Badwater Forum

Ian, thanks for posting this question. It will save me having to answer a bazillion backchannel questions.

First, it helps if you let us know when you plan to run. I communicate with Ben Jones, but he will enjoy hearing from you directly, if you like. Or you can just post to this forum.
Some of us might like to come find you on the course, so give as much information as you can about start time and projected finish.
Document, document, docuent. Take pictures, preferably with date/time stamp. Take video. The more pictures, the better.
Record your splits. Use the same splits as the Big Race. You can add others, if you like. Give location, mileage, and time elapsed. (not necessary to give seconds, just minutes are okay)
Write an account of your run. It doesn't have to be a book. Just say a little about your experience. Others coming after you will thank you!
If you go to the summit (and we encourage you to do that) sign the summit register and take a photo on the summit block. (time/date stamp helpful here too)
Tell us who crewed for you and give us a way to contact them. Also helps if they want to write about their crewing experience.

(Yikes, nobody told me the "bullets" button was so wacko! I won't try that again!)

Anyway, above is a whole list of things you should try to do. But we're not going to ding you if you miss a few details. The thing is that if something doesn't smell right about your claim, we want to be able to do a little detective work. The more information you can give us, the more chance we'll believe that you actually did run 6 minute miles the whole way! (or whatever.)

Okay, about the buckles. Yes, we still have buckles for finishers. Either to the Portal or the summit. John and I bought these out of our own pockets. We welcome, but do not require payment for the buckles. They cost us $15 apiece. No pressure, except that your contributions may make it possible when it's time to order another batch. Either way, we will continue doing this as long as we can. And if there's any way we can, we will try to meet you at the finish to present it. Or sometimes we leave a few with Ben when we can't be there.

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I hope my post above gives you an idea what we're looking for. If you have questions, just ask.

Oh, one more thing, if anyone meets you on the course, try to record the location and time. These can be valuable witnesses if your crossing comes to question.
But...remember, we do this for fun. So unless there's anything really fishy, you're probably fine.

Have fun. Be safe out there.