Pinhoti 100 Mile Run

Starting this Saturday at 6 a.m., I'll begin the slow arduous 100 mile journey from Heflin to Sylacauga, Alabama on the Pinhoti Trail.  I won't be alone.  Two hundred and thirty other runners will start and only about 50 % will make it to the finish under the 30 hour time limit.  My wonderful wife will be with me from the start as my crew (she has no idea what she is getting into) for most of the day, and my dad is coming to take over for the nighttime portion of the journey (he definitely has no idea what he is getting into).  Unfortunately, the weather is predicted to be unseasonably hot and reach almost 80 degrees.   That will make the hydration and nutrition even more important.  I am most worried about my ability to eat enough calories to keep myself going without causing too much in the way of stomach issues.  At least we won't have to worry about getting to cold at night.

My first goal is to finish under the 30 cutoff.  My second goal is under 24 hours.  My plan is to start slow, trying not to blow up so that I'll still be running for the last half of the race.  For anybody who is even remotely interested you can track my progress here.  I am bib number 29.  My experience with the site is that it usually runs about 1 hour behind and sometimes seems not to be working at all, but keep checking back as it usually catches up after everybody starts spacing out later in the race.  Kelli is planning on posting pictures and live updates on my twitter page until she heads off to bed.

Additionally,  I wanted to give a shout to my brother, Jonathan, who just finished his first marathon.  Read all about it here.  Anybody interested in watching a cool video from the 50k race in Chattanooga 4 weeks ago watch this.  That is my foot stepping on the acorns at about 3:30 into the video.  Be careful if you watch the video as it will make you want to go run in the woods.

Thanks again to my wonderful wife for supporting me in all the crazy adventures.