Courtney Dauwalter is a bit of a badass. Last October, the ultrarunner won the Moab 240 Endurance Run outright, with a gap of more than 10 hours to the second-place finisher. That win came alongside impressive finishes in this year's Western States (she won the women's race and came in 12th overall), the 2017 Run Rabbit Run (she battled temporary blindness for the final 12 miles, and again won the women's race and placed sixth), and 2016's Javelina Jundred (she won the race outright and set a new course record). We talked to her about her training strategy, what goes through her mind while she races, and what in the world could possibly make her stop.

Runner's World: How did you get into running?

Courtney Dauwalter: I grew up playing sports and then starting in 7th grade, I did cross country and track for my high school. I competed in Nordic skiing in college and after that was just looking for my exercise outlet and decided to try some road marathons, which snowballed into discovering ultra marathons, which then has just blown my mind with the types of races that are available and distances that we can cover. It just continued to grow after that.

What was your first ultra like?

It was awesome. I didn't really run trails ever and it was just a 50K, so five loops or four loops in a local park. They weren’t gnarly trails by any means, but I was so excited about meandering through the woods for a day and it just seemed so cool. The environment was so welcoming and friendly that it just made me want to keep trying more. Little did I know there were a lot more options for trail running and ultra running in general. I was really excited by it.

What year did you do your first one?

Gosh, it must have been 2011. In 2011 I tried my first 50K and then later that year I ran my first 50 mile race.

When did you feel like you were hooked on it? Was it after that first race?

I think it was after the first 50 mile race. The 50K made me curious and then the 50 mile race was in the mountains of Colorado: true, beautiful, mind-blowing trails. We had some really crazy weather and people; it was hailing and storming. I was tripping everywhere in mud puddles and ice patches and everyone was just out there hooping and hollering, having the best time in the worst conditions and all I could think during it was 1. Holy buckets you're gonna survive this, you are capable of doing it and 2. This community is amazing. I face planted into a mud puddle and someone who was 15 yards ahead of me ran back to offer me a hand to pull me back on my feet. Then we just took off down the trail together hollering about how awesome it was that we were out in this hail storm. That got me really hooked.

How do you train for these ultras?

Just however I feel. I don't have a plan. Sometimes when I leave my house I don't even know if I'm going to go out for 45 minutes or for 4 hours. Basically I'm just listening to my body and relying on the fact that I feel like I can read the signs my body is giving me pretty well and just going with it, otherwise not getting too caught up on what I do every day to train but trying to just keep getting in good, solid miles and keep figuring out how to do it all better.

Do you ever have to motivate yourself to get out the door?

Sure! Sometimes it's tricky, like anything, but I always hold myself accountable to getting out the door and then once I start, I tune in to what my body is saying. If I only make it down the block and all signs are pointing to heck no, this isn't happening today, then I definitely listen to that and then maybe just walk around the block instead.

I think it is important to get out the door, the consistency, and I think that helps build some of that mental stamina too: You're gonna lace up those shoes and at least see what happens out there today.

Paul Nelson

While you are training and while you are racing, what do you eat?

When I'm racing, I rely on Tailwind, Honey Stinger chews and waffles, and mashed potatoes. Over the years I've dialed in what works. In my first years of running ultras I would definitely graze the buffet lines at those aid stations and I'd watch what other people were eating and I'd try it and I would just end up losing it all over the trail a few miles later.

How about when you're training—do you follow any specific diet?

It's super flexible. Basically I eat what I'm craving which can range from Lucky Charms and jellybeans and M&M's to hamburgers and salad and grilled vegetables. I don't limit the food groups I eat or anything like that. Not a model of nutrition over here.

You've talked about how, in the 2017 Run Rabbit Run 100, you temporarily went blind during the last 12 miles. How in the world do you find the motivation to push through that?

To me it was the only solution. I couldn't see my hand in front of my face but if I looked straight down I could see the trail right in front of my feet. It was just here is your solution to keep moving forward, stare straight at the ground and let's move because there's only one way to get to the finish line.

What are the things that would cause you to stop a race?

Things like bones sticking out of my skin. Or if there were signs of rhabdo (Ed. note: rhabdomyolysis is when muscle breakdown causes damage to the kidneys) or heat stroke happening, I would be smart about my long term health. Otherwise I try to not let any excuse be good enough.

What goes through your head while you're running?

A lot of things go through my head. The races I prefer are the long ones so there's plenty of time for entertaining myself with lots of types of thoughts. A lot of time when it's getting harder, it will just become focused on moving and reminding myself that I'm fine. I guess if I had a mantra it might just be you're fine, you're fine, you're doing fine, this is fine. No matter what's happening I'll try to remind myself of that. Whether I'm riding a high and feeling awesome, you're fine, this is fine, keep going, or if I'm sitting on the side in a whole lot of pain, you're fine, this is fine, keep going. Just accepting the reality of what the current miles are feeling like and the situation at hand. Everything is fine, this is going exactly according to plan, even if it's totally not, to not get caught up on it.

You've run races that you've won by a 10 hour margin. Do you ever feel the desire to back off, or is it full steam to the finish line?

Usually, trying to keep the foot on the gas and the head in the game no matter what the splits are. When I finish a race I want to know that I put everything into it that I had that day and I don't want to wonder what if. By keeping my foot on the gas and my head in the game the whole time, no matter what, I feel a little more confident that I will end the race not wondering what if.

You've also won several races outright for both men and women. What's that like? Is there any special motivation in trying to pass guys?

It's all a race against yourself and against the course. It's pushing as hard as I can so that I don't wonder how much better it could have been. Chasing the next person, whether it's a man or a woman, helps you do that. I'm gonna be trying to catch whoever is in front of me just to hold myself accountable to that, keeping it rolling no matter where in the race you are, or who's in front or behind you. It doesn't matter to me who I'm passing, I'm gonna try to keep pushing to find that next person just to make sure I put in my best effort that day.

What do you consider some of your weaknesses for running?

There're ways to improve all of it. You need to just keep figuring it out, keep practicing, keep signing up for races that maybe are challenging and make you feel like you don't know what you're doing out there and try to get better at every aspect of it.

Last question, if you were to give some ultra running newbies some advice, what would it be?

Keep going, keep trying. Trial and error is huge in ultra running. Put your mind to it and don’t let yourself have excuses and then to be patient with yourself. Give yourself time to figure it out and to learn how to run trails and to learn how to fuel for long days out there and how to push past any of those obstacles that you encounter. It's such a cool sport and there's so many people who are ready to help anyone trying to get into the sport so reach out and see what you can find out.

Taylor Rojek Associate Features Editor Taylor Rojek is an associate features editor who has been writing, editing, and testing gear with Bicycling and Runner’s World since 2014.

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