Team Jester at Badwater Part I - Meet the Crew

For most races there are amazing volunteers that man aid stations and provide us with the much needed support to finish our goals. At Badwater, that does not happen. Each runner must provide their own support for the 135 mile desert trek.

This year, The Jester Ed Ettinghausen has asked Team Wentlandt and others to be on his crew and help him reach his goal of a second successful Badwater finish. To help you follow his progress, I will be blogging about the experience from the crew perspective. The first stage of that is to introduce the crew! I asked each crew member to write about themselves. For some, that was harder than others, so you may find this entertaining!

Crew Captain - John Vomit Boy Wog

 I started ultrarunning three years ago looking for a change of pace from marathons. I met Ed at my second 100 miler called Nanny Goat in Riverside. At the time Ed was in his infamous boot on his foot due to a stress fracture. We both finished the 100 miles and in the process became friends and also met a guy who was running his first Badwater race and was looking for crew. Ed and I both jumped at the opportunity to crew and see what this crazy race was all about first hand. After a successful race crewing, Ed and I both caught the "Badwater Bug" and wanted to run this race ourselves. The next year we continued to run 100's together in four different states and were lucky enough to be invited to Badwater for the 2011 race.

 

I was pumped and ready to take on all Badwater had to throw at me come July. I had completed multiple 100 milers in the months prior and sat in a 150 degree suana three times a week for two months getting ready for the race. At the start line I was ready and confident on a successful race and nothing was going to get into my way for a finish at the Mount Whitney Portal 135 miles away. Everything was going extremly well for the first 50 miles, almost too well! At mile 51 the vomiting began and persisted through the night. From mile 51 to 80 I threw up 28 times, earning me the nickname of John "vomit boy" Wog. Lovely, I know. I ended up dropping from the race at mile 80, literally. Thank God for my crew! This year I am excited to have the opportunity to crew for Ed on his journey. Eventually my plan is to run/walk/crawl Badwater again and get a finish and not live up to my nickname.  

 

Cadillac Steve Hernandez

HOW I GOT STARTED:

My first steps in running a marathon began when a friend of mine asked if I wanted to run a marathon in the year 2008 and raise money for Aids Project Los Angeles (APLA) . At first, I was a little hesitant, but quickly realized this was a good motivation to lose weight and raise money for a good cause. It was also a commitment of 6 months, and at this time I was going through a divorce, so this couldn't have come at a better time, Something to keep my mind off my personal life and use my energy to help others.

Thus, my passion for running marathons began. Soon after my first marathon, I joined the Jeff Galloway group in Santa Monica, CA.  The Galloway method is a run/walk method of running a marathon. In 2009 I ran 12 marathons, the first six I used the Galloway method, but after the 7th marathon I had ran my first one without run walking. The feeling was amazing, never in my wildest dreams that I could ever imagine running 26.2 miles without stopping. The following 5 marathons I ran straight through and couldn't believe it, the feeling was forever life changing. During the latter part of the year 2009 I started to feel like 26.2 wasn't enough once a month.
In November, 2011, after my 9th attempt, I finally completed my first hundred miler (EC100)  Corona to Santa Monica Pier. That really doesn't even sound real, but it is true, if you surround yourself around positive incredible people, positive incredible things can happen, I truly believe that, you have to believe in yourself and your journey is yours and no one else's. You never know what your capable until you go out there and attempt it, I did and found that anything is possible. MANIAC #2597 - God bless!

Ryan Fat Boy Launder

Running stuff.  I got back into running less than 3 years ago after doing none for 8.5 years after exiting the Marines.  I'd gotten back into weightlifting, but hadn't incorporated any cardio to speak of.  I got in contact with an old high school friend who's doing the 50-state marathon thing, and it just keeps escalating (thanks in no small part to my BW runner).

As a person: Married to Melissa 16+ years.  When I'm not racking up miles I like to play trumpet, drive off-road, go to concerts, and watch movies.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Brady Bacon Boy Wentlandt

 When asked to write a bio for this blog, my husband gave me nothing but sarcastic and inappropriate answers, so I will save you from that nonsense and share a little about him from my perspective. Click here

Colby Mini Jester Wentlandt

Colby is an accomplished half marathon runner and proudest member of Team Jester. He has spent several hours in the past months cheering for runners at the finish line with The Jester. Colby plans to run Badwater in 2020, the first year he'll be old enough. You can read more about Colby in his blog here

Mrs. Jester, Martha Ettinghausen

Martha was too busy with all things Badwater to write about herself. Honestly, she is so humble, I am not sure she would have done it anyway. I am proud to introduce you to my friend. You can read all about Martha's support of the Jester here

 

 

 

and finally... me!

Since you are reading my blog, you can look around and find out all you could want to know about my running and other such information. I thought it would be appropriate to share how I met Ed and Martha instead of more about myself. 

I met Ed at the Marathon Show Marathon on 8/27/11. It was my third marathon and Brady's first. We had recently listened to Ed's interview on the Marathon Show and were fascinated with his stories of Badwater and other amazing running accomplishments. Colby was instantly inspired and had a ton of questions about ultra running. Since I had only completed a 51k, I really didn't have the answers. When I met Ed at the marathon, we ran together for about 15 miles. He was gracious enough to answer all Colby's questions and offer to talk to him on Facebook if he had more. It was the beginning of a friendship and many miles shared over the next year. When he asked me to come to Badwater to help and document the adventure, I was honored more than words can describe.