Author: natelballew

Father of 4 boys. Fiction/Non-fiction writer.
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My First Ultra Marathon (Attempt): Some People Just Don’t Understand

The old man in the red Chevy pickup warned us it would happen. His group tromped out of the woods while we threw on our gear at the North Pocket Trail in McLemore Cove outside of Chickamauga, GA. The Cove, as locals call it, is a famous site of an almost ambush/trapping of Yankee troops during the civil war. The Union army escaped their destruction … Continue reading My First Ultra Marathon (Attempt): Some People Just Don’t Understand

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Ultra Marathon

My First Ultra Marathon (Attempt): Why I Don’t Eat Meat. (Part 1)

“Any idiot can run a marathon, but it takes a special idiot to run an ultra-marathon” Dean Karnazes You should have seen the face on my waiter at the Mexican restaurant, “So, wait? You don’t want any meat?” He paused, bewildered. “That’s right.” I said. “No steak, Nate?” He burrowed harder into his investigation. “That’s right, the vegetarian plate.” He beamed, “So… no chicken?” His … Continue reading My First Ultra Marathon (Attempt): Why I Don’t Eat Meat. (Part 1)

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Ultra Marathon

My First Ultra Marathon (Attempt): Can this be any different?

I’ve failed a lot. I’ve often thrashed my goals with the whip of laziness; while hanging my ego out to dry. So, can this be any different? Last night, my sprained knee and the pains from adjusting my stride told me to fail. They throbbed my leg and nipped at the cell phone in my pocket like two belligerent, drunks pleading for their phone call. … Continue reading My First Ultra Marathon (Attempt): Can this be any different?

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Nate Ballew Show, Ultra Marathon

My First Ultra Marathon (Attempt): Why?

A metal bin, fixed to a buried wooden 4×4, marked my first allowable outdoor distance. My grandmother had a straight-shot view of the paved one-lane driveway from her kitchen, where she made lunch for her daily wards (5-15 grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and other neighborly passerby’s). “You can go outside, but don’t go past Calvin’s mailbox.” Music to my ears. I put in many an hour … Continue reading My First Ultra Marathon (Attempt): Why?

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