2011 Top Eleven

#11: Yep, it goes up to eleven…simply because this year I celebrated 11 years of marriage to my best friend. (NOTE: to make an 11 you need two 1s, which is exactly what I have/need in this list. The first #1 is of course my beloved wife of 11 years, Maggie and the second #1 is…see below…)

#10: Patagonia Athlete Summit: We finally got this disparate band of ultrarunners together for a great series of meetings. Patagonia launches an exciting all-new line of trail running gear in Spring 2012. Stay tuned. You’ll be impressed.

#9: SuperFly!: After 10 years a mountain bike has returned to the quiver. I picked up a used single-speed 29er and the thing is incredible. Love 29 inch wheels and don’t miss gears one bit. Nice to get back to my roots a bit…and I’m sure this rig will get a ton of use in Missoula.

#8: Camp Vitamin D: In May a few of us soggy Pacific Northwesterners couldn’t take the incessant rain and darkness any longer, so we headed to Utah, grabbed Hit Man (Matt) Hart and ran all over Zion National Park. Great fun in the sun. I am hopeful an annual event has been launched.

#7: Photography: I’ve had my camera about a year now and thanks to lots of trial and error and the help of patient friends like Paul and Becker, I am starting to scratch the surface of decent photos and loving every minute. Here are some of my better efforts for the year:

#6: Invited revision from the Journal of Consumer Research. This is the top journal in my field and my dissertation research made it through the first round. Essentially, they told me I don’t quite suck enough for them to reject my work. Super motivating!

#5: Trans-Rockies Run: A great running journey through the Rocky Mountains. It was especially enjoyable to compete along side my trusted training partner and friend @hugnut.

#4: Vermont 100: Was trained to win and really think I coulda woulda shoulda, but failed to seize the opportunity and finished 4th….learned a lot. Nice to race so close to to my hometown and spend a great week with family in New Hampshire.

#3: Jay-Oh-Bee: Believe it or not I got one! After all these years of school, some brave institution found me employable. That institution is the University of Montana and we are so very excited to join the Griz family. The ever-expanding brood will relocate to Missoula next summer.

#2: Four 50k wins, including some tight racing on Orcas Island and a Yankee domination of Diez Vista. DV is one of my very favorites and it was a great honor to come away with the win. This has been my healthiest and most successful racing season to date.

#1: Charlotte Jean Angle