by By Dan Ninham
Phyllis Stanley, 46, is a member of the Navajo Nation. She is an ultra-runner based out of the Pacific Northwest, prime country for mountain running. Her family moved to the Pacific Northwest after she graduated from college in the spring of 2000.
“I make my home in a small town called Montesano, WA with my two sons, 17 and 11 year old,” said Phyllis. “Born and raised on the Navajo Nation just outside Kayenta, AZ in a rural setting without any normal American household amenities like running water, indoor plumbing, and electricity.”
“I’ve been going on mountain trail adventures since the pandemic began,” said Phyllis. “With cancellations of ultra-races, this left the opportunity to explore in the Olympic National Park and the Cascade Mountains with some wonderful friends.”
“This includes circumnavigating Mount St Helens with my best running buddy Staci Revel, summiting Mt. St. Helens and Mount Adams, the second tallest mountain in the state of WA. We also set two Fastest Known Times (FKT) one completing a route from the east end of the Olympic National Park and finishing on the west side,” added Phyllis.
“We completed a second FKT in the Cascades a weekend later as well on a vertical difficult course,” said Phyllis.
Phyllis and her running buddies have been doing occasional ultra-races since the mid-2000s. A 50K here and there but took up extreme endurance running in the fall of 2018 after losing an older brother JB to stomach cancer.
“Prior to that, my mom, older sister, and a nephew passed away,” said Phyllis. “Losing the very most important people that provided me the stability, inspiration, sense of safety and home left me completely lost, hopeless and vulnerable like never before. Suddenly, my world upside down.”
“I was seeing a therapist but I needed more to fight the onset of a depression,” said Phyllis. “Spending long hours on the trails helped me process my grief. It gave me hope, an outlet to release the negative thoughts.”
“Just when I thought my life turned a corner, my late fiancé Luis was diagnosed with late stage liver cancer in November of 2019,” said Phyllis. “It was a challenging situation because he was stationed in Fort Irwin in CA and I was in WA. Spending time on the trails gave me the strength to be there for him during his chemo and radiation treatments. After a hard bout with the evil disease, Louie passed away on September 30, 2020 two weeks shy of his 43rd birthday.”
“Outings to the mountains helped sustain me, to keep trudging forward, to do things in honor of my late loved ones,” added Phyllis.
Phyllis had a full ultra-running schedule this year. She did the Badger Mountain Challenge 100 miler in March in Richland, WA. She attempted the Cocodona 250 in May but gastrointestinal issues forced her to drop after at 103 miles into the race. She did the Mt. Hood 50 miler in early July. This past month, just completed “my hardest event, the Bigfoot 200 in the Cascade Mountains,” said Phyllis.
“It was so hot the first three days, 90s to low 100s degrees F,” said Phyllis. “The trails were incredibly steep, overgrown, and dealing endless blowdowns that meant climbing under or through trees in a cold surprise rainstorm. I saw so many things thanks to my hallucinations. Never seen so many people break down and get taken out by the brutal course,” added Phyllis.
“My friend Staci and I shared an amazing crew that got us through,” said Phyllis. “The race that started with 201 runners, 111 finishers, with a 55% finish rate. I’m pretty sure, if it wasn’t for my crew Tim VanNorman and Molly Strand, I may have missed one of the cutoffs in the last couple sections of the course. Tim kept me moving with minimal trail naps to get to the finish in 103:43:36 with hours to spare.”
Tim VanNorman talked about his ultra-runner friend. He said: “Phyllis is an amazingly strong and resilient runner. After having to drop out of Cocodona 250 with stomach issues, she regrouped and came back strong at Bigfoot 200.”
“During Bigfoot her feet started hurting but she kept pushing. She endured days and nights with minimal sleep and yet, after every brief trail nap or quick snooze in a chair at an aid station she got up, got herself together, and headed out again, determined to finish that race. There were times during that race where you could tell she was tired and ready to be done. And even during those times she kept hiking, kept eating, kept driving towards that finish line,” added Tim.
“I think her worst night was the fourth night where she had to deal with colder temperatures, miles of downed trees, overgrown trails, and rain,” said Tim. “Yet when I finally saw her that morning she was focused and knew what she needed to do to keep going and that included some food and a quick nap.”
“With about 15 miles left in the race, beaten and battered, Phyllis started running,” said Tim. “It was not fast but it was faster than she had for the previous couple of days. As the final miles ticked away, and the trails gave way to what seemed like endless pavement, Phyllis kept moving forward, revitalized with the knowledge that she was going to finish this race.”
“Rejuvenated knowing that every tired and weary step got her that much closer to finishing. And when she did finish she took time for photos with her crew and friends, ate some food, and finally sat down to rest,” added Tim.
“I owe a lot of credit to one of my close friends Angela Wilder who has done several 200 or longer distance events,” said Phyllis. “She has not only inspired me but made me believe that I’m capable of doing these long distances just like anyone who has a passion for endurance events.”
“It doesn’t matter who you are, where you come from or your background, there’s a spot for me just as anyone else. I feel privileged to have such amazing friends and family who continue to inspire, cheer, support me on,” added Phyllis.
“My little sister Sherrie Logg has been one of my biggest supporters and shares in the grief of losing loved ones over the years,” said Phyllis. “I have a huge gratitude for her. Also my best friend Natasha Shimp, who never hesitates to drop everything to help crew or cheer me on at these events.”
“It’s very encouraging to see other Indigenous sisters and brother showing up at these extra-long distance events such as Scott Flatlip,” said Phyllis. “It’s quite inspiring to see him doing wonderful work through his organization ‘Indigenous Trail’ by promoting diversity at the starting lines.”
“Phyllis is one of the strongest runners I know,” said Scott Flatlip. “Her mindset to finish is above all. She is relentless with her training and miles that she puts in day in and out. She has a heart of gold and is extremely kind. Once she sets her mind to a task she will complete that task.”
Phyllis is always preparing for the next race. She signed up for Orcas Island 100 Miler scheduled for February 4, 2022. She said: “This is another race that has a reputation for being a hard one.”
Photo Credit: Anastasia Wilde
