Ok, I'm going out on a limb here. I'm looking for encouragement from people who dare to dream but who, at the same time, are realistic and protect themselves from injury/overuse. I'm open to cautious words and constructive criticism but I guess I'm just really looking for a reality check (with a good dose of optimism) from others who might understand. I have a little less than 2 months to taper in time for my first ever 50K. It's 67 days away. I had it all planned out, my training schedule on paper. By this date I scheduled myself to be up to 16 mile long runs. The reality is: the longest run I've done since November has been 8 miles. (November was 12 miles). Okay, before you say She-Rah is living in a complete fantasy, here's what I have been up to: Last summer, I did mountain trail races in the following distances: 10, 27 and 20 miles. Every year I compete in the 20-miler, I get a PR. I'm not fast. I'm generally a middle of the packer but I seem to be moving up a bit in the roster - which is something I love about this sport. The older I get, the faster I become - go figure. Experience goes a long way. Over the winter, I ran only 1-2 times a week because my focus was on skate skiing. I owe my current cardiovascular fitness to this sport. In mid-March I skied a 25K. In all, I was running/skiing at least 4 days a week, walking or hiking the other days. I am a strong proponent of rest and attribute some of my improvement in race performance to not overtraining. In late March, I incurred an inflamed disk by moving a heavy piece of furniture, followed by sitting too much at work, followed by skiing too much the following weekend. I did not run for two weeks but did try to walk most every day for exercise and sanity. I went for my first run after the back incident on April 5 - within 8 days I've been able to build up to 8 miles. I find the the distance very do-able at the time I am running and am not sore afterward. On alternate days, I hike a very steep hill or walk 5 miles roundtrip to work. I feel like I am in good shape and I am generally confident I will achieve my goal of completing my first 50K on June 20. But, I must admit, there is a little voice inside my head that questions if it'll be possible to do in a respectable time. I was hoping for 6:45-7:15 hours. Do you think I can do it? So, here I bare my soul to you, the ultra community. Thanks for listening. Now, I will listen.

Oh! As I laid my head down to sleep I just remembered! In January, I did 35K in a Fat Ass event - running/walking. Phew! That makes me feel more confident. Thanks for the tips and encouragement, Lynn. I have never been on the Bighorn course so any and all beta is greatly appreciated. Good to know the downhill can get ya at the end - thankfully, I am used to that scenario. I hope to squeeze at least two 22-23 milers before taper time - plus all the other medium and long runs. In regards to sharing my log, I'm not sure that I am ready to do that just yet but thanks for making me feel welcome here.