so, we got the survivors off on yard 36.
everyone looks really happy.
they finished off the final trail loop with dispatch
and i cannot imagine any of the 19 to fail to finish 36.

assuming we come in intact,
it will be the most runners ever to complete 36 yards in one race by a wide margin.
the current record is 12 at bigs 2019
followed by 11 at bigs 2018

on a more serious note,
as the numbers dwindle,
and the yards get deeper,
you can sense a more serious cast to the field.

many strong contenders are gone.
but everyone left is a contender now.
the tenor of tonight’s yards will take on a different tone
as 19 backyarders try to manage the night
to hit the trails tomorrow as strong as possible.

it has been a long time in the making,
but the real race will start when the sun comes up.