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July 22, 2026What can an ultra-marathon teach the Church?
Sherry Weddell recently shared:
"Every August, hundreds of outsiders descend on Leadville, Colorado, to attempt the highest ultra-marathon in North America: the Leadville Trail 100, “The Race Across the Sky.” Competitors run or walk one hundred miles across terrain that rises as high as 12,600 feet. The race begins at 4:00 A.M. on Saturday. You have to stagger across the finish line before the gun goes off at 10:00 A.M. on Sunday. To finish on time, runners cannot sleep, and they must run or walk, all day and night, up and down steep, icy mountain trails. This past August, six finishers were in their sixties.Everyone thinks it is crazy — until you witness a race. Then what I have come to think of as the “Leadville Effect” hits you. What do I mean?The Leadville Effect is what happens when “ordinary” people begin to imagine, aspire to, and then accomplish extraordinary things because their community intentionally supports outstanding achievement. What’s the secret? No one runs alone. Finishing Leadville is not about youth and speed. Finishing Leadville is about courage and heart and the power of community.There is a minimum of two volunteers for every runner. Aid stations operate all day and night, handing out water, Gatorade, power gels, cookies, and hot potato soup. Volunteers time runners in and out of aid stations, weigh them, assess their conditions, give them chances to warm themselves and change their clothing and gear, and if necessary, stop them before they hurt themselves.In addition, most runners have their own personal teams of supporters. Many have “pacers” who run beside them for as much as fifty miles. Throughout the night, pacers can be heard softly encouraging, challenging, and making sure their runners keep hydrated and don’t get lost. Family and friends, wearing matching sweatshirts, with mottos like “Ted’s team,” meet the runners at aid stations with specially prepared food, changes of clothing, and sunblock. They massage and bandage battered feet and provide dry shoes and socks — and a stream of encouragement.The whole drama culminates at the finish line between 9:00 and 10:00 A.M. on Sunday morning. At one such finish line, I could not help but notice a large support team of perhaps forty people, all dressed in scarlet T-shirts, near the finish line. I asked a couple of the team members which runner they were supporting. They pointed to the front of their shirts, which read, “In loving memory of Greg.” Twenty-five-year-old Greg had drowned in a river the summer before. His wife, “Beth,” was running the Leadville 100 in his memory. A few minutes later word spread among the team that Beth was two miles away, with only an hour of race time remaining. Instantly her army set off to meet her.I waited by the finish line. One by one runners crossed, many running hand-in-hand for the last hundred yards with the spouses, children, and friends who had made their achievement possible. Grizzled men broke down and wept in joy and relief within seconds of finishing. But I kept my eye on the ridge of the last hill, looking for signs of Beth.Then I saw it: A scarlet phalanx formed on the crest of the hill and began marching steadily toward us. As the group drew closer, I could see that they had formed a cheering, human wall around a young woman with long brown hair. Beth’s pacer was beside her. Her friends were carrying all her gear, freeing her up to focus on one thing alone: finishing. Beth was limping, but her face was radiant as she crossed the line eighteen minutes before the final gun went off. (See the picture I took below.)
The power of that experience has stayed with me because it has such obvious implications for the formation of Catholic disciples and apostles. I know many “Beths,” women and men who are doing astonishing things for the Kingdom of God only because they have the active, sustained, enthusiastic support of the Christian community — an ecclesial Leadville Effect.It is about fostering a whole Generation of Saints."an Ecclesial Leadville Effect
If we want to see a true renewal of the Church, we need more than programs, resources, and good intentions. We need communities that intentionally call forth ordinary Catholics to attempt extraordinary things for God, and then refuse to let them run alone.
We need pastors, parish leaders, mentors, intercessors, and friends who will become the pacers, aid stations, and support crews of the spiritual life. We need communities that accompany people through the entire spiritual journey, helping them encounter Christ, embrace conversion and discipleship, discover their charisms, discern their unique callings, step boldly into mission, and persevere through the inevitable trials and setbacks that accompany every great work of God.
The ecclesial Leadville Effect is at the heart of the Generation of Saints Initiative. Its purpose is not simply to form individual disciples, but to foster entire communities capable of becoming, calling forth, supporting, and sustaining apostles. The goal is nothing less than creating the conditions in which ordinary Catholics can respond fully to God's call and become the saints they were created to be.
Because a Generation of Saints never runs alone.
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