13 days to 100km

 

• Hotel – Some small town: √
• Fuel – Tailwind: √
• Crew – Katrina!: √
• Pack – Salomon 12L √
• Start time and date – April 8, 6:00am
• Excitement: √
• Dog-sitters – Thanks Mom and Dad!: √

Shoes – A little nervous to admit, but….not sure! I am two weeks out and heading into taper and I am still undecided on what shoes I will start in and what shoes I will place for myself in drop bags along the way. I typically have put all of my trust in my Nike Terra Kigers, however my most recent pair has been causing some bruising on the tops of my feet for some reason. I might have bought a dud-pair, since the last 3 pairs have been my favourite trail runners to date. So, indecisiveness ensues, I will either go and find another pair of Terra Kigers and hope they are as good as the rest, or I will try sometimes new over the coming taper runs.  They say don’t try new things on race day, but I will likely switch shoes once along the way anyways, so we will see! 

Cut offs and Aid Stations – Over the next week I will be writing out the distances between aid stations, time between each, and fuel/hydration needs between aid stations so I know what to carry for each distance and to make sure I have a rough idea of how long it will take me to get to each aid station (with elevation etc.).

Drop Bags – This race allows for many drop bags. Thankfully I have Katrina crewing for me anyways, but I will still use a ew drop bags, just incase my driving directions or time estimates are way off and I send her on a wild goose (–oo hey great winery btw!) chase. My drop bags will likely carry a few random items, fuel refills (with pre portioned tailwind, extra chews or gels incase I want them, clean socks, gloves etc.) just incase I decide to pamper myself along the way and put clean socks on or something. I will also keep my watch and favourite portable charger (Ember Power Light- Black Diamond) , because my watch won’t make it the whole time and I really want to be able to log the run.

My pack: I will carry my 12L Salomon vest with roughly 1L of water on me. I will also start with my headlamp and realistically a buff and gloves that may get dropped at a drop bag along the way. I plan to keep my one man first aid kit on me, because its filled with blister care equipment, just incase. And of course, my starting fuel, some pre-portioned tail wind and trail butter, a recent and delicious addition. If I do not have it on (but let’s be realistic..) I will also have my Arcteryx Norvan SL jacket with me at all times. Even if I don’t stay entirely dry it acts as a great extra layer through chilly weather and can be worn under or over my pack, for easy layering changes. Lastly, I always carry Body Glide and  chapstick.

So needless to say there is a bit of planning to do still, most important will be to figure out what is going to be on my feet. Apart from the shoe dilemma and the overall short “training” block I have had, my planning is fairly on track with my usual process! I am really looking forward to all of the waterfalls and seeing what this 100km thing is all about!

Now, if the snow could melt from the course and if the downed trees happen to be cleared that would be fantastic! To any RD’s , Runners or Volunteers heading out to work on the course before the race, THANK YOU!