50 for 50

[yellow]

OK, I'm going to start this now so that I have plenty of time to gather my 50 wishes/thoughts/nuggets of goodness.

I need a wish for each mile for my event June 4 (http://squawpeak50.com/sqw_mstr.htm). Of course, I will take more than 50 (it's actually closer to 51 miles anyway)!

My plan is to put them all on a piece of paper and stuff it in my Nathan. Yes, these 50 wishes will go all the way with me.

Go! :D

[lph]

I wish for more women to be like you!

[Grog]

Cool!

Maybe "world peace"? ;)

[azfiddle]

I don't run, but my husband has done four organized 50 mile runs and 5 or 6 on his own. He had one DNF and one end of run super bonk, and has used those experiences to figure out what works for him. He had his most successful run this spring in the Old Pueblo 50, and ended the run feeling really great. In fact the organizers told him his was the best finish they had seen!

I'm sure his advice would be:

Eat, stay hydrated and keep your electrolytes up! Eat 200-300 calories per hour and drink based on your sweat rate. Don't push yourself and rest/walk when you need to.

Good luck- and my wish/hope is: I hope you don't lose too many toenails!;)

[yellow]

OK, so that's 3. Only 47 to go. I can always make my own list, but my thought/hope is that by getting wishes from others that running the 50 miles will have some other purpose than...just running 50 miles.

I will add one based on conversation with friends last night over beer:

Tolerance

:)

[Veronica]

I've been trying to think of a really good wish, something not too shallow or obvious. Something that could really happen.

I think I'd wish for another day like this.

http://tandemhearts.smugmug.com/Bicycle-Rides/Placerville/08-snowy-group/1158239049_qM3zh-M.jpg


Veronica

[yellow]

Thanks, V. That is AWESOME. :D

[snapdragen]

It's never too late to have a happy childhood. (with thanks to Tom Robbins) :D

[colby]

I would go with "I can do this" but that's not a wish. ;)

I wish for a smile.

(Is that cheating? ;))

[salsabike]

That little kids who get seriously ill get better! Just because I really like little kids and want them to get to have fun.

[maillotpois]

I wish you cool mild breezes and no blisters!!!

[Grog]

What about:

"I want to be able to do this as many more times as I want. "

[SadieKate]

I wish you miles of happy thoughts in the moment.

I wish for you to find just the right running companions when you need them and solitude when you need it.

I wish for you to have a soundtrack of babbling brooks and bird songs.

I wish for you only gentle bounces if there are unplanned up close encounters with trail obSTACKles.

I wish for an awesome fishing trip with you this summer.

~SK

*PS - I can ask that big guy at the right hand end of the photo for a list of 50 whines.

[indigoiis]

"So thankful to be here!" <--- I wish this feeling for you, about mile 28.

[OakLeaf]

I didn't remember this one on my own, someone posted it on FB. And it's three wishes. But here:

"I wish we could all have good luck, all the time! I wish we had wings! I wish rain water was beer!"
-- Robert Bolt (Steward, A Man for All Seasons)

[malkin]

I wish we could all be kind to each other and ourselves.

[jobob]

Ack, too much pressure! :eek:

OK, I wish for good times with good friends and good beer.

That should cover it.

[malkin]

OK, I wish for good times with good friends and good beer.


That's what world peace and kindness would look like!

[katluvr]

I wish you joy in your run.

I wish "I" could do what you are doing!

I wish EVERYONE would enjoy being active and outdoors.

I wish children would play outside more.

I wish I had started my active life sooner.

I, too, wish for good friend, food and BEER (or wine) and you are right that would = world peace!

Thanks for making me stop & think & be thankful.

Good luck!

K

[limewave]

Totally selfish, but . . .

I wish for a new bike!

[Blueberry]

That I might have the privilege of meeting in person some of the wonderful women here who have been inspirations to me:) And that I be able to live by V's TagLine:D:D

[Veronica]

I wish I could always live by my tagline. Really, I don't know where that entire package of red licorice went. :eek:

Veronica

[jobob]

Totally selfish, but . . .

I wish for a new bike!

That's not selfish, it's normal!

[yellow]

Thanks to everyone who contributed. I still have quite a few to go, but I have other sources :)

Over the weekend I came up with two mantras, neither of which is original. The first is footsteps, breathing courtesy of Diane VanDeren and the second is DFL>DNF>DNS (which I know is not original but I can't pinpoint exactly when I saw it first).

The RD changed the course last week because we have so much snow in the high country. The run is still 50 miles and still has about 12,000' of climbing but minimal running on snow and no creek crossings (there were 3 sizeable ones on the old course). Much of it will be at lower elevation, which is spooking me a bit because I have not trained in anything that remotely resembles warm temperatures. Hopefully it won't get above the low 70s. :rolleyes:

My pacers have all dropped for one reason or another. Starting to build the 14 hour playlist!

[Bike Chick]

I can't imagine a 14 hour playlist!

Best of luck to you, yellow. Have a great time and when it starts hurting, just make yourself smile and for some reason, it doesn't hurt as bad.;)

Be sure to give us a full report.

[yellow]

Well, even with some prodding I still didn't quite get 50. Coming up with the remainder will give me something to think about while I am running.

Printed out and stowed in pack. :)

[Veronica]

That's very cool Sue! Good luck, have fun, take pictures, kick *** :) and tell us all about it!

Veronica

[Blueberry]

You rock!!! Best of luck to you:)

[spindizzy]

I wish I could always live by my tagline. Really, I don't know where that entire package of red licorice went. :eek:

Veronica

You are hilarious!! :D:D:D

[Red Rock]

Hope you are having a good/great race today. Enjoy the views.

Red Rock

[SadieKate]

Our wishes must have worked.

Yellow just finished a few minutes ago. 13 hrs, 5 mins and 33 secs.

I think there was only a measly 12,000 ft of climbing.

[OakLeaf]

Woohoo! Way to go Yellow.

[snapdragen]

When I grow up I want to be yellow..... :)

[yellow]

Well, I had to invoke the DFL>DNF several times.

I am happy I finished but bummed about what happened between miles 23 and 52 (yes, 52).

It was a pretty good day weather-wise, but the heat did zap a lot of folks. I had moments of near-meltdown for other reasons.

I felt great going out. I was in a pack that missed a turn and by the time we figured it out and got back on course, we all did an extra 2 miles. So it was the SP52.

Anyhow, in a nutshell, body felt good, running was smooth, nutrition was great but at about mile 22ish something happened to my lower leg/foot. It started as weakness/lower leg wanting to collapse on the downhills and eventually became pain in the lower leg (anterior) and top of foot/ankle. For a while I could still run the flats and the mile uphills but after about mile 40 that also became too painful. So I walked the last 12 miles, which included a big climb I probably would have walked a lot of anyway. Because what goes up must come down, the drop off the pass was fairly excruciating. I ended up walking down a lot of the steep hills backwards. My pacer found me a walking stick, which helped tremendously. I almost dropped at the last aid station. One of the guys working the station is a running acquaintance of mine and he urged me to finish. "You'll be kicking yourself at about 6 o'clock if you don't. Walk. It's not that far." He was right.

You never know what you'll be dealt. I wasn't happy with my hand but at least it wasn't a total loser. I finished 52 miles, albeit with lots of help from two awesome pacers. I figure the detour + foot problems cost me probably an hour and a half. But since not detouring and not having a wonky foot were not in the cards, guess it's a moot point.

Aside from my foot, the rest of me feels pretty good. I woke up at 3 am absolutely starving, but I think that's justifiable. :rolleyes:

[yellow]

Here's a picture one of my pacers took. This is near the top of the last climb, at about 44 miles. At least I am still upright! This is high enough elev that the trees still don't have their leaves!

[OakLeaf]

Wow, way to push through Yellow! You're my idol. :D

Hope your foot feels better ASAP.

[Veronica]

Wow! That's beautiful. Hope you feel better soon!

Veronica

[maillotpois]

Wow - amazing. What a thing to push through thy awful leg stuff. Good for you for making the best of a bad change in circumstance and finishing the bugger! You are a woman of steel!

[Alex]

Yellow! Awesome job! Congratulations on winning second place among the Master's Females!

I didn't see this thread until today and didn't know you would be out there. DH did the race as well, but finished well after you. I didn't even show up to cheer him in until 40 minutes after you were done, and let's just say the poodles and I had time to burn waiting at the park for him. At least it was a nice place to wait. :)

This was the fifth time he's done this race. He likes the original course better than yesterday's but, like you, was glad it wasn't cancelled.

I hope you're feeling well today and that the foot/leg issue is a thing of the past.

[limewave]

Wow Wow WoW! Amazing job! Congrats on toughing it out.

[azfiddle]

Congratulations! Sounds like some good self-motivation to coax yourself through to the end. I hope the leg is feeling better now.