Run Luau Run

So yesterday my buddy JB & I ran 31 miles (or for you metric folk – 50K).  It wasn’t a race; it was just a plain old long, slow, distance training run.  It was the second farthest I have ever run in my life (the farthest to date being the Vermont 50).  Unlike the Vermont 50, there was no walking yesterday, just a relentless push forward with only two brief stops to grab a PB&J and refill the water bottles at our cars at miles 12.5 and 20.5.  Our goal had been to finish close to the 5 hour mark.  We ended up hitting 31 miles in 4:48:07 for an average overall pace of 9:17 per mile.

So what did we learn from this run?  In no particular order:

1. Slow down – 8:00 miles are too fast.
2. Slow down some more – so are 8:30 miles.
3. And then slow down even more – even 9:17’s we averaged are too fast if we’re going to successfully run 100 miles.
4. LSD is much more enjoyable with a friend – the run, not the drug.
5. Chatting makes the miles go by quickly
6. …but there’s nothing wrong with running in silence for a mile here and there.
7. Windy, twisty, turny paths are mentally a lot easier to deal with than long straight ones that end in a point on the horizon.
8. If you go downhill, eventually you will have to go uphill
9. Uphills, no matter how gentle the slope, still hurt after 27 miles
10. I must practice eating while running – both PB&J’s hit the belly like a lead ball.
11. Honey water works – as least at the 31 mile distance.
12. So does pickle juice – not even a hint of a leg cramp yesterday.
13. My Mophie packs are going to work out great – after 5 hours and 31 miles of tracking, I still had plenty of juice left.
14. Breaking in shoes works – not a hint of a blister on my feet after all that running.
15. Not all runners are friendly…
16. …but most of them are.
17. My legs are in better shape than I anticipated – they are a little sore today, but nothing like I was prepared to have to deal with.
18. Salty bananas are delicious after 20 miles of running
19. Momentum only takes you so far
20. The hardest part of training over the next 65 days will be forcing myself to run 4 minutes per mile slower than I comfortably run
21. In the longer distances you don’t need chase people that pass you – in all likelihood, you may see them again at some point.
22. Body glide or vasoline or some kind of lube is a must – otherwise you will end up with the worst chafing in the worst spots.
23. Eat more during the run – from the time we finished around 11:30AM, I didn’t stop eating until I got into bed at 9:30PM (I’m actually 5 pounds heavier this morning than I was yesterday before my run).
24. Walk after running – I’m convinced that part of the reason I am not so sore today is that we walked  3/4 of a mile after hitting 31 miles and then my family and I went to the Children’s Museum as soon as I got home and showered.
25. Drink more fluid during the run
26. …and keep drinking afterward – as the afternoon progressed I was hit with a wicked headache.  A couple of Advil and a steady stream of liquid refreshment took care of that.
27. If JB & I are going to run side by side for 20 – 24 hours, we’re gonna have to come up with some intriguing conversation topics
28. Running at conversational pace is a heck of a lot easier on the body than running faster than that
29. Running 31 miles in the morning and still having an entire day in front of you is a fantastic feeling
30. Feeling the way we did during the last few miles made us realize, possibly for the first time, just how big of an undertaking 100 miles really is
31. …but now I am more determined than ever to cross that finish line and get that belt buckle!

So there you have it.  On day 97 of #AutismStreaks I got a 31 miler/50K out of the way and put the streak over 550 miles for the year (553 to be exact).  In about a month, we will do a 50-miler (maybe).  We’ll see.  I hope you got your long run this weekend!

Me and JB – post-31-miler…smiling because we’re done.