16/08/2026
Jigger Johnson 100 was everything I hoped it would be and also, unfortunately, did not have the ending I hoped for. This will be at least a two part post: one to explain why my race ended and one to share how it was up until it did end.
Most importantly, I’m ok and pretty healthy. Thank you to everyone who has checked in and offered words of support.
I won’t go into details of the race other than to say I was moving well, eating great, and my hydration was on point. I had pains where I expected which is actually a good thing in this business. I was headed to Bartlett where I planned to reset and hit the longest mountain section.
Despite feeling more strained on Mt Tremont than I hoped, I was feeling really good by mile 40 at Bartlett. I ate well, restocked fluids, and made good time on the 2 miles of dirt road and mile of pavement headed to Table.
This is when things unraveled quickly. Table is one of my favorite parts of the course. The climb is decent but not super aggressive. The view is amazing. Yet every time I leaned into a climb, I started to get woozy and lightheaded. My heart would instantly feel like it was racing and that each breath didn’t matter. I’d stop, sit for a few seconds, and it would stop. As soon as I climbed again, it would repeat almost to the point of passing out. I’ve never felt anything like that before.
I sat several times and thought about my situation. I was fine as long as it wasn’t an aggressive climb. Unfortunately, the next 14 miles is about 5 miles of climbing. Slowing down wasn’t helping. I couldn’t slow down enough without stopping. For being 45 miles into the event and being competitive, I felt amazing. My body was mostly fine. I had all the time on the clock I needed to finish. But all of that is useless if I’m passed out in the trail and require an extraction. The only way out of this section of trail is backwards or forwards. There is no exit or side trail.
I made the tough decision to descend and return to Bartlett. It was humbling and I’m sure confusing to April as well as the aid station volunteers and runners I encountered. But I know what I felt. It was time to end my race even though I seemed to be fine.
In this house we believe in the science of ultra running. The next day April and I talked through it more and started to look into it. We hate to be “I googled symptoms” people, but we read some alarming studies with the presenting symptoms. It warranted a trip to urgent care event if I was no longer outwardly showing symptoms.
A EKG and consultation with the doctor immediately sent me to Maine Med ER. Once there I received another EKG, blood work, and an ultrasound on my heart (it was kind of cool to see my heart!). Huge shout out to the medical staff there for their quick work and support.
So what was the outcome? Great news is that I’m not dying. The blood tests and EKG showed my heart absolutely had above normal strain. My troponin levels (heart stress proteins) were dropping in the 2 hour test and were no where near heart attack levels. That means I’m healing and is a good thing. No visual long term damage to my heart. Based upon my post run blood tests, my previous medical record blood test thresholds, and my recent medical history, it looks like my bout of Lyme disease and ensuing course of antibiotics (which ended on race morning as scheduled) likely left my heart in a weakened state to go the full 100 miles. My body let me know that on Table.
Despite all of this the doctor gave me a clean bill of health and full clearance to continue running. This was a timing issue, not a long term debilitating diagnosis. It had very little to do with the running and everything to do with pushing my limits during additional stress.
Guys, trust your body when it speaks to you. It can be hard in our supportive community. It was very difficult for me on Friday. I love everyone who encouraged me to get back out there! Please don’t stop doing that. I firmly believe I made the right decision.
I’ll soon have another write up on how the race went until then. I’m so inspired by everyone who took on this course and I’m glad I got to meet so many of you!
