big dog’s backyard ultra hour 29:
.
netherlands continues to pad their lead.
now at 410 yards and 12 athletes the most in their division.
iceland (-6) is holding second with only 11…
losing a yard every hour.
slovakia (-8) is still third, but has dropped to 9 and is falling back by 3 yards an hour.
and suddenly they find the 11 man team of norway (-19) in their rearview mirror.
an 11 yard lead is not that much when you are giving up 2 yards an hour.
and norway can smell a place on the podium
ripe for the taking.
of course all these numbers seem so academic
when they really represent exhausted, battered humans
searching their soul for the strength to continue.
if your team is down a man and trying to hold on,
you cannot drop and leave them in worse straights.
and you have to hope something gives in the larger team
to even the scoring before your team is caught.
if you are up a man and trying to catch up
you cannot drop and leave your team without momentum.
at this point everyone hurts.
there is no way out of it.
it comes down to how much your mind can make your body do.
this is where you see the wounded warrior
dragging in at the last moments before the whistles begin
a stronger teammate running beside them.
helping them to milk every last yard from their battered body.
this is where the surviving teammates band together
pushing past their limits for the sake of the whole.
this is, as the saying goes;
this is what it is all about.
