The Midstate Mile Isn't Just Vert, It's About This

How do you stop negotiating with yourself when the race gets hard? As I prepare for my 5th year at the Mid-State Mile, this question has become one of the biggest focuses of my training. Physical fitness matters, but in an event that combines relentless climbing with the mental pressure of a last-man-standing format, your ability to make good decisions when you're exhausted can be the difference between staying in the race and heading home. In Chapter 3 of this Mid-State Mile series, I take you through the peak weeks of training and introduce a challenge I'm calling the Calendar Club: Vert Edition. The idea comes from ultra runner Mark Dowdle, who famously stopped negotiating with himself during training by running miles equal to the day of the month—for an entire year. Mark recently won the BPN Go One More Backyard Ultra, and his approach to consistency inspired me to create my own version focused on vertical gain. Along the way, you'll see: • My trip to North Carolina • Some of the toughest training weeks of the entire build • The Calendar Club: Vert Edition challenge • Common challenges runners face at the Mid-State Mile • How I'm specifically training to prepare for those obstacles • Lessons learned from four previous years at Mid-State Whether you're training for a backyard ultra, a mountain race, a last-man-standing event, or simply trying to become more consistent, this episode is all about building the mindset to keep moving when every part of you wants to negotiate your way out of the work. If you've ever struggled with consistency, discipline, or mental toughness in training, I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments. #MidStateMile #BackyardUltra #UltraRunning #TrailRunning #MentalToughness #CalendarClub #BPNGoOneMore #EnduranceTraining #UltrarunningLife #LastManStanding