hours 103-108

quiet desperation everyone realizes the final hours are approaching. of the three remaining warriors harvey lewis is clearly in the worst condition. he has not been getting through the loops in time for more than 1 minute or two of sleep for several days. he is an...

hour 102

as always happens, when there is a lot of activity my post will be late. and any news will already be disseminated… . but how can there be no post on a record-tying yard? . three runners remain: harvey lewis looks to be the most endangered on an immediate basis,...

hour 101

anything can happen if you are new to the backyard dont get discouraged if your favorite is struggling. in the backyard anything can happen and it isnt over till its over; . having seen some of the most epic battles in backyard history the usual outcome is not; one...

hour 100

even with short time this hour has to have a post. numbers are special. numbers have great meaning for everyone especially runners. . the 100 club of backyard is fixing to more than double. . the odds are great that at least one of these runners is only hanging on to...

hour 98-99

what was the dirty dozen yesterday has become the magnificent 7 today! frank gielen was the last to fall…. . i did not ask him why he stopped. i think it would have required a post by itself. . the remaining 7 are now engaged in a game that is as much poker as...

hour 97

the first trail loop is a test. . new things are hard to process right now. last night they moved phil’s chair across to the opposite side… . first he looked for it and there was no chair he slowed and his wife called to him; “over here” he...

hour 96

when listing the pre-race favorites that fell by the wayside i forgot about keith russell from ireland who had done an 89 and daiki shibiwaki who had 87. . there is one common thread between the drops of russell, steyaert, and harvey… . there was no warning. no...

Hour 92-93-94-95

all through the night they went on. every hour they assembled to the whistles and left at the bell. 8 men made of something different. they ran and they ran like some sort of mythical animals the miles falling away beneath their feet. as i write this they move through...

hour 89-90-91 addendum

we talked briefly about this thing called backyard. and the secret to the backyard he said; “i have been amazed at how far the mind can make these (legs) go” . that is the real key to the backyard. you can’t train your legs to cover a hundred miles a...

hour 84-85-86-87-88

the march of the zombies goes on. by the fourth night everyone is operating in a haze. when the sun rises and sets 4 times in the same day things start to get really messy. the hours start to pass like in a movie. where the hands on a watch keep spinning and the scene...

hour 82-83

the dirty dozen was determined on the 82nd yard here are this year’s all-world backyarders Akihiro Maeda Japan Oriol Antolí Unat Frank Gielen Belgium Jon Noll USA Robert Parsons Australia Harvey Lewis USA Ihor Verys Canada Merijn Geerts Belgium Terumichi...

hour 81

ivo steyaert is out leaving us with 14… . we are almost down to the dirty dozen. the last 12 runners in the race constitute the all-world selections.

hour 79-80

big’s 2023 continues to shatter our wildest expectations. 15 runners reached 80 and all 15 continued. . regrettably we are down to 14 silver medals. i guess when we run out we will have to give someone that gold one… . i hope they dont get...

hour 78

one thing coming to light today… . you cannot have a bad hour in the backyard. every hour does not have to be the best hour. but you cannot have even one bad hour. . if you go too slow it is over if you have a moment of weakness at the bell it is over if you get...

hour 75-76-77

a flurry of drops and other activity interrupted the flow of updates. as much as i enjoy the spectacle of the race, the best part is the people; all the people from all over the world… . for some number of days, in my backyard, playing (racing) as brothers and...

hour 74

the race seems to be morphing and entering a new phase. first hour of day 4 harvey lewis blew thru camp second hour it was sam harvey racing to the front. . to understand what stage we are at consider the runners. some of them are now just trying to get everything...

hour 73

this is madness..all 23 finished the third 100 mile day in a row. only australian james blanton stoppede. so 22 people, nearly a third of the field have begun a 4th hundred miler. . but what is really insane is how good they all look, harvey blew through camp at abut...

hour 72

before this hour is over there will be light. i cant wait for daylight so at least i know the things i see are really there. things i am sure were not there include; the stream of wriggling red worms spilling down the side of the toilet (went away when i squeezed my...