In the 2010 Gore-tex TransRockies Run, Paul Shippey’s teammate (and fellow Boulder resident) Paul Mandel suffered Acute Mountain Sickness, along with a host of other participants. Racers got used to falling asleep at night to the background sounds of the mountain wildlife, rushing streams…and vomiting. But along with a few strong others, Mandel toed the line each and every day, overcoming the practically debilitating headache and nausea that comes with altitude sickness.
So when Paul and Lori decided to be partners for the 2011 race, altitude was a big topic of conversation. Lori does much of her training at sea level, and Paul wanted to make sure she gained enough experience at altitude to hopefully avoid Mandel’s fate. Each person’s susceptibility to altitude sickness is different, so Lori needed to properly test hers. Paul wisely advised her to find opportunities to train or race in places that will most closely resemble TransRockies conditions.
Photojournalist Paul Shippey is a former elite triathlete and endurance sports competitor. He is also the gear editor for EverymanTri. Shippey’s racing accomplishments are varied and include; Ironman SA, Comrades Ultra Marathon, Boston Marathon, ITU Worlds, Bar One Adventure Racing Series and the Nissan Xterra Series. The South African native is the owner of Automotive Media Solutions – an automotive marketing and PR firm in Denver. He is also a former professional driver and racing instructor.
Lori Lyons has over twenty marathons to her name, including Boston, and with the addition of trails to her training repertoire, has recently entered the smaller community of ultrarunning. She is an occasional triathlete with the half Ironman as a favorite distance. Lori is an LA-based, independent consultant in the automotive industry, and dedicated mother to her three year old son and four year old bulldog (neither of which want to run with her).
Click HERE to visit Lori and paul's race blog.
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