Packing Blunders

I’ve made at least 200 trips to various races.  It only takes me a few minutes to make a packing list for any trip.  I can also pack fairly quickly.  I can throw most things together in about 10 minutes.  With so much practice packing for races, you might think I always have what I need.  You’d be wrong.  Over the years, I’ve made some serious packing blunders.  So far, I’ve been able to overcome most of them.  Here are some of my worst mistakes.

Shoes

What’s the last piece of running gear you’d want to forget?  Shoes!  You can replace just about anything else, but what would you do if you didn’t have your running shoes?  I found out in 1992, when I arrived in Duluth for Grandma’s Marathon.  When I unpacked the car, I discovered I had left my running shoes at home.  I remembered to pack them.  I just didn’t get all the bags loaded into the car.

We were staying with my sister Betty.  There wasn’t time to drive home to retrieve my shoes, but Betty took us to a mall that had a running store.  They carried my model of shoes, but they didn’t have my size.  I had to buy a pair of shoes that was a half size too big.

I had a copy of Galloway’s Book on Running with me.  There’s a section that illustrates various lacing methods.  I found a lacing method for keeping your heal snug in shoes that are too large.  It worked.  I had extra room in the toe box, but my heels stayed in place.

You’re not supposed to run a race in new pairs of shoes, but I didn’t have any problems.  I set a PR that day.  I didn’t even have any blisters.  Knowing how to adjust my laces kept a packing blunder from turning in a race day disaster.

Shorts

How can you forget to pack something as basic as running shorts?  I’ve learned the hard way that you can’t trust weather forecasts.  The only way to cover all the bases is to pack clothes for everything from cold and wet to hot and humid.  When you’re packing a wide variety of running clothes, it’s easy to omit something and not notice.

In 2013, I went to Michigan for the Ann Arbor Marathon.  After picking up my race packet, I started organizing my race clothes.  I like to do this the day before the race, so I don’t have to look for things in the morning.  I couldn’t find my running shorts.  After going through everything in my suitcase, I finally went back to the expo.  Fortunately, it was just across the street from my hotel.

I couldn’t find any shorts I liked at the expo.  As luck would have it, the expo was inside a shopping mall, the there was a sporting goods store with running shorts.  They weren’t exactly like the shorts I usually run in, but at least they fit.  I ran the race in a new pair of shorts.  Once again, I had a good race.  Taking the time to organize my clothes before the stores closed gave me enough time to overcome another packing error..

T-Shirt

I always have a packing list, so how do I forget to pack things?  In my haste to pack quickly, I often pack a dozen things at once and then cross them all off my picking list.  Sometimes I cross something off my list because I thought I packed it, but I really didn’t.

That’s probably what happened with the shorts in Ann Arbor.  It’s also what happened when I showed up in Utah last year for the Antelope Island Buffalo Run 50K.  When I started organizing my clothes for the race, I discovered I didn’t pack a T-shirt.  Fortunately, I received a suitable T-shirt at packet pickup.  I don’t like to wear a race shirt until I’ve earned it by finishing the race, but I made an exception for this race.

Socks

In 2012, I went to Portland for the Firecracker Quadzilla.  I packed all the clothes I needed to run four marathons.  That included four brand new pairs of socks.  The third race was clear across town from my hotel.  I drove to the race wearing my street shoes.  I changed into running shoes after I got there.

I had the right shoes, but I forgot to grab a pair of socks.  The socks I was wearing were my everyday socks.  The running socks were back at the hotel, and I didn’t have time to go back and get them.  Running in my everyday socks probably would result in bad blisters.  Running without socks would have been worse.  Then my feet would be slipping around in my shoes.  Worse yet, I had another race the next day.  If I developed bad blisters in this race, I’d also have painful feet the next day.

Another runner came to my rescue.  I was able to borrow a pair of socks from Tom Craven.  They fit OK, and I didn’t develop any blisters.  The next day, I remembered to bring my own socks.

Timing Chip

Driving to a race wearing my everyday shoes is something I used to do all the time.  I used to arrive early enough that I could change shoes and socks before the race.  At the Antelope Island Buffalo Run, I got burned.  I discovered that my running shoes weren’t in the car.  My everyday shoes, however, were actually the same model of shoes.  They were somewhat well worn, but in a pinch I could race in them.

I got ready for the race and went to check in.  Then I realized I had another problem.  My timing chip was already attached to the running shoes I left at the hotel.  D’oh!  There wasn’t enough time to go back and get them.  If I tried, I’d get stuck in traffic trying to get back onto the island.

If this was a large race, I’d be screwed.  No chip, no time, no finish.  Fortunately, it was a small enough race that I was able to talk to the race director.  No problem. I wasn’t the first person to forget their chip.  He said to yell “NO CHIP” to the timers when I crossed the finish line.  They recorded my time manually, and I got an official result.

I was supposed to turn in my chip after finishing the race.  I couldn’t do that, because the chip was at the hotel, and it was a significant drive.  The expo was held at a local running store that sponsors the race.  The RD told me I could return the chip there.  It wasn’t far from my hotel, so I stopped by later in the day to return my chip.

Cold Weather Gear

I mentioned that I learned the hard way to pack for any kind of weather.  I learned that lesson at the 1988 St. Louis Marathon.  The weather took an unexpected turn.  A cold front moved through St. Louis the night before the race, bringing cold temperatures and wet snow.  It was the first time I traveled out of state for a race, and I didn’t have any clothes for those conditions.

It was 33 degrees, with snow that melted on contact.  I wore a cotton shirt and cotton gloves that weren’t much help once they got wet.  I had a windbreaker, but it wasn’t waterproof.  I dropped out at the 14 mile mark, when I could no longer move the fingers in my right hand.  Since then, I’ve been less trusting of forecasts and less apt to travel light.  I’d rather bring it and not need it than need it and not have it.

Hot Weather Gear

The opposite extreme happened in 2000 at the Longest Day Marathon in Brookings, SD.  At the time, this race was held in mid-April.  The temperature was hovering right around freezing, with strong winds that made it feel much colder.  During the night, freezing rain coated the streets with ice. That’s OK.  I had ALL the cold weather gear.

Deb and I parked near the start and waited inside the car until it was almost time to start the race.  The other runners also waited in their cars.  Then I saw people gathering near the starting line.  The race director was making an announcement.

I didn’t realize it, but they came very close to cancelling the race.  The RD announced that the start was delayed by two hours.  Then he told us that we were going to run on an indoor track at South Dakota State University.  We went back to the hotel so I could change clothes.

Indoors, the temperature would be 70 degrees.  With over 100 runners on the track, it would keep getting warmer.  Also, the humidity inside the building would climb.  Instead of a cold weather race, it was now a hot weather race.  I had to figure out what to wear.

By dumb luck, I had a singlet.  I was originally planning to wear it on top of a warmer shirt, so I could pin my race bib to it.  I didn’t have shorts.  Again, I got lucky.  Deb had a pair of shorts that she was planning to use as a swim suit.  They were a bit small for me, but I was able to make do.

I had a surprisingly good race.  It probably helped that I was able to find suitable clothes.  I saw other runners who were badly overdressed.  I placed high enough to win a gift certificate at a local runner store.  I used it to buy a pair of tights.  I don’t know how many times I wore those tights in cold weather races, but it was quite a few.

Watch

I’ve never actually forgotten my watch, but in 1999 my watch battery died just before the start of the Chicago Marathon.  Ten minutes before the race, my watch was working fine.  A few minutes later, it went blank.

Before chip timing, your official time always included the time it took to reach the starting line after the gun went off.  In a large race, that could be a few minutes.  I always started my watch as
I crossed the line, so I would know my “real” time.  As luck would have it, this was the first race I did that used chip timing.  My official time was my “real” time.

I like to check my watch every mile and adjust my pace.  In Chicago, I was able to check my pace my reading the large digital clocks.  There was one above the starting line, so I knew how much time elapsed by the time I crossed the line.  They had clocks at every mile, so I had no trouble checking my pace.  They also had them every 5K.  Finally, they had clocks at the halfway mark, the finish line, and one mile to go.  In all, there were 38 digital clocks on that course.

Water Bottle

In trail races, you usually need to carry a bottle or two to have enough fluids to make it from one aid station to the next.  Some road races also expect runners to carry a bottle.  One time I forgot to bring one and didn’t realize it until the morning of the race.  The website said the aid stations wouldn’t have cups, so I was concerned.

When I arrived at the start, I asked the RD.  They actually had a few cups at the aid stations. They just didn’t have enough for everyone.  I couldn’t drink between aid stations, but at least I could drink occasionally.  That was enough.

It’s better to be lucky than to be good.

With the exception of the St. Louis Marathon, I’ve been able to overcome my packing blunders.  Sometimes I had help from friends.  Other times I just got lucky.  As they say, “It’s better to be lucky than to be good.”

It helps that I usually organize my gear the day before the race.  There are few things that can’t be replaced, but you might need to get to a store while it’s still open.

In May, the airline lost my suitcase while I was traveling to South Africa for the Comrades Marathon.  My bag caught up to me the next day, but I had to prepare for the possibility that I wouldn’t have it in time for the race.  As soon as I realized my bag was lost, I made a mental inventory of what running gear was in the missing bag.  Then I made backup plans.

• Shoes:  My everyday shoes were the same model as my running shoes.  In a pinch, I could wear them for the race, just as I did last year for the Antelope Island Buffalo Run.
• Socks:  I could buy a pair of socks at the expo.
• Shorts:  My friend David offered to lend me a pair, but this is something else I could have bought at the expo.
• Shirt:  I could wear my race T-shirt.
• Hat:  The race rules prohibited wearing any gear with corporate logos.  They provided running hats for everyone.
• Watch:  My everyday watch was a running watch.
• Wrist band:  I like to wear a wrist band under my watch, so it doesn’t get sweaty.  I could make an exception.
• Warm-up clothes.  The starting line was near my hotel, and it was a comfortable morning.  I didn’t need warm clothes before the start. I wanted to check a bag with warm clothes to wear after the race, but I could probably buy some cheap clothes locally.
• Sunglasses:  I like to wear sunglasses to protect my eyes from UV exposure.  My hat had a brim, so I could get by without the sunglasses.
• Sunblock.  I could but this locally.
• Deodorant:  There was a sample in my race packet.
• Fanny pack.  I was injured, so I wanted to carry a compression wrap in a fanny pack.  The wrap was in my carry-on bag, but the fanny pack was in my checked bag.  If I couldn’t find something suitable at the expo, I could probably find something in a store.

You can overcome almost any packing blunder if you discover it in time.  The key is to give yourself enough time to find a replacement.  Take inventory the day before the race, preferably before stores close.

ATY Plan: Footwear, Clothing and Other Gear

This is the last post outlining my race plans for the Across the Years 48-Hour Run.  Today, I discuss footwear, clothing, other gear and travel plans.

Footwear

This is the area where I need the most improvement.  It’s my biggest concern.  The running surface is mostly dirt.  The soil is clay that breaks down into fine particles.  The climate is dry.  Every footstep raises dust, and the dust gets into your shoes.  Last year I didn’t wear gaiters.  That was a HUGE mistake.  In the past, I’ve only needed them to keep gravel and small rocks from getting into the back of my shoes.  I didn’t realize how much dust there was or how bad my blisters would be.

I use double layer socks to prevent blisters.  For a race, I always wear a new pair.  I brought a few new pairs of socks last year, but I only had one pair of shoes.  Once the dust had permeated my shoes, I didn’t see much point in changing socks.  Within a few miles, the socks would pick up dust from the shoes, and I would lose the benefit of wearing a new pair.

This year I’m wearing gaiters.  That should keep dust from entering around my ankles, but the dust can still work its way through the fabric of the shoes.  My worst blisters last year were on the back of my heel and on my big toe.  The gaiters will help with the heel area.  To keep dust out of my toe box, I’m going to try covering the front of my shoes with duct tape.

I’m bringing at least two pairs of shoes.  I may bring three.  I’d bring more shoes, but every pair I wear will probably get ruined.  I’ll also bring multiple pairs of socks.  I’ll start the race in a new pair.  I’ll bring other new socks, but if I change socks frequently, I’ll probably wear used socks, since any socks I wear will have to get tossed.  Once you get dust between the layers, they’re never the same again.

Besides blisters, I have another concern about the dust.  Last year, my shoes and socks picked up dust during the day.  During the night, the dust in my socks mixed with sweat to form a paste.  As it warmed up again the next day, the paste hardened.  My shoes and socks were both stiff.  It was like I was wearing an ankle cast.  This may have contributed to my ankle problems.  At the time, I tried to stop and adjust my shoes.  I couldn’t, because the laces wouldn’t move through the eyelets of me shoes.  The dust caused too much friction.

The gaiters will help keep dust away from my ankles, but some dust will still get through my shoes.  If I ever feel like my socks are getting stiff, I’ll change them.  I ran 52 races this year, and I wore a new pair of socks for each one.  I have no shortage of old running socks.  I plan to bring quite a few pairs.  My unsolved dilemma is that I need to take off my shoes to change socks.  I’d like to change socks frequently, but I’d like to limit my shoe changes.

Clothing

Daytime temperatures will be comfortable.  The last time I checked, the daytime highs were forecast to be 64 degrees on Tuesday and 61 degrees on Wednesday.  It’ll be warm enough to wear shorts and short sleeves, but I won’t have to worry about getting too hot.  Because I’m taking frequent walking breaks, those temperatures will feel much cooler than they would if I was running the whole time.

The temperature drops significantly during the night.  Last year, it got down into the low 30s.  I saw frost in the grass where sprinklers had been running earlier. This year, the overnight low for the first night is forecast to be 42.  The next night it will get down to 39.  After the sun goes down, I’ll need to add extra layers.

I’ll have a variety of different warm layers that I can add during the night.  They’ll include warmer shirts, a wind shirt and a couple of different jackets.  I’ll also have various hats and gloves.

I’m hoping I can get by with a warm hat, gloves, and extra layers on top.  I can add or remove those layers quickly.  Last year, I changed into tights during the night.  The problem with tights is that you have to take off your shoes to put them on.  You also have to take off your shoes to remove the tights when it warms up again.  Once dust gets into my shoelaces, changing shoes will get more difficult.  If I’m changing shoes and/or socks anyway, I’ll be more apt to wear tights at night.  If I find it’s too difficult to get my shoes on and off, I’ll go without tights for the first night.  If I wear enough layers on top, I can probably get by with cold legs – provided I’m doing enough running to stay warm.

During the second night, I may be reduced to walking.  If that happens, I’ll need to wear something warm on my legs.  Changing into tights the second night isn’t as bad, because I’ll only need one shoe change.  I won’t need to take off the tights until after the race.

Besides tights, I’ll have a pair of Zubaz and these all-weather pants that I just bought.  I saw these when I went to Running Room to stock up on GU packets.

For years, I’ve used Zubaz as warm-ups, because I can pull them on or take them off without removing my shoes.  I’ve never tried to run wearing Zubaz, but I’m pretty sure they’d be OK for walking.  My new pants will also make good warm-ups, and they give me another option for the second night, if I’m mostly walking.  For a long time, I’ve wanted a pair of warm-up pants that I could wear in wet conditions.  They have wide ankles with zippers, so I should be able to get them on and off without taking my shoes off.

Other Gear

For $25 dollars, I was able to rent a tent.  The tents will be set up before I arrive.  When I check in for the race, I’ll get a name plate that I can attach to a tent with Velcro.  Then I’ll pick out a vacant tent.  I‘ll try to find one as close to the course as possible, so a trip to the tent won’t take too long.  I can store all my gear in my tent and have a place to change clothes.

I’ll have a sleeping bag in my tent, in case I need to take a nap.  I could have rented one, but I’m just bringing one from home.

I won’t be traveling light for this trip.  Besides shoes and running clothes, I’ll bring compression wraps, ace bandages, heel lifts, and various items for coping with injuries.  I’ll also have a flashlight, a folding chair, and a large cafeteria tray.  I’ve found the tray to be useful if I need to put my feet on a clean dry surface.

Basically, I’m bringing everything but the kitchen sink.  If I could, I’d bring that too, so I could wash the dirt out of my shoes.  Delta will let me check up to three bags for free.  I will.  I’ll need one just for my sleeping bag.  I’ll also have a carry-on bag and a computer bag.

Travel Plans

Airfares can get expensive around the holidays.  This is the fifth consecutive year that I’m doing a race around New Years.  It’s also the fifth consecutive year that I booked my flights with frequent flier miles.  Although the race ends on New Year’s Day, I won’t fly home until January 3.  After going two nights without sleep, I’ll need more than one night to catch up.

There are hotels close to Camelback Ranch, but they tend to be more expensive than hotels in Phoenix.  Last year I stayed in Phoenix to save money.  This year, I opted for a hotel that was closer to the race.  I plan to keep my room for the five nights I’m in town, even though I’ll be running overnight for two of those nights.  I saved my hotel points to I could get a free stay.  I was able to get five nights for the same number of points as four nights.  That make me feel better about keeping a room that I’m not always using.

I have three reasons for not checking out of the hotel while I’m running.  First, I don’t want to leave my valuables in a parked car for 48 hours.  Second, after the race, I’ll be REALLY tired.  I won’t have time to wait until a new room is ready.  I’ll want to clean up and get to sleep as soon as I can.  Finally, I was glad I still had a room last year when I returned from the race a day sooner than I expected.  It would have added insult to injury if I had no room and no reservation until the next day.

ATY Plans: Nutrition and Pain Management

This post is a continuation of my race plans for the Across the Years 48-Hour Run.  Today, I’m focusing on nutrition and pain management.  I’m breaking nutrition into three components: fluids, electrolytes and food.  All three are largely unchanged from last year, as I didn’t have any problems in these areas.

Fluids

My first several ultras were all in hot weather, so I was hard pressed to drink enough fluids to stay hydrated.  I won’t have that problem in this race.  The climate is dry, but temperatures will be cool enough that I won’t sweat excessively.  Even if I only drink a few ounces at a time, I probably won’t need to drink every lap.  I have to be just as concerned about overhydration as underhydration.

One way to know if I’m drinking the right amount is to pay attention to how often I stop to pee.  If I go for hours without needing to pee, I’m not drinking enough.  If I’m in the bathroom every hour, I’m drinking too much.  I figure every two hours is about right.  This isn’t very scientific, but it’s easy to make adjustments.  If it seems like I’m not drinking enough, I’ll drink every lap until I catch up.  If it seems like I’m drinking too much, I’ll drink less frequently.  Having an aid station every 1.0498 miles gives me some margin for error.

Electrolytes

As I sweat, I’ll lose electrolytes.  An easy way to replace them is to take electrolyte capsules.  In warmer weather, I take one per hour.  In really hot weather, I sometimes take them every 30 minutes.  Last year, I took them every two hours.  That seemed to work out OK.  If I’m eating a lot of salty foods, I may take them less frequently – particularly at night, when I won’t be sweating as much.

Food

I’m hoping to run 200 miles.  The average runner burns 100 calories per mile.  I’m lighter than the average runner, so I probably only burn about 80 calories per mile.  Still, that’s about 16,000 calories.  My muscles can only store enough glycogen to last about 20 miles.  That’s 1,600 calories.  The rest either has to come from stored fat or from food I eat during the race.  One pound of fat can supply 3,300 calories, but it takes a long time to mobilize those calories.  The more I can eat, the less likely I’ll run out of glycogen.  I need to take in as many calories during the race as my digestive system can handle.  Ideally, most of it should either be sugars, or foods that convert quickly into sugar.  Also, not all sugars are the same.  Glucose can be converted quickly into glycogen.  Fructose can’t.

The easiest eat to get calories is from the fluids I’m drinking.  For that reason, I favor sport drinks over water.  I won’t need as much fluid as I would on a hot day, so I can’t

rely on getting most of my calories from fluids.  I’ll get what calories I can this way, but it’s only a start.

The next easiest way to get calories is through energy gels.  This is also an easy way to get calories in the form of glucose or glucose polymers.  Unfortunately, there’s a limit to how often I can eat them.  I’ve tried to take gels once an hour, and I’ve found that after about 10-12 hours, it gets difficult.  I feel like I’m filled to the brim with gels.  Last year, I was taking them every two hours.  That worked OK.

I plan to bring enough GU packets to take them every two hours.  I’ll also bring a couple of extras.  I bought a variety of flavors, so I won’t get sick of the taste.  Some flavors have caffeine.  Others don’t.  I’ll have some of each.  I want to be able to take caffeine when I’m feeling tired, but I don’t want to get too much caffeine.  Finally, about a third of my GU packets will have amino acids, to help prevent catabolism of muscle tissue.

The rest of my calories will have to come from solid food.  About once an hour, when I’m stopping at the aid station to get something to drink, I’ll also get something to eat.  They’ll have standard easy-to-digest foods like PBJs and potato wedges.  They’ll also have more substantial foods.  Last year, in addition to the PBJs and potatoes, I sampled turkey & cheese sandwiches, chili, pumpkin pie, bean burritos, pasta, cheese enchiladas, a red chili burrito, a fruit smoothie, a pickle spear and an egg burrito.  Nothing gave me GI problems.  Just in case, I’ll have some crystallized ginger, which helps with nausea.

I have one other concern about food or beverages.  At midnight on New Year’s Eve, they’ll have champagne for a toast.  Normally, I wouldn’t think twice about it, but that’s when I’ll be fighting to stay awake.  Will a small glass of champagne tip me over?  Stay tuned.

Pain Management

I used to take ibuprofen in the second half of a 24-hour run.  Now I’m much more conservative about NSAIDs.  I don’t plan to take any during the race.  I’ll bring some ibuprofen, but mostly so I have the option of taking it after the race to take the edge off the soreness so I can sleep.

Last year I had painful blisters after 12 hours.  It wasn’t easy to live with the pain, but I was able to do it.  I’m pretty good at tuning out the pain from blisters.  I’ll also have increasingly sore muscles.  That’s a bigger problem.  I’ve found that sore quads can make it difficult to start running again after a walking break.

Endorphins are your body’s natural painkillers.  Sometimes you don’t even realize how much pain you’re in until you take a break.  When you stop exerting yourself, you stop producing endorphins.  Pain that was previously masked suddenly becomes noticeable.  It also works in reverse.  If you start exerting yourself harder, you produce more endorphins.  By working harder, you can make the pain melt away.  This only works, however, if you can sustain the effort.  Late in the race, I’ll have to balance my desire to conserve energy with my desire to manage the pain.