Green Light

Dr. Atkins said I'm healed.
I just have to build up slowly and rest in-between.

The Moab Red Hot 50K is 3 1/2 weeks away. It doesn't seem likely I'll be ready. if i do it, I won't be "racing" it! I'll find some slow, amicable, straggling soul to hang with and throttle me back. Then I'll enjoy my return to racing.
(Man, they better have some good swag.)
One of the problems that led to the injury is my habit of running entire races, no matter how far, on my toes. Running on your toes means your knees, hips, and back are far less likely to injure. Also, your quads take less of a beating, so you recover MUCH quicker. I never missed the Tuesday run after a weekend marathon or 50k. While this is all great for the entire body above your toes, it means your metatarsals take it all.
I had an annoying tweak on the left side of my right foot. I rolled slightly to the right to alleviate. That ruined the equalibrium and put too much stress on the middle toe. After four months of running like that, the accumulated stress crumbled the bone.
With only 2.5 miles left in my season, if I had only drunk my NutraJoint once a week during those four months, that alone would've gotten me through the season.
So close. So frustrating.
But I'm running now. Not as a bandit, but with the approval of my podiatrist.
It's like running the Salida marathon - so long, so rugged, through the woods and hills, never seeing Salida, never having any indication how much further. Then finally, that glimpse, and you know everything that lies between you and the finish. Only what I'm seeing now is Leadville is going to be a reality. There's some tough, careful training (each race before is just training) that needs to happen, and my fracture can still disintegrate, but I can do this. I've been fucked-up enough to know what I need to do.