It's becoming clearer now . . .

If there was any doubt to my stupidity before . . . I believe I have laid that to rest!  So much data . . . all pointing to the same conclusion!  Me finishing a 100 miles is just plain stupid.

I chose to do my weekend's long run on Sunday.  Saturday was a nice day in eastern NC, but on Sunday we had two separate 'frog-choker' storms.  The first hit about 10 am and lasted an hour or so.  The second was much stronger, started about 1 pm and lasted maybe  1 1/2 hours . . . but much, much more rain!

Temps were nice, but my feet were wet all day long!  At one point I even convinced myself it was 'fun' splashing through the puddles  . . . but after maybe 10+ miles of splashing, it just got to be a little old.  Even for someone as mentally challenged as me!

For this run I had no route in mind at all!  It was fun for me!  Just heading out running with no preconceived notion of a route!  Just run (okay . . . run and walk!) and turn anywhere I decide.  Made for an interesting route.  I really did love that!  All I needed to do was to end up at my car when I was done!

I carried my Nathan backpack with fluids, gels, a candy bar, some hygiene items, my cell phone and my debit card!  By running in Rocky Mount instead at Gaston Lake, I was never too far from a store!  Just duck in (no pun intended!) and get what I needed!  Probably not a time efficient approach, but it worked . . . and I sure can't do that at the lake!

Arthur Bennett joined me for the first 8 miles.  Really enjoyed catching up with Arthur again.  Nice to have someone to talk with . . . a pleasure I rarely ever get!

I used this run to experiment with some possible equipment changes I'm considering:

• Tried some new socks (Drymax Max Protection).  No blisters even with the heavy rains . . . but I rarely get blisters anyway.  I liked the socks.
• Used SportShield rather than Bodyglide.  Hard to tell on this one.  I did get some chafing, but with all the rain, I likely would have chafed with Bodyglide or anything else.  Still . . . the jury is still out on this one.
• Desitin is FANTASTIC!  If you don't understand the problem . . . well . . . talk to me about it sometime.  But believe me that this is the solution!!
• I HATE the new Mizumo Wave Rider 14.  They just MUST have changed something besides the colors!  Just seems stiffer or something somehow.  Still, no blisters or foot problems so I guess I shouldn't complain much.  But I'm going to find some Wave Rider 13s and buy several pairs!

In spite of the rain, my 35.5 miles went fairly well, all things considered.  I was definitely tired at the end, but I did feel like I could have continued to 40-50 miles if needed.  My pace really slowed near the end.  Overall, I averaged a 16:00 minute per mile pace including all stops.  But the last 5 miles (except the last mile) were really slow.

When you talk about averages I remember what my first boss told me, "Once my left foot was in a bucket of ice and my right foot was in a bucket of boiling water . . . on the average I felt pretty good!"

And that's the way it was for me yesterday . . . up until about 25 miles I did okay but then started to slow and I walked pretty much from 30 to 34.5.  The last mile I did pick it up and finished relatively strong for me,

So . . . with this as my long run, I can imagine completing 5 Umstead laps (62 1/2 miles) before totally dying.  But a full 8 laps?  To hell with the 30 hour time limit, I don't see how I can keep going that far at all!  It's just plain stupid to think I have a chance to actually do this.

But I guess the real challenge at least for me is to just see how far I can get!

I loved Tom Herbst's comment on my last blog entry:


"Wrong frame of mind. Your goal is to see how many cheeseburger halves you can eat, how many times you can get passed by Serge (or Jonathan Savage, or whoever), how many times you can pee on a loop - ANYTHING but the mileage. That way lies doom......."

Tom . . . I'm listening!