it is with great regret that i report that the BC stopped short at about 8.5 miles into the run when those who had been given the authority to pull the plug in the name of my health pulled the plug (something about not being able to stand up straight or put 3 words together coherently). 

i will attempt the same challenge in two years when i am a 4th year med student and can schedule more than 2 hours per week to train. the ice climbing was fantastic (i highly recommend this at night) and the skiing was amazing. my old college roommates thought the BC idea was brilliant, and a herd of them showed up for the event (we had six people climbing ice at 1:00am this morning). thank you for putting this site together as this is the kind of goal setting and the kinds of activities that strongly appeal to me. if you are still interested in the story and pics i can certainly send them (though this is kind of embarrassing as i know i could have pulled this off a few years ago). 

Ben Woods final summary:

-dropped the 29 pounds (34 to be exact)

-climbed the best 29 pitches of ice of my life (and the freakiest: 
leading the third pitch turned nasty when solid ice turned into the stuff 
you put in plastic cups with cherry syrup*finished it by forgetting the 
screws and remembering that down-climbing was just as bad an option)

-skied 29,000+ feet at Snowbird (I sold out for a lift ticket 
coupon*let it be understood that ALTA is the holy grail of all Utah skiing)

-did the 29 half naked pushups at the bottom of Alta (only place I 
could get a photographer)

-got about 8.5 miles into the 29 mile run before my 
“hour-and-a-half-a-week training schedule” caught up with me (the 2nd year of med school 
sucks*yeah, yeah, excuses, excuses);  I ended up in the back of the 
4-runner of a girl my buddy Frank hooked up with while skiing, and I 
supposedly gave them some interesting marriage advice and whined about not 
being able to study (I really don’t remember much, but I guess I was 
pretty looped)

-swore only 27 times (my euphemisms got pretty creative, even for Utah)

-made up for not getting 29 nice things done for my wife by not 
swearing the whole time we went to visit her family

-lost track of the number of people I talked with about the Utah 
homeless situation, but actually had some meaningful conversations on the 
lift

steve, this website and your encouragement took the edge off of one of 
the nastiest school years of my life.  many thanks and never stop.
ben woods