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Nick "StormTrooper" Bautista - McNaughton 500 Mile Race Report
- Thread starter joel_maxwell
- Start date
bethram
Well-Known Member
Well said. You got me a little emotional this Sunday morning. LOL
It hurts my heart a little to post this. Selfishly, I thought of all the conversations leading up to this with Nick, all the texts and emails and how bad I wanted this for him. I know he wantedit more than we can imagine. I, along with yall, are so proud of our friend, but a little sad for him too. We all know we are goal oriented individuals, and yet he had a DNF at 460, it is 430 miles farther than anyone on this board has run and he has to be extremely proud of that. It isnt a DNF in my book, it is a PR of 460. That is always a victory and commendable. We are proud of you Nick. Keep your chin up.
Saturday June 2th 7:47am EST
Facebook via PEAK: PEAK 500 FINAL update (747am): My Animal Camp teammate Nick Storm Trooper Bautista will not continue beyond 460 miles. It is no longer safe for him to continue. He completed 460 miles and climbed 110,400 ft. He had to deal with near freezing temperatures, torrential rain, flooding, sleet, snow, and than heat. He ran for 9 and a half days and refused to quit. He was puking for the first few days and barely acknowledged it. A big part of having crew/pacers on location is to have people there with you that can make decisions when you can't, people that you trust. Nick is not able to continue and crew on site agree it is not safe. I am so proud of my teammate Nick Storm Trooper Bautista, blown away by what he accomplished and aside from my personal bias, don't know many people on the planet that can say their PR is 460 Miles!! Words can't capture what Nick has been through and they also can't capture what crew and pacers and support onsite have done over the last 10 days. Nick Storm Trooper Bautista, I am so proud of you brother!!!
Saturday June 2th 7:47am EST
Facebook via PEAK: PEAK 500 FINAL update (747am): My Animal Camp teammate Nick Storm Trooper Bautista will not continue beyond 460 miles. It is no longer safe for him to continue. He completed 460 miles and climbed 110,400 ft. He had to deal with near freezing temperatures, torrential rain, flooding, sleet, snow, and than heat. He ran for 9 and a half days and refused to quit. He was puking for the first few days and barely acknowledged it. A big part of having crew/pacers on location is to have people there with you that can make decisions when you can't, people that you trust. Nick is not able to continue and crew on site agree it is not safe. I am so proud of my teammate Nick Storm Trooper Bautista, blown away by what he accomplished and aside from my personal bias, don't know many people on the planet that can say their PR is 460 Miles!! Words can't capture what Nick has been through and they also can't capture what crew and pacers and support onsite have done over the last 10 days. Nick Storm Trooper Bautista, I am so proud of you brother!!!
One more thought, we will celebrate your accomplishment, and not waste energy on the rest Nick. Congrats on 460.
Nemo14
Well-Known Member
Nick's accomplishment's this past week are nothing short of amazing, awesome, mind-blowing, inspirational, and a hundred other adjectives! I'm not a runner but have followed his journey since it started on this forum.
So many of you here work so hard at pushing yourselves to amazing goals, and I thank you all for sharing your highs and lows here for us all to read about. Good luck to you all in your future races, and especially to Joel in the tri this weekend, and congratulations to Nick and his amazing friends!
So many of you here work so hard at pushing yourselves to amazing goals, and I thank you all for sharing your highs and lows here for us all to read about. Good luck to you all in your future races, and especially to Joel in the tri this weekend, and congratulations to Nick and his amazing friends!
dreamfinder
Well-Known Member
Damn. 460 miles is nothing to sneeze at. Heck, thats about what I drive in 4 days commuting to/from work. I'm glad that Nick had a good crew supporting him who was willing to make the tough call. I'm sure he will just use this as fuel to work harder at the other events he does. Huge kudos to both Nick and everyone supporting him. I'd say have a beer, but that may not be a wise idea at this point....
JillC LI
Well-Known Member
My heart hurt a bit for him as well, Joel, and I am sure he will have moments of disappointment. But Nick, please remember that there is almost no one on the planet who could do what you just did, and 460 miles or 500 miles, you're a winner in my book.
diddy_mouse
Well-Known Member
460 miles is an amazing accomplishment no matter which way you slice it. I don't think I can still wrap my brain around the magnitude of that milage. Congrats to you, Nick and kudos to your amazing team.
Mr mom
Well-Known Member
Like everyone else here I really wanted to see Nick complete it but as Joel said it is a PR of 460, not a dnf. There is no failure here at all. Failure is not going out giving everything you have. Nick, you gave far more than you should have judging by the posts I have read on facebook and there is no failure in that, failure as I said would not be trying.
Wilt Dasney
Well-Known Member
I don't consider myself as any kind of "peer" of Nick's, but I am a runner. I know what it's like to push myself to the edge of my limits for a marathon, but seeing as how Nick just did that 17 times over, it's hard to feel like there's any comparison between the two. I guess all I can do is tip my hat for an amazing achievement. Maybe we all need a "white whale" to chase, and this could be Nick's. Maybe he'll catch it someday, maybe not, but that can't take away from the importance of the journey itself.
Having said that, I know what it's like to have a goal, and falling short...even if it's in a way that outpaces almost everyone else alive...can be very frustrating.
I think Teddy Roosevelt probably said it best. This isn't about any of us, or what we think; it's only about the "man in the arena," and few have entered the arena with more expectations of themselves than the Storm Trooper himself. Being bold enough to take this chance and set this goal is a victory in itself.
"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat."
Having said that, I know what it's like to have a goal, and falling short...even if it's in a way that outpaces almost everyone else alive...can be very frustrating.
I think Teddy Roosevelt probably said it best. This isn't about any of us, or what we think; it's only about the "man in the arena," and few have entered the arena with more expectations of themselves than the Storm Trooper himself. Being bold enough to take this chance and set this goal is a victory in itself.
"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat."
I was so nervous to look at my phone when I got up this morning. The text from Coryna this morning was not what I wanted to see, but after the phone conversation last night, I was not surprised.
Very well said. There is no failure in putting yourself out there, with an almost impossible task, and giving your best.
Ill feel better once we see him post, knowing he is back in NJ safe and sound. I hope he goes and gets checked out medically. I hope he recalls the second part of the week. I block out half a full, and forget details, I cant imagine trying to recall 10 days worth.
fmingo36
Well-Known Member
Hi All--I'm back from Vermont.
As you all know by now, Nick completed a little more than 460 miles before it became too dangerous for him to continue. I droved his wife up to VT on Friday evening. We arrived around 7:00 PM Timing was perfect. He had just come in from 400 miles. He was eating French fries and in a good mood. I couldn't believe how good he looked. He was completely surprised to Alison, she was supposed to be traveling for work (there may have been a tear or two--yes, Nick is human after all!). The time in the cabin was short- a quick change of his socks, replenish his fluids and nutrition needs and off he went. 15-20 minutes tops between loops. It's truly like a nascar pit crew at work.
He continued on through the night. His 10 mile loops were finished in between 3 and 4 hours. For the next 24 hrs, Nick continued to run. He never slept! Heat, sleep deprivation, severe blisters and possible broken toe were all becoming a concern for us.
From mile 440 and 450, Nick's mood and demeanor changed. He was confused. I won't get into details but we knew that he could not go out for another loop without sleep. I was supposed to leave last night but I couldn't knowing Nick was close. I wanted to be there for Nick but also for Alison. This was nerve-wracking for her.
He slept for about 3 hrs. Hoping that's what he needed for him to continue, they got him back out on the trails. He made it about 1 mile or so but the crew knew that he could not proceed any further.
I did not see Nick this morning. Alison took him to a hotel for a hot shower and a real bed to sleep on.
I am disappointed for Nick that he was not able to finish but IT WAS THE RIGHT DECISION! He pushed himself as much as he possibly could.
I am so glad that I was able to get up there and be part of his amazing 461.5 mile accomplishment!!!
As you all know by now, Nick completed a little more than 460 miles before it became too dangerous for him to continue. I droved his wife up to VT on Friday evening. We arrived around 7:00 PM Timing was perfect. He had just come in from 400 miles. He was eating French fries and in a good mood. I couldn't believe how good he looked. He was completely surprised to Alison, she was supposed to be traveling for work (there may have been a tear or two--yes, Nick is human after all!). The time in the cabin was short- a quick change of his socks, replenish his fluids and nutrition needs and off he went. 15-20 minutes tops between loops. It's truly like a nascar pit crew at work.
He continued on through the night. His 10 mile loops were finished in between 3 and 4 hours. For the next 24 hrs, Nick continued to run. He never slept! Heat, sleep deprivation, severe blisters and possible broken toe were all becoming a concern for us.
From mile 440 and 450, Nick's mood and demeanor changed. He was confused. I won't get into details but we knew that he could not go out for another loop without sleep. I was supposed to leave last night but I couldn't knowing Nick was close. I wanted to be there for Nick but also for Alison. This was nerve-wracking for her.
He slept for about 3 hrs. Hoping that's what he needed for him to continue, they got him back out on the trails. He made it about 1 mile or so but the crew knew that he could not proceed any further.
I did not see Nick this morning. Alison took him to a hotel for a hot shower and a real bed to sleep on.
I am disappointed for Nick that he was not able to finish but IT WAS THE RIGHT DECISION! He pushed himself as much as he possibly could.
I am so glad that I was able to get up there and be part of his amazing 461.5 mile accomplishment!!!