If I judge the leadville race this year on finish time alone, it was probably my worst race yet, coming in with a chip time of 11:15:00. But based on the total suffer-factor, it was probably my best race. Meaning some parts of the race were actually gratifying, I had no leg cramping, and did not puke even once. Throughout the entire race there is a continuous misery, but there are varying relative degrees of misery. But the degree of misery soars when you are about to puke, have just puked, have a splitting headache, legs cramping, etc. Thankfully my race did not get to that level, which, of 7 years of leadville, is a first. So, you could even say it was my best race ever. Because I didn’t race last year, I was put in the last corral, with all of the newbies and people who previously lacked the grit, guts and determination to finish the race in under 12 hours. This starts me off at a disadvantage because there are about 1000 people ...