which means-deciding-what it is you want to do, reaching for your goals, and pushing to meet each step towards them.
This also means being kind to yourself along the way, not judging yourself too harshly, and gathering positive things out of each experience to keep you going and keep you happy.
My happiness stems from being where
the birds sing and the wind whistles
around the rocks and through the trees.
Where there is a very real sense of
accomplishing something new and taking
each breath with its new scent as a
permanent stamp onto your memory.
This past year I ran several of my "first"
ultramarathons. It also transpired to an
end of the year "cap" with being conned
(the night before and 3 beers later)
into my first 12Hour race.
The Sageburner 50k was the beginning
of something beautiful between myself
and these events. Held just outside of
Gunnison, this race was put on by
Western States College to raise money
for their Distance Project (a research fund
to study athletes, gear, and training).
Double Bonus.
In such a beautiful and scenic place, it's
not a bad idea to start your first epic run
in a place that has a special meaning to you.
In picking your new ventures, you should
pick one that can create an emotional or visual
experience or tie to your soul.
Just up the road from Gunnison, Crested Butte
holds a wonderful memory in my mind
as I raced there in college (nordic skiing)
season after season to play in the snow.
Years later, it is fun to visit all these old
college romping grounds but in a different
text as I head a different direction, without
gloves or hat, to run amid cacti, sand, and sun.
The first lesson of the year was that the hotter
the weather meant that good looks were even more unlikely.
Most runners were choosing to run in short sleeve shirts,
a few were in almost nothing, and a few were bundled up
like they were headed on an arctic expedition. The things I learned quite quickly are as follows:
- Sunvisors are a great way to create a lava flow of damage on your scalp. Hence the dorky hats that they all wear...I'm now sold.
- Longsleeves are optimal for decreased water loss (High meadow GoLite long sleeve is "barely there")
- Salt pills are a must. If you cramp, you need salt pills (HammerGel Enduralytes are my favorites).
- In the mountains,bring armwarmers that you can chuck.
- Wear a fuelbelt (Nathan is my favorite)
I opted for my whisper light run top.
Purchased on the sample rack for a mere 15 dollars,
it was so thin that I felt like I was running naked
(thank god that wasn't the case) and it was a light color
so that it reflected the sun's rays. The main reason why
I wore it was to keep my water loss at a minimum as I
learned at various camps that running in bare skin increases
the loss of your body's water as you loose it quicker without
the shirt to hold it against your skin. So a little shirt can go
a long way towards keeping you hydrated as well
(and hopefully sunburn free)
I learned why runners wear those ridiculous hats...
you know, the flimsy ones with just a little netting
that look like they are just for show. I have always
ran in a visor, just because I have short hair and it
gets in my face AND I like not having to worry about
sun damage on my face.
I noticed last summer that running here in Boulder
with the sunvisor and sunglasses as protection still
did not protect my eyebrows from bleaching out.
This is rather scary as they seem to be covered but
obviously light comes in at all angles not just from
straight up. Anyhow, I got done with the run and my
hair felt funny. The next day I found a huge burn
along the top of my head. Point made.
So now you know, SPF 800 on the scalp or just wear a hat.
(On a side note, I was pouring water on my head
and though the waterbottle was quite warm, it felt
like it was 40 degrees once it hit my oh-so-thankful skin...
so that might have been a part of it too.
More info to come on these new learnings.
Don't forget to follow my practice on Twitter
at @lifesportchiro or me at @Missrunnsalot
Happy Trails!
