Insight into the process of Sam's mind!

Here's what I'm thinking. Both silly and reasonable reasons listed!

Reasons not to do Whistlestop:
~ Wild Duluth (my first ultra) is one week later, recovery time might be an issue
~ My knee is grumpy still and I haven't figured out the exact reasons. It seems like it likes roads a lot less so is the Whistlestop surface considered road or trail by my knee? It was okay on that long run I did on the same surface until we got back to pavement. Good because perhaps the race is then okay for my knee. Bad because the last mile or so of the race is sudden pavement.
~ I feel as though I've hardly done anything long on roads (I've done lots of long on trails and some long on roads)
~ It's not as though I can really afford money-wise to fly to and run both Boston AND the Key West Ragnar only months apart. I haven't even figured out how I'm paying for Ragnar, yet.
~ How do I pace Hawk's Ridge (NMTC fall series race) the Wednesday before when I need to both taper and race to beat Aga?
~ I might as well miss another year of Boston since this year will be the yellow shirts again :)

Reasons to do Whistlestop:
~ I'd like another shot at 3:35 this year
~ I'd love to go to Boston with a group of friends
~ I want to do a marathon and then an ultra back to back just to do it - I've been planning to do it for several months, now, and it feels weird and sort like wussing out to only do Wild Duluth, now
~ Kyle will come watch
~ I know lots of people at Whistlestop so it'll be fun

I have someone to legally buy my Whistlestop entry, so it's not as though I'd be eating the registration. In fact, I think had I not had someone buy it, then I would just run it to not have to eat it. Maybe that's my answer? But I'd love to do well at Wild Duluth and running a hard marathon the week before is not the best way to do that. However, it's not as though I'm going to place so I might as well just have fun for my first one and have a goal to beat next time around, right?

Regardless, I need to get my decision made soon. I'm going to say by tomorrow so that I can tell the person who's interested in buying my registration if she can have it or not. Registration is still open, so she'll be able to get in regardless of my decision, she'd just get it cheaper from me.