Harder than Advertised

Today was 44 km, or a bit above 27 miles. Everyone was talking about how much easier this stage was going to be, even though a bit long

Stage 3 was exactly as described: the hardest terrain I have ever carried myself over. There was miles of crust that you couldn

Oh man, this was a hard day!! 27.6 miles with magnificent scenery and some of the hardest terrain I have run on. The seemingly endless freezing river crossings, the crusty salt, the epic amounts of sand, and the boulders were all huge challenges. Overall I felt great, until the last 10 k. I walked a lot of that, through the heat and over the crust. I found I could walk as fast as most people were shuffling, so I just did that. Finished third out of the people in my tent, which is very awesome for landing the best tent spot!! Tomorrow is reportedly the hardest day, and so I will probably take it easy. I finished I think in 11^thor 12^thtoday! Huge surprise considering I am not really interested in competing. No blisters, no chafes, but sore shoulders. So far, so good. I love this!!!!

I just finished stage 1. I LOVE my pack. I have been run-commting to work with it for about 8 months, so I knew it and its limitations well. The good parts of the pack are its durability, the room, and the organization of the pockets. Downsides I feel are its weight, the straps can be less thn comfortable after 20 miles with 20 pounds -

Stage 1 complete!

Well, that was awesome!! I had so much fun out there, despite the enormous pack. I found that after a few miles my legs and hips relaxed enough to run consistently, and I felt great. The end was really really hot, but since there was only about 5 miles in the high temps it wasn

Day -1

Just arrived at the first camp a couple hours ago and trying to sort out what the heck I am doing. Everyone seems to be in the same boat, even the veterans. Starting to get a little chilly, now, as the sun goes down and the wind comes up. Its going to be a rough nights sleep, I think. We are all antsy to get running, tired of the waiting.

More tomorrow!

The mandatory equipment list is complete.

Almost all of my equipment has been thoroughly tested.

Still working on food, but only minor mods at this point.

After reading several blogs, recounts and having discussions with extremely experienced fast packers and backpackers, I have decided on a strategy for food. The post race includes:

Mountain House dehydrated food as well as Instant mashed potatoes and instant stuffing. This, combined with nuts and nut butters including Pocket Fuel, Trail Butter, and other things like jerky seem to be a good mix with some savory flavors and dense calories.

The mornings will include Pro Bars, Bonk Breaker bars, and tortillas with nut butter, as well as nuts.

During the race I will use:

Vfuel Endurabce Gels, GU, Sport beans, and possibly some other things thrown in. I also use Hammer Endurolytes Extreme for electrolytes.

I look forward next week to a long run overnight camping session with my pack to try out a few remaining pieces of equipment. Should be hot here in the California Bay area, and when I run up in the hills I expect a realistic desert running experience.

Shoes are still the Pearl Izumi Trail E-Motion M2 v2

Calf sleeves by Salomon

Pack by Deuter

Sleeping bag by Western Mountaineering

I changed something this week. I changed my employment situation. I gave two week notice to leave my job here in Seattle, which surprised everyone, and now I am off to a new adventure in the San Francisco bay area. We shall see where I land.
In the meantime, I am increasing my mileage quite a bit in anticipation of my first 100 miler at the end of September. Its amazing how my body is responding positively. Mentally I feel ready, physically I have no idea what to expect!!!
I am learning that its tough to figure out how to train for these events. Everyone does it differently, and its very difficult to understand what to try and what is not going to work for me. There is only one way to find out!