beyond all expectations

Badwater 2009, I had no coach. I had no race plan. but I did have an amazing crew.

I have to say that the medal is all mine. I earned that baby but my buckle belongs to Lynne, Robert, Alexa, George, Kira and Greg. I always knew that I had it in me to finish, but because of my amazing crew, my Badwater experience surpassed all expectations. I was able to run well beyond what I ever thought possible. My spirits were up for most of the way. My crew kept me happy, laughing and loving my journey and I was able to smile through some tears. The pain of the second day was nothing short of horrendous. But the finish line was calling my name and I knew what had to be done.

Here I am getting ready to leave for my 6am start. I am not nervous,
nor am I excited. I am just ready!

I would love to get a total count of all the cans of Efusjon we went through.
This is where the race starts.

my 6am start group


and here we go.



My Crew had a hard time slowing me down those first two hours. The more they tried, the more I laughed. I knew what had to be done and at this moment it was to get in some good running before I lost the shade. Once the sun comes over the ridge, it would be a whole different story.

My absolutely rockin crew + Kari Marchant. Ha, she thinks she looks "official"

I loved my signs from Drymax. How many Drymax sock jokes did I make...? My feet held up amazingly well in spite of running in 9 month old socks. Drymax truly rocks!

Robert checking the temperature. the high was 125 as I ran through Stove Pipe Wells.


Here I am staying cool with George.


Jorje Pacheco, winner in 2008 takes time to run a few steps with me. "I'm gonna beat you Jorje", "Ok Leigh, let's go" he tells me. Jorje is one of the nicest guys you"ll see out there!

Alexa changing my ice bandanna, a must in this race. Greg and Lynne also helping out. My crew was there at every mile.... "Lexie, what's with the red bandanna?" P-a-lease! ha!!!


My crew left me many messages along the road. So nice to be loved!


This was very fun and a great way to pick me up!


Alexa and Me taking time out at the 100 mile mark. The farthest I have ever gone in any race was 101 miles. This would be new territory for me. A time to celebrate for sure!

Taking a moment out to soak my feet in a bucket of ice. They get hot out there. If you bag your feet, you can keep everything dry.


The heat off the pavement radiates so much. My legs felt like they were frying. I used these shawls that were soaked in ice water as a way of cooling myself. They worked great!


Gentle encouragement by Kira and Robert

Taking a breather. My friend Jacki came by to see me and work on my feet. My feet held up really well. Jacki's touch did the trick. Plus I just needed some TLC from her! This is somewhere around mile 95 or 96. I came into the Darwin check point which is mile 90 at 29 hours. After that I would hit a real low and for the rest of the day my crew would lovingly encouraged me on. Once the sun went down I came alive again. I ran through Lone Pine at midnight. Part Vampire? Maybe.

My finish time was 44:17. The course was closed due to a fire and it affected many of us. When I was told that my Badwater journey was being cut short by 4 miles, I felt very cheated, and then relief. I would not have to go the last four grueling miles. But either way I would be coming in under the cutoff for the 48 hour buckle. When I got to the finish line, I was just so grateful. There were no crowds, just a few people and some volunteers. It was all very quiet in those dark still hours of the early morning. But there was one person there that I had been trying to focus on the last two miles and that would be Chris Kostman the Badwater race director. Just to shake his hand and thank him for this journey and to tell him that I am happy was all that mattered to me at 2am on this morning.

My Crew at the finish line. Do they look great or what?!



At the finish with Chris Kostman.

After 2 hours of sleep, I called my friend Brad in Utah and he was the one that informed me that they had reopened the road and the runners could go back up to finish the course. I wondered if I could even get my shoes on again. When I told this to my crew member Lynne, she already had my shoes on me before I even got to finish explaining. They sure do make em tuff in Australia! So Kira, Lynne and I took off with George crewing. I called Kari to bring us up some Efusjon and she too joined us along with Jacki. It was so fun not to be in a hurry and to just enjoy the rest of the course in the beautiful morning sunshine. It was quite a gift sharing it with my friends.

Kira, me and Lynne

With Lynne. Great company with about two miles to go.

My second finish. They did not stop the clock for the fire so this finish time was 53 hours or something like that. The clock ran all the time that the fire was going. Still, I am very happy that I had the chance to finish the course. And i got to finish twice. How cool is that?

My 44:17 finish time earned me my Buckle.
Yes, I have no doubt that I would have finished Badwater. The medal belongs to me. But this my friends, this belongs to my crew. They were so awesome and I love them so much!

You can read more here
Badwater. written my by friend and crew member Greg Hardesty
Shoesoftheday written by my Shea's brother in law Derek Miner