50 @ 50

#WooooT

And I thought running was a low gear sport..too many #bitsandbobs

Just one black toe & so far the nail is hanging on. One point, or nine for the #Chucktaylors & #minimalism. Legs are back to normal but knee reminds me of the abuse I forced it into. Long walks and I get a telegram. Back to short runs & physio. next week. Presently enjoying labour day, g&ts but no white pants!

One week later. Legs feel fine, calves too. Soles of feet and heel in particular still sensitive. 4-5 days after the run I went to see a chiro. Seems my left leg/foot needs some support. Probably due to my ultimate accident- pulled hip, years ago. So when at rest my left foot sits a little lower/closer to the ground than my right. This twists my leg/ankle/knee ever so slightly. And at 20 miles it starts to make a difference. I am thinking this might be the culprit to the knee sitch. "Runner's knee". So chiro suggested some low level exercises to build strength in my upper legs and gluts. She also suggested a little support for my left foot- over the counter soul. Will be looking into all of it this week. Sad news is that maybe the minimalist shoes- on the left side, were a problem for the knee! SHIT. Going to get back to running in a week or so. Will take out the old shoes to see how it goes. I do love the Chuck Taylors & Luna Sandals but may need a short break. Onward. (Pic is me & my chucks in my short x-country ski gators-worked like a charm but looked funny)

There was nothing better(is nothing better) in those many hours of climbs and descents than splashing my face with water from an ice cold stream. The next day, after the run, I hobbled down to a freezing cold river and let nature give a hand. Soaked my legs, and my knee especially, in glacial run off for as long as I could stand it. Two days after the run I was soaking in the Banff Hot Springs at 10am. God damn lucky days. Those hills definitely took away my ability to walk straight for a few days, but those streams helped bring me back. The next month or so will be dedicated to the knee. Calves are bouncing back. Onward.

Here is the official chrono time:12hrs,49min. The nike watch died at 7 hrs.

So here is the sitch. First word that comes to mind:Brutal. Crazy elevation. So i timed out & did not have the chance to do the full fifty but ended with a 60k. The knee began to act up at about mile 20. Ruined my downhills-but beautiful day beautiful run #ironlegs

Saw a #jackrabbit 1st day in Calgary. Good sign. Also realized I was doing some traveling on the DEERFOOT TRAIL- all good signs. Less than 24 hours to start time. Bought a whistle- theoretically for bears- but was told just look’em in the eye and back away. Today grocery shopping and will go peek at tommorows friend an foe- the trail. Only 20 minutes from start, here in Bragg Creek! All good. ONWARD.

Two days to #ironlegs. Stopped in Toronto on the way. It will be trains, planes & automobiles plus one hell of a run on this vay-kay. Its 4:30 am... Where the hell is the cab to the airport? Onward.

Looking over the suggested and required gear list for #ironlegs and I see 1.5 L of water carrying capacity... God damn. Been training with 20 oz- about 1/2 or less. So went out and got me a fanny pack. Will also have a one person crew meeting me at the rest stops/ fueling stations. Knee still bitting my ass. Fingers crossed. Head to Alberta Wed.

Oh… & there is this too-

This week a light run week but last week' 28 went really well. I would have gotten that gazelle. 1::1 It all went much better. Had a snack, small one, every 3 miles or so after the first 8. Carrying the water bottle is no problem, I easily got used to it. Now there are thoughts about getting used to running with a headlamp- it might be dark when I crawl in. Soooo... 5 weeks to go. Nervous as hell and wondering if getting hit by a bus or a car might get me out of this mess... Onward!

Oh. Also june 18th I hit 50!

Last long run- I wanted to add: had I been chasing a gazelle or some other animal- the animal would have won the day, it would have been berries for me and the fam that day. Hope to do better with strategy this saturday.

So lesson learned: the night before a long run of 28 miles- not the right time to hit up McDonald’s for that annual burger! Ran out of gas at 23…
Good news is that last long run chuck taylor troubles were because i grabbed my size 9s rather then 10s. 
This time out brought a water-bottle that strapped onto my hand- worked great. Down side : lime cherry power drink tablet- not so good. Onward!!