me text messages. Don’t you stop now. It’s like, I didn’t see them until after so it was funny to get those text messages because so many people were rooting for me. Like you said, I’m just like this average runner, that just loves to run and had this crazy big goal that I really wanted to run Badwater, but not only run it, I was going to finish. And it took me two years, two times to finish. But the first year I mean, I don’t know any runner that could have finished with five kidney stones.

Patrick McGilvray
Yeah, you get a pass on that one. Totally. That’s just come on, like nothing you can do you know about that. So you, you end up finishing and tell me, you know, walk me through the finish of Badwater and how that felt for you.

Melanie Owen
Yeah, well, if I could just say a few comments regarding miles 72 to the end. Some runners who are ever in this situation. So like I said, I was in last place. And so you’re going up this mountain, then you have to really just like dig in and say you got this. And that’s when I started to pass people was climbing up to Father Crowley, which is a really steep part of the course.

And so at that point, I was just power walking. But I just kept getting more and more confidence about finishing the race. So mile 90, I met the cut off by over an hour, I continued on and I was, you know, running. So I got to mile 100. I’m still running, you know, sun’s coming up. My crew, they got the van there, dancing for me and singing.

And that’s when Nick leboff and I were going back and forth and back and forth. And so we had his crew, my crew, and they were just rooting for us to just keep going. And it wasn’t until around maybe mile, I want to say 108, something like that when Nick finally went ahead a little bit. But then, you know, when I got to Lone Pine, that was the moment where I was like, I got this.

And so you know you have a half marathon left, and you just climb all the way up to the Mount Whitney portal. And that’s exactly what we did. And that actually was probably the strongest void for me was going up that last 13.1 miles. I passed, I think like five people in that time going up that mountain to come to the finish line.

And you know, when I finished one thing that I did do is I handed Chris Cosman a note thanking him for letting me get back into the race. Because I mean, he could have selected any runners and there’s a committee that selects the runners. But to come back after a DNF and given me that opportunity. And now I’m like tearing up about this, but it’s very emotional.

But also I wanted to prove to people because there’s been many people say to me, how did you get into Badwater like, really? And so to all those people that have ever said that it’s surrounding yourself by people who really know what it takes to get the job done, meaning to get the finish.

So I had Harvey as my running coach, I had so many friends in the running community, I had tri state running like, Cameron, he invites me over there all the time, you know, he’s like, if you’re ever in town, come on over. And so there’s running groups like that, that just support you, and say you can do this. So an average runner can get into Badwater, and you can finish it, but it takes a lot of work, but it’s a lot of fun.

Patrick McGilvray
Well, I don’t want you to sell yourself short. Because, you know, you talked about the people that helped you to get there and the people that supported you and that you surrounded yourself with, but you also have an amazing, you know, drive and an amazing spirit.

You’re, you’re positive, you know, you’ve got this really happy, positive demeanor, and that’s going to take you places where a lot of people can’t, can’t go, you know. I think attitude is so key, you know, and when you have this, you know, inner fire, I like to call it when you have this drive and you have this mental, like toughness and this drive to accomplish something amazing. People are really attracted to that. And people want to be a part of that and they want to help you. And you definitely have got that you know, you have what it takes Melanie, to do that badass stuff like this.

Melanie Owen
You know, it’s funny you say that. I went back for a high school reunion. And my running, my track coach happened to be there. And he said to me, congratulations on your finish at Badwater. He’s like I had no doubt that you were not going to finish this race. He’s like, you know why? He’s like when you were in high school, you used to tell everybody, nobody’s going to beat me in the last 100 yards. Well, in this race, you’re really racing against yourself. Yes, there’s other runners out there. But I was not going to be beat, not in 2019. And the last like half marathon of the race, once I got to Lone Pine, I just knew I was gonna finish it.

Patrick McGilvray
So take me to that one moment. You crossed the finish line. You feeling all the feelings? Was it everything you thought it was gonna be?

Melanie Owen
It was better. It was better. Yeah. You know, I was so great. I was. I really thought it because I was in the back of the pack finishing the race. I mean, I finished and I’m sorry, if I don’t get it exactly right. But I think it was 44 hours, 56 minutes, maybe 33 seconds.

I’m sorry, if the seconds are off, maybe it was 32 seconds, but it was almost 45 hours. And the cut off is 48 hours. So you know, I’m in the back of the pack. And what was great was how many people were at the finish line waiting for me. I can tell you the Cincinnati crew like they were all there. Harvey had finished the race and came back. And he’s like jogging to get to the finish line, just to sort of see he was there. I mean, it was great. Kelly, Harvey’s fiance, like, everybody was there. And to have all that support. And then also the community back home. I mean, my Facebook was blowing up.

Patrick McGilvray
Yeah, I’m looking at your time here. 44:56:33.

Melanie Owen
Oh, so I was right. Okay. Well, I know that I get upset about it if it’s wrong.

Patrick McGilvray
And then I see your DNF, last year not DFL. You had it looks like you pass like seven people. So there were seven people that finished after you. So damn, that’s awesome. Awesome, strong finish, you know? Yeah,

Melanie Owen
Yes. You know, so I guess the advice that I would give to anybody, you know, no matter if you’re in last place at any point in a race, just keep going. Just keep going. And don’t worry about that. Because I will say that, hearing that I was the last runner coming in to meet the cutoff. That did bother me a little bit. But then my crew talked to me, and they actually turned that around. They were like, who cares? You’re gonna go up and you’re gonna finish this race and you’re gonna pass people along the way. So it really helped.

Patrick McGilvray
Yeah, do you think that kind of like sparked a little something in you? A little bit of a, of a passion to like, I’m gonna I’m not gonna be last?

Melanie Owen
Well, actually, they were like, next is right up ahead. Do you know why you may be able to catch him? And believe it or not? I did. I actually had to pull him out of the van a few times. Yeah, we were just playing off each other.

Patrick McGilvray
What an amazing experience. And I just love the fact that you are a weekend warrior, you know, like, like me and like a lot of runners like we do this for fun. And it’s, uh, it’s challenging. We do this to push ourselves, we do it to see what we’re made of, you know, and if we inspire people along the way, awesome.

But, you know, you work a full time job, a very full time job. And you’re doing this for fun, and you’re able to accomplish something amazing like that. So, like I said, I’ve been kind of, you know, Facebook, stalking you and watching your story. And it’s just intrigued me, like, I need to know more about this. I’m really glad you took the time to chat with me about your journey here today. What’s next for you?

Melanie Owen
Well, in less than two weeks, December 7th and 8th I’m running Daytona 100 again, uncrewed. I had a business meeting in Orlando. So I’m gonna head over to Linac beach and run that race and then continue on my business travels.

Patrick McGilvray
Yeah, most people they’re like, yeah, I’m going out of town on business. I’m gonna go for a run. They think you know, like three miles or something like that. You’re like, I’m just gonna do this 100.

Melanie Owen
Well, I’ve been trying to keep my base at a certain mileage so that I can continue running, you know Ultras, and yes, we’ll see after that, maybe first of the year, I will try to go back to maybe qualify for Boston, we’ll see.

Patrick McGilvray
Oh, awesome.Very cool. So if people wanted to get in touch with you or reach out and connect with you, how would they do that?

Melanie Owen
Yeah, they can contact me through Facebook, it’s Melanie Owen. Or they could send me an email at melanieowen10@hotmail.com

Patrick McGilvray
All right, cool. Awesome. Well, I’m really inspired by your story. And I’m really happy that you came and shared this with me. I loved getting to know you here today. So thank you, Melanie.

Melanie Owen
Yeah, thanks. I really enjoyed this. So of course, talking about Badwater was like my best running experience today.

Patrick McGilvray
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