the morning light has brought the camp to life and returned some smiles to the faces of the 72. they are all off dreams still alive, surviving the long night reason enough to rejoice.... . how many will live to see the road again?

only 72 athletes took the road for the final night loop. the sun and the trail will be waiting at the end of this yard... . rene cunha, the courageous brazilian could go no further. his legs were strong his eyes were clear we did not even realize he was in trouble but...

it is amazing how many of them show absolutely no sign of damage. even the ones that have some scratches and dents look strong... . and sticking to my plan to last for another 4 days it is time for my 30 minutes of sleep on the first night.

and the long, long night goes on. 3 more hours until daylight. and we wonder what thoughts the runners are thinking. their faces reveal nothing as they go about the task at hand. unwavering unflinching. . do they think about the many days and nights ahead? they dare...

there is one common thread between all of these athletes. and the more i am here around them the more it stands out. . mental toughness. . if you were to hold tryouts and gauge their pure athleticism a lot of these athletes would not make your team. but if you were...

as we grind our way through the dark hours the field seems to have all settled in. they line up every hour and they run. those who have encountered difficulties seem to have gotten everything under control. if not every face is a happy face there are no haunted faces...

looks like patryk's resurrection has been well covered. i will only add that while people sleep away half the day, there is always something happening in the backyard. anything can happen in the backyard, and it probably will.

patryk watch; . patryk came in after 2 whistles again. but he left with a kielbasa in each hand. more importantly, sunrise in poland comes 13 minutes into the hour. . it is not uncommon at big's for athletes to struggle thru the wee hours at home and recover when the...

the finish line is now on patryk watch. he finished hour 16 after 2 whistles.... . his spiral has nearly closed and this time he got virtually no respite. but he stepped back in the corral and went out. . most of us think he has come to the end. but patryk has the...