ULTRAMARATHONS
Growing up my Dad would take me to 5K races. I would jog along with him and somehow come home with hardware. It wasn’t that I was fast, it was the 80’s and 90’s and not many parents were dragging their kids to races. I ran cross country and track in high school, though not incredibly fast, and during my freshman year of college I ran my first marathon. I finished with a guy who told me that he had just finished his 14th marathon and I wondered if I would ever be able to run 14 marathons. I completed 11 sanctioned marathons before graduating to ultramarathons, then I started running marathons for training, even running at least a marathon every month for 2 years. The distances continued to grow and now I’ve finished two 100 mile endurance races.
Ultramarathon Videos
Ultramarathon Highlights
Prescott Circle Trail
Published: June 29, 2015
Crewing Through Hell
Published: July 30, 2014
Grand Canyon Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim
Published: April 21, 2014
Marathon Around A City Block
Published: May 11, 2014
All Ultramarathon Trail Posts
Crewing The Western States Endurance Run
After 5 years of qualifying and entering the lottery, my brother was finally selected to run the 2019 Western States 100-Mile Endurance Run. He put together a serious training program…
Crewing The Bear 100
When my brother registered for The Bear 100 he asked if I’d be willing to crew him. I’d be two weeks past my Plain 100 race and able to drive…
The Plain 100
Several years ago Luis Escobar said “Hey Tarzan, you should check out the Plain 100, a self supported 100 mile race up in Washington.” I thought that was crazy and…
Born To Run 2017
There few certainties in this vagabond life that I’ve built. Taxes, oil changes, weekly showers, and Born To Run. #KeepItSimple I returned to North America from El Grande Sur in…
Touching The Trail Podcast Interview
Jarod Contreras, host of the Touching The Trail podcast, interviewed me about running, hiking, living in a van, international adventures, and life in general. We had a great conversation and…
Born To…Run?
My training regimen for Born To Run 2016 was simple. Eat lots of burritos, shower less, drink cheap beer, and oh yeah, run a little. Each year the Born To…
Running Rim-To-Rim-To-Rim…Again
It all started in Ecuador. Tyler and I were each on our 5th bomber of Ecuadorian Pilsener (think PBR, but cheaper) when a buddy from the States messaged and said,…
Scott Jurek on the Appalachian Trail
When Luis Escobar asks “Do you want to do something epic?” you should either sit down, or run away. You never know what to expect. You might end up hitchhiking…
The Prescott Circle Trail
While sitting around having Arizona craft brews with my family I mused, “I think I’d like to run the Prescott Circle Trail someday…maybe even before I leave town next month.”…
Crewed By Clemens – San Diego 100
Course maps? Check. Driving directions? Check. Food and snacks? Check. Beer? TRIPLE CHECK! This is what you get for your 100 mile race when you are “Crewed by Clemens”! I…
Born To Run Extravaganza 2015
The Monday back from Born To Run is always the worst work day of the entire year. I’ve showered (maybe), am wearing clean clothes (maybe), and am working (maybe). Its…
Sunday Beach Run
Last weekend my adventure was a little closer to home. Wait, who am I kidding, I live in my car. All of my adventures are close to home! But I…
Running in Ridgecrest with Rios
Fat Ass Race: The name given to a low key run characterized by the phrase “No Fees, No Awards, No Aid, No Wimps”. Fat Ass: A person with large buttocks….
Rainy Rancho San Juan
The day before the event Race Director Luis Escobar posted “Rancho San Juan Trail Run and Camp is 100% on, regardless of weather. Please remember that this is a rain…
Going Minimal with Marathon Medals
I’m what some people might call a minimalist, and I guess I can’t argue with that. I mean, everything I own is in my Honda Element, the car that I…
Ultra Runner Podcast Interview
That.Just.Happened! I was fortunate enough to be interviewed by Eric Schranz of Ultra Runner Podcast. It was a blast! Click the link below and check it out yourself! Podcast: https://ultrarunnerpodcast.com/chris-tarzan-clemens/…
Grinding Through the Red Rock 50
Wednesday night I threw my back out. Thursday I could barely move without holding my breath and wincing in pain. Sunday was the Red Rock 50 Mile Race. These back…
Pacing Patrick Sweeney
The text read “What are you doing on October 18th, do you want to pace me for the EC 100?” The sender? Patrick Sweeney, THE Patrick Sweeney…winner of many races,…
Running with the Spirits of the Navajo – Canyon de Chelly Ultra
The day was perfect. We moved through cool high desert air, the sun peaking out behind the canyon walls turning everything bright red, the gentle breeze blowing through the leaves…
Man Against Horse 50 Mile Race
I ran an obstacle race last weekend. I know…I’ve said I would never run a Tough Mudder/Warrior Dash, but this one was a little different. I ran 50 rugged miles…
Running with the Hopi
As my nine week summer vagabond around the country came to an end I had the option to drive back to Santa Barbara on Saturday and spend Sunday at the…
Running Through A Jangover
Typical weekend procedure. Work hard. Play harder. Deal with the Jangover. Wait…the “J”angover? Yup, this weekend was the Javelina Jangover Night Runs by Aravaipa Running in Phoenix, and I just…
Chris Clemens – Burning River 100 Mile Run
“Should I do it?” I asked with my finger hovering over the submit button. It was New Years Eve in Santa Barbara and I was at Figueroa Mountain Brewing with…
Ryan Stemen – Burning River 100
Ryan Stemen paced Chris Clemens from mile 54 to 75 of the 2014 Burning River 100. Here is Ryan’s story of the Team Clemens adventure and running free. 3:00 AM…
Maria Walton – Burning River 100
Maria Walton paced Chris Clemens 16 miles from mile 75 to 91 of the 2014 Burning River 100. Here is Maria’s account of the day and dealing with the good,…
Tim Davis – Burning River 100
Tim Davis paced Tyler Clemens the final 29 miles to the finish of the 2014 Burning River 100. Here is Tim’s account of the day and getting Tyler to the…
Tyler Clemens – Burning River 100
Tyler and Chris Clemens both completed their first 100 mile races in the 2014 Burning River 100. This is Tyler’s story from the adventure. The anticipation was torture. The past…
Running Shoes – Brooks Cascadia Review
Strava keeps sending me emails. At first I thought it was nifty. You can document the shoes that you used for your run, you know, so other people could see…
Crewing Through Hell
“What are you doing in July?” That’s how it all started. A simple question, a few quick words that lead to crewing the Badwater 146, sweat evaporating out my pores…
Solemates’ CYA 2014
Cool Your Ass. No…wait! That’s not me telling you to get out of here! Stay…read on! Cool Your Ass is actually a new race hosted by Solemates’ Mark and Sharill…
Pacing Western States
Western States Endurance Run… one of the epic events in ultrarunning and a mere 8 hour drive from Santa Barbara, yet, I’ve never attended. Until this year. Do you remember…
Marathon of the Month – 18 of 18
I don’t set New Year’s Resolutions, I figure if it is good enough to set a goal, you might as well start now. While I think most New Year’s Resolutions…
Runners and Their Birthdays
Runners are a weird breed. But you already knew that. I was reminded of this because of a friend’s birthday. This week Crista Scott turned 26 years old and decided,…
Nine Trails At Night
Nine trails. The hardest thing I’ve ever done. Seriously, I know that I haven’t done that much yet, but when compared to running Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim in the Grand Canyon (45 miles…
Born to Run Weekend 2014
Born to Run 2014. Period. That’s really all I can say because no amount of explaining, stories, photos, or videos can really share with someone the magic of Born to…
Marathon Around A City Block
Run a marathon around a single city block. Really? Yeah. It’s silly. It was boring. It was really silly. It was extremely boring. But I did it. It all started…
Grand Canyon Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim
It started with a mug of Pale Ale at Figueroa Mountain Brewing, as most good ideas do. We were sweaty, smelly, and dusty from the Rancho San Juan preview run….
Race Report – Are You Tough Enough 2014
The alarm rang at 4:00 AM. I had only been asleep for 3 hours, but it was time to go. I stumbled around Tyler’s apartment grabbing anything I thought I’d…
Race Report: Red Rock 50 Mile Trail Run
This is a video blog post from the 2013 Red Rock 50 Mile Trail run in Santa Barbara, CA. Instead of writing along post, I decided to make a video!…
Race Report: Tarzan Runs The Bulldog 50K
On August 25 I decided to do something I’ve never done before…run a 50K (31 mile) ultra marathon. I didn’t just decide to do this on August 25th though…the idea…