I’ve been helping athletes finish the Leadville 100 Run for nearly two decades, and I’ve had my share of emotional moments along the way.
I’ve watched athletes barely squeak under the 30-hour cutoff. I’ve coached several who finished in the top 10, including a couple in the top five, while chasing 19- and 18-hour finishes. I’ve watched athletes transform their lives in pursuit of this goal.
I’ve loved this process for years.
But this past weekend, at the 2026 Leadville 100 Run, something became clear to me in a way it never had before:
I am a coach.
Of course, I’ve known for years that the athletes I work with have goals, that they are chasing those goals, and that I play a role in helping them reach them. But about 20 hours into this race, something happened that I’ll remember forever.
One of the athletes I work with, Nick Walker, was chasing a big buckle - a sub-25-hour finish - in his first attempt at the 100-mile distance.
He had been on pace all day, and we all knew it. Then I received a text from him:
“What paces do I have to hit in this next stretch to hit my goal?”
He sent it from somewhere around mile 75, while he was still running.The fact that he was asking told me he was going to be okay. But what struck me most was how he ended the question:
“…to hit my goal.”
That gave me chills.
Suddenly, his goal became completely real. It wasn’t something far off in the future. It wasn’t intangible or vague.It was immediate. It was meaningful. And it was right there in front of him.
And I was the person who had the information he needed.
That’s when it hit me harder than ever:
I need to know what I’m doing.
Because these athletes have real goals. Big goals. Goals that matter deeply to them.
And I have the opportunity - and the responsibility - to help them get there.
I am honored to be a part of this with Nick and with every athlete I work with. I take it very seriously.
We all do at Boundless. Here’s to chasing big goals.
Nick Walker finished in 24:43:15.
- Coach Duncan Callahan
September 1, 2026