Western Time | a Western States 100 Film

thank you oh right here right here yeah the that's good if I can go back Hill is down on flats I can't yeah yeah down hurts this way a little bit yeah yeah go better this way by gian hoan flat hurts really bad that's your body temp okay cool cool okay and this is like so frustrating you're drinking water yeah you qualifying for Western states was really a dream come true since the time that I had started trail running it was a goal of mine and at times it seemed like it was unattainable at the same time I knew that if I wanted to get into that race outside the lottery that I would have to qualify for it you know I was at a place where it wasn't really one of the lowest points in my life largely due in part to just some things going on in my personal life and so I found a lot of solace just going into the mountains and I spent a lot of time just praying and thinking climb to the top of this mountain one of the tallest peaks in Southern California and sometimes I just I get to the summit and I've just sit and you can see for hundreds of miles all around but I realize just as truths to life that some of them the hardest things the hardest roots are what make us stronger I remember so many times getting up to the summit and thinking this mountain is so much like my life I have spent much of my life climbing mountains I'm in the figurative sense lost a lot of people in my life I started working at a really young age I grew up really quick as a child and I've always taken on a lot like life just hasn't been easy for me but at the same time I'm really grateful for all of those challenges because they've made me stronger just like the mountains the mouth is challenging to climb that it makes you stronger and essentially as I was going through this dark time in my life that was exactly what I wanted to hold on to it wanted to believe I chose to believe that despite how painful things were in my life and at times how lonely I felt I was hopeful I knew if I could just get to the top that I was going to be okay and then I would be stronger because of it just like every other event in my life essentially has made me who I am today so qualifying at the beginning of 2014 it meant so much to me for many reasons I really went into that race with a newfound confidence I was pretty surprised that Nike had sought me out and it's signed me and that was just the biggest boost of confidence that I could have gotten at that time and in the my crew you know they believed in me and they really encouraged me to go after my dreams and they supported me all on the way so here it was I had this like army of people that believed in me at a time in my life when I really wasn't feeling so hot about myself and was in a really dark place and somehow or another I've stepped up to that start line and I remember thinking I know I can do this I know I can do this all these people believe in me why can I believe in myself and right before that gun went off I had to make that decision to be courageous and to believe you there's bunch of girls you or you didn't say ten minutes baby but that was a while ago at the last aid station yes I can yeah where I tell you left they were like ten minutes behind me yeah four five four on booking it like doesn't matter doesn't that I gotta get up here okay you got that long to sound what you're gonna crush and then you got a little bit of rolling to the finish no more big climbs nothing like what you've done there's another climb up here you're done with all the biggest pine okay yeah you got this yeah but you know I should say hops you got come on your second place your second place I get fixed some miles to go a lot of that's a long downhill and you crush those down hills okay go smash kick some ass just push through town it wasn't easy but as I entered the last 200 yards seeing that finish line and seeing my whole crew just cheering and tears are in their eyes I'm crying and it was so much more than getting my ticket to western states it was the beginning of a new adventure for me and for the first time in a while that I really started believing myself again maybe we should pass around bottle drinking till it's gone Bourbons not my favorite but it's all that we we are gonna be such big star why'd you try good old smoking on my dreams no one believes No a spirit is like nervous she's a character she's kind of one-of-a-kind she's funny she laughed loud she has this super you know loud fun laugh and that's kind of the best part about her her laugh absolutely infectious if you're around her is John on the trails or just kind of having a conversation you'll hear her before you see her and meet her and in describing Santa the first thing that you know comes to mind is just this amazing person one of the toughest chicks that I know if you are fortunate enough to call her a friend you are just a very plus person super kind thoughtful she's just a real joy to be around it just so generous and hard-working she's just such an inspiration I think it says a lot about somebody when not only they positive but they can pass that on to others and any seed around Sally all the time with weathers people that she coaches or her children or her friends they kind of feed off her positivity going into western states I am I'm really excited I'm nervous I start like overanalyzing myself like my training and my racing plan strategies and then I have these hours where I'm just so exciting and peaceful those are the best times because I think it's there and realize what a great privilege it is to have a body is able to go this distance you go out of miles on foot it is my goal to go out there and run my race to do my best heartedly to really enjoy the experience and to cross that finish line knowing that I gave everything that I possibly had is the biggest race of my life and I want to race that way I want to race with everything in me and I want to race well I'll race with endurance that is strong and passionate but also patient wise so I'm hoping for big things tomorrow love you guys so pension yeah oh my see you in just a few hours promise give me the strength to believe so don't lie I see now I'm let me be until it's all gone by wow you are also you thank you running by myself and knowing the races ahead of me it's hard to be patient did something do it's not one more bad pain to down I've been feeling really strong like all day now aside for this let's just go for 7:24 beast you are on chance that when I pick you out of your book you guys like it and my team I would like a tape in there will one you guys YouTube K tapered off me and we'll do that how many we're gonna see you in follow that one alright we are gonna finish it I'm dropping look at how painful Oh shall we Calvin from before right here right here yeah leave it out on the bottom you know sides away don't happen often can you do the taping on it is this been going on ago so it's a new bar and then shooting down your leg and outside I put a wide across here and run yourself you feel better tracking it okay yeah this is going to help it even go right better - oh he's getting affected I was afraid to go all the way around this one sister you know that I don't I don't want to cut for you want to tell well I don't know yeah she just came in right let's get out of here your walk is all valuable time okay Dave you ready yep you want to run across the top are we good here alright let's go she's going call I'll make my bottle form you just gonna help you so much like lifesaver if ever I hit a low spot in a race there's two things my mind always goes to the first one is always God the second thing is there's one moment in my life that that I always go to in February 1996 I always playing like a final soccer match in high school and the mom was about three months before she died and she was not supposed to be out of the house it was raining and I definitely was not expecting to see her she had cancer she had this wig on and she looks so gray and pale and so weak but at the same time so strong but I remember seeing her and in that moment seeing so much strength it was strengthened II in pain and she was out there because she wanted to see me she wanted to see me one last time play soccer she had come to every single game and it didn't matter if she was dying and it was raining she showed up I realized there's no amount of physical pain if you really love you really want something and you want to experience it and you understand that there's value there and it's worth it you're gonna make it happen and she summed all of that up in that moment that's where I go it's very very powerful and there's a lot of strength there Oh River number 11 No - quite funny Charlie helps me 37 Russia we go to generate here that bring water watch walk gotta give our children or bill why you up mm okay there oh yeah brothers in this race all these girls will be able to go on to the Arts Academy this is girls division 79 running one kilometer one kilometer is a tough course first half's all uphill think just got that know as downhill all the way once she gets up that hill okay dally in the first place still in the lead she's exhausted watching Sally finish will be a culmination of so many different things it's it's about the journey but in the end is about crossing that finish line tip to watch Sally finish it's actually something I think about on some of my longer runs they kind of well up a bit I think it's just going to be this great celebration knowing that this is a big journey for her not only the hundred mile distance but just to get here it'll be yeah pretty emotional for for everyone it's you know it's what this is all about it's this is why you're here is to cross that finish line for the Orange County me and all right Sally the Orange County me we stirred at the Orange County meeting we would like a strong representation from Costa Mesa so that we can take home the first place my experience at Western states was incredible it was more than I could have ever imagined it to be I went through so many highs and lows and to be able to finish in the top 10 the most prestigious hunter mile race really it was a dream come true one of the best things about it was the people that I shared it with and you know just thinking about my mom and seeing my crew and seeing them rally around me too they would not let me give anything but my best I finished that race with even more appreciation and gratefulness for them and realizing just the spirit of friendship and how when we believe in each other and what it can do for somebody and so great it was just a beautiful experience all around super excited about getting back there next year and our tenth place woman in a time of 21 24:43 from ELISA Diego California Sally McCray could be and something so good and so pure so delicate and short that don't like what I see now let me pee it's a ah I can't believe it like getting in toxins the same is like top three any other we'd come back next year and what feel even better next year and what you did yesterday add it to this wonderful narrative that we call western states and again I most humbly thank all of you everybody who were out there yesterday and gave it their all thank you so much now let me be until this hour ah by ah now

Channel: Billy Yang

Views: 534,827

Rating: 4.9488797 out of 5

Keywords: Film (Media Genre), western states 100, western time, sally mcrae, billy yang, billy yang films, Ultramarathon (Sport), ultrarunning, ws100, nike trail, nike trailrunning, Western States Endurance Run, yellowrunner, sean o'brien 50, Short

Id: eHoXgYPvj6o

Length: 28min 43sec (1723 seconds)

Published: Tue Nov 11 2014

Reddit Comments

[u/btctothemoon]

This short film had me crying like a baby at times. Really inspirational.

[u/Biscuit_Baron]

Nice - thanks for sharing. I'm a big fan of the TRN podcasts and wondered if this would hit YouTube. I need to order Unbreakable sometime too, I hear it's fantastic.

[u/Staggerlee024]

Amazing