Inspirational Runner: Ernie Rambo

A few weeks ago we were laboring up a long climb during a 5 hour plus run through Bent Creek.  The topic came up that the next time we visit Las Vegas we really have to run the 18 mile loop that takes in the near 12,000 foot summit of Mt. Charleston.  Then the question came up, “If we could choose one person to run it with us, who would it be?”  Almost immediately we both thought of Ernie Rambo, a longtime Las Vegas valley ultra-runner who would consider such a run a mere warm-up.  Years ago, before we met Ernie, we had both heard stories of Ernie’s mega distance epic runs that went well beyond 40 and 50 miles, and we both visualized a buff muscular guy who could kick more ass than a Ninja going through a herd of wild donkeys.  It was during a long run early one summer morning on the east side of the Las Vegas valley that we bumped into this petite little gal who introduced herself as Ernie Rambo! BlueRidgeRunner recently got the chance to interview Ernie and glean a little more background and history about this amazing woman...


BRR: We understand Ernie is an abbreviation but for what name?

ER: “Ernie” is short for Susan Marie. When I was younger, I never cared for the nicknames for Susan. I also had longer hair, thick and very curly that I had no interest in managing as young women were expected to. As a result I wound up getting a horrible haircut. The next day, a friend of mine consoled me by telling me that my haircut reminded her of a popular guy by the name of Ernie who had wild hair. My friend began calling me Ernie and the name stuck.  I preferred being called Ernie over Susan!


BRR: What got you into running?

ER: I’ve always felt a desire to run. Although I ran a little bit during college, I didn’t run much at all until I turned 30. At that point, I think that I just told myself to go ahead and run or forget about it. I went outside and ran – good choice.


BRR: What is the longest race or longest distance you have run at one time?

ER: This is a hard question to answer! I ran the Marathon des Sables in April, 2000, which was almost 150 miles that year. MdS is a six day stage race across the Sahara Desert in Morocco. The course changes a bit each year, but the rules are the same – you carry the food and supplies you’ll need for the race, they provide water and sleeping accommodations in “Berber-style” tents that each house 8 runners.

I ran 80 something miles in the “San Diego 1 Day Race” several years ago. I haven’t finished a 100 mile race yet – which I find to be really funny. I need to get that done this year!

My longest run in Nevada was 1111 miles – but I walked a lot of that and it took me two months! (BRR's note: that equates to approx. 555 miles per month or 138 miles per week for 8 weeks)


BRR:  Marathon de Sables is an epic! Any special memories from that event you would like to share with us?

ER: MdS is where I first met Lisa Batchen-Smith.  Imagine reading about Lisa (Badwater winner and MdS winner) in “Marathon and Beyond” and then actually meeting this legend….at 2 a.m.….waking her up while looking for a tent in which to camp….in the Sahara Desert, Morocco! Actually, I didn’t realize who Lisa was until the following morning – she was a nice US runner who let several of us fill in the tent where she was camped when we arrived at the race staging area after a very long trip. By the time that I arrived there, I’d overtrained enough to have tibial tendinitis with both of my legs. I ended up running a bit, and walking a lot to complete my mileage each day. Until this race, I’d never given much thought to cut-off times. At some point, while crashing into my tent for a few hours sleep, I learned that if you don’t make it to the days destination by a certain time, you’d be disqualified. Oh! Now I knew what a cutoff time was – I tend to not think about details much when I sign up for a race! The MdS experience was a delight – getting to know runners from all around the world, running in the desert. Dealing with new challenges each day, such as: carrying the heaviest pack of anyone in my tent, learning that bathing was a futile activity, avoiding the medic tent with my blisters (I blister just at the thought of running), and learning that the best time to empty your shoes of sand was NOT while sitting on the top of the dune. I was definitely one of the slowest finishers, but I was thrilled with my effort – didn’t get lost, didn’t have to experience a sandstorm, didn’t have to shoot off my flare and have a helicopter pick me up. The experience is probably another factor that influenced how I planned the Nevada Rambles. If you’re going on a long run, you might as well go out for several days! I’d love to go back and do MdS again.


BRR: What is the greatest motivating factor you receive from running? What keeps you going and what gets you through a REALLY long run?

ER: When I run, I feel as though I’m connected with a basic human being, the primitive part of my soul. I run because the action feels as though that’s what I was created to do. As for what keeps me going on a long run, I’m simply stubborn. I don’t like leaving any task undone.


BRR: Any special diet you use for your long distance adventurers?

ER: Over the years, I’ve found some different foods that work for me – gels are fine for a marathon, I add Perpeteum for a 50K. Pretzels, peanut butter, mixed nuts, chips, pudding. A friend and crew member used to make these fabulous Plantain Pockets (mashed plantains and sesame seeds in a wonton wrapper) – they were magic food! Rice has been known to pick me up and change my life. Years ago, I used to cook dried beans for longer runs. Due to a problem with silent reflux, I try to avoid acidic foods.


BRR: What running event/race/adventure stands out most in your mind?

ER: Probably the Red Rock Fat Ass 50K of 2005 is most memorable. It was a day like no other out at Red Rock – the area was closed due to snow (yes, right here in Las Vegas) – I don’t like cold weather, but for some reason, I found that I enjoyed the water crossings, slipping in the snow, seeing waterfalls where there’s usually nothing but dry rock. The sights were amazing, I was running well – and then I fell and broke my arm! It was a long day!
One other adventure was my Teacher’s Ramble from my high school in Chester County, PA to Washington, DC to attend a teachers march. www.saveourschoolsmarch.org/?p=1644
 www.ramblingteacher.tumblr.com/
The Teacher’s Ramble was a nightmare as far as my sticking to a plan, but my boyfriend (who graduated from the same school) and I had such a memorable time running (he was my crew) through the Pennsylvania Dutch Country, Maryland, and DC. We can’t wait to do another Ramble!

BRR: We believe you were a crew member for Marshal Ulrich during his "Badwater Quad"*. Anything special you would like to share from that?

ER: Marshall Ulrich, Lisa Smith-Batchen, and the rest of the crew were the most caring people I’ve ever worked with. Marshall is considerate and appreciative of his crew. When Lisa (crew chief) first told me to pace Marshall, I was very concerned because I move at such a snail’s pace. But Marshall was walking at that point – he pointed out some of the landmarks, gave a bit of a geology lesson, and answered my questions about why he chose to run a “Badwater Quad”.  Working with Marshall created a place in my brain where I realized that when one has dreams or goals that it’s possible to meet those goals. Crewing for Marshall is probably what planted the seed in my brain to run across Nevada.


BRR: The year after you crewed for Marshall’s “Run Across America” you participated in the 2002 Badwater Ultramarathon 135 mile race, a race that scares the daylights out of most of us. What would like to tell us about that epic?

ER: This should have been my greatest race. It turned out to be my worst! I was in my best shape ever and ready for the heat, which I usually do well in plus I enjoy running in Death Valley.  Land Rover let us use their bright orange Discovery for our main crew vehicle (actually the vehicle is prominent on some program about Death Valley that the Discovery channel made that year).  I think I may have had too many crew members, which was eight total including my Mom, and I probably didn’t pick the right person to head the crew.  George Watson, Don Robeson, Trudy Lawrence, and Mike Stelling provided round the clock care for me.  Steffan Schneider steadfastly paced me at night and whenever Mike Stelling needed a break during the day.  The crew and I were so excited before we left Las Vegas that we procrastinated about icing my food when we should have.  Then my crew leader neglected to read the eating schedule that he requested that I create nor did he bother to organize our vehicles the night before the race.  My not earning a “buckle”** wasn’t his fault; I went out faster than I should have.  I should have known better.  I was toast long before arriving at Stovepipe Wells (about 40 miles), and I didn’t recover until I got to Panamint Springs.  I never doubted that I would finish, but I wondered if my crew would be kind enough to stick with me until I finished!  We got done… and under the cutoff!


BRR: Not only did you finish in 55:03:26 but you beat five guys as well!

ER: I was the last woman to finish.  Pam Reed was first place overall winner that year (and set a new course record)!  On my way to Lone Pine (20 miles to go), Pam and her crew ran into us as they did their recovery run.  I didn’t realize who she was and asked “Done already?”  “Yep, all done!” was the reply.  After that brief conversation, I noticed the stubble growing on the face of my male crew members and realized that I really needed to get moving.


BRR: Do you think you will do Badwater again?

ER: No, it’s too expensive.  And in retrospect, I believe that the crew that is needed does great damage to the environment.  I look forward to running my own Death Valley Ramble in the near future, starting at Bonnie Claire, NV to Scotty’s Castle, Furnace Creek, Death Valley Junction and the Amargosa Opera House to Baker.


BRR: Tell us about your “Nevada Rambles”.

ER: In 2002, while headed to a race in Pioche, NV, I realized that whenever I saw a dirt road, I wanted to run up the road to see where it led. Feeding this obsession, I thought it would be great fun to run from home in Las Vegas to Boundary Peak, 13,143 ft., Nevada’s highest point on the west side of the state, and then run to Wheeler Peak, 13,043 ft., Nevada’s highest single standing peak on the east side of the state, and back to Las Vegas again. Ray DiNardi, of Land Rover Las Vegas agreed to loan me a vehicle for such a run, but recommended that I try a shorter run first. In 2004, I ran from just north of Jarbidge, NV located at the Idaho border, mostly on dirt roads, over 700 miles (averaging about 30 miles a day) to just south of Avi, NV located at the Arizona border. We camped out each night unless we were near a town. In 2005, I ran the original plan, more or less. We weren’t able to summit Boundary Peak, we were within a mile, but we summited Wheeler Peak and ran a lot of Highway 50 (“Loneliest Road in America”). I think the 2004 run was the outstanding accomplishment. I never completed the details, but you can see the routes we took at www.ramblingcoyote.com
I still have a Death Valley Ramble, mentioned above, that I’d like to do….maybe a Diagonal Trans-America (Seattle to Miami). Dewey, my boyfriend, refers to that particular dream as our Retirement Ramble!


BRR: Please tell us anything you feel inspired to share with BlueRidgeRunner.

ER: BlueRidgeRunner has such a comforting ring to it. The name inspires me to just find a mountain and run up the side of it! When the two of you are visiting southern Nevada and want to climb Mt. Charleston, I’d be happy to run it with you!

BRR: It’s a deal!  Thanks Ernie and good luck with your plans and future adventures.

Brief Professional Bio: Ernie has been teaching with the Clark County School District (Nevada) since 1987. She has taught several subjects including Life Science, Earth Science, Social studies, Keyboarding, Environmental Science, Music Appreciation, Health, Physical Science, Reading, Math, Drama, and Puppetry to 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students.  She has been honored as a Southern Nevada Writing Project Fellow, a two-time recipient of the Las Vegas Jr. League grant, and has participated in the Nevada Science Project for 2 years.

Currently, Ernie holds a PhD in Education and is a Nationally Certified teacher.
You can learn more about Ernie on her website: www.ramblingcoyote.com

*In 2001, Marshall Ulrich was the first runner to complete the "Badwater Quad", consisting of two back-to-back Death Valley 300s for a total of four consecutive Badwater/Whitney transits. He completed the course, a distance in excess of twenty-two marathons, in ten days.
**Runners who complete the Badwater Ultramarathon course in sixty hours receive a commemorative medal; runners who complete the course in forty-eight hours receive a belt buckle. No prize money is awarded.