Bad to the bone

Ultramarathoner gears up for 135-mile dash through Death Valley

Photo by Justin Yurkanin/View Summerlin resident Molly Sheridan runs through Devil's Cornfield in Death Valley National Park, May 29. Sheridan is one of 90 runners scheduled to compete in the Badwater Ultramarathon, a 135-mile race through Death Valley, July 13-15. It has been dubbed the world's toughest endurance race, with temperatures of up to 130 degrees and a 60-hour time limit. Photo by Justin Yurkanin/View Molly Sheridan trains along a section of roadway through Devil's Cornfield in Death Valley National Park, May 29. Photo by Jan Hogan/View Molly Sheridan Advertisement

Half a marathon, piece of cake. A full marathon? No problem. A 50-, 60- or 100-mile-plus running event? Bring it on.

Summerlin resident Molly Sheridan, 52, said she partakes in extreme running for the fun if it. She's run a total of 20 ultramarathons to date.

Her next one will be the 32nd Badwater Ultramarathon, planned for July 13-15.

It covers 135 miles nonstop from Death Valley, the lowest point in the U.S., to Mount Whitney, Calif., the highest point in the contiguous states. Add in temperatures up to 130 degrees Fahrenheit, and it's easy to see why the Web site www.badwater.com bills it as the world's toughest foot race.

But Sheridan doesn't see it as a competition. She's in it for the fun.

"My favorites are the 100-milers because you're running through the night," she said. "The moon's out and you're just running. It's an incredible experience."

To prepare for an ultramarathon, Sheridan logs up to 65 miles a week and cross-trains with swimming and bike riding. For events in humid climates, a sauna helps her acclimate easier. Sheridan trains year-round.

"Last year, she did 18 races," said Jimmy Gabany, who is part of Sheridan's ultramarathon crew and an ultra runner himself. "So she knows what she's doing."

Sheridan said only 12 of those races were ultramarathons.

She traveled as far as Morocco for an ultramarathon this past March. Normally drought-ridden, the area saw a 100-year flood that swamped gullies and made mud of most of the trail. The run was delayed while another 150-mile route was mapped out.

But most of the events Sheridan enters are in the U.S.

Where a marathon is generally a race against the clock, the long-distance ones that Sheridan undertakes are races with oneself.

"Ultras are a different world," Gabany said. "Your body has to be ready to go."

Sheridan wasn't always athletic. In her 30s, she ran an occasional 5K and 10K event. She didn't decide to enter a marathon until she was 48, when a friend suggested they run one together in Washington, D.C.

"The idea haunted me and, to be honest, the word 'fun' drew me in," she said.

But a stress fracture in her foot suffered in training sent her to the doctor. He told her she was too old to try a marathon and called the notion ridiculous. Sheridan set her mind to proving him wrong, found help on the Internet and healed her foot by running in a swimming pool. The big day came and she had the satisfaction of proving her doctor wrong.

"I sent him a big picture of me crossing the finish line," she said.

Sheridan later gained a mentor in Helen Klein, who retired from running ultramarathons last year at age 85. They both had a good laugh at Sheridan's doctor's admonition. The best piece of advice gleaned from the elderly runner?

"She told me to be totally relaxed when I run and just 'move through space,' " Sheridan said.

Sheridan, who works as a personal assistant, looks at a race by breaking it into smaller goals: just getting to the next crew station.

There's an ulterior motive to her running: Sheridan uses the events to raise money for Boys Town, a nonprofit that was started in 1917 by the Rev. Edward Flanagan as a small home for homeless boys. It now provides direct care to more than 400,000 children and families each year through its youth and health care programs across the country.

People pledge a certain amount for each mile Sheridan runs.

Boys Town Nevada Executive Director Tom Waite said the boys were perplexed why a stranger would want to help them out, as "their history is typically people taking advantage of them." He said Sheridan was an inspiration to the young residents.

"She's an example of what we teach, that you can achieve any goal in life, but you have to be willing to work for it," he said.

Contact Summerlin View and South Summerlin View reporter Jan Hogan at jhogan@viewnews.com or 387-2949.