Preparing for Heartland

I'm starting my final preparations for the Heartland 100.  This weekend I will get all of my gear together and prepare my drop bags.  For those of you who are not familiar with ultramarathons, a drop bag is a bag of gear, food, drinks, clothing, whatever I want, that the race officials will take to a point on the course and leave.  Runners can stop at their drop bags to change clothes/shoes, get flashlights, treat medical issues like blisters, etc.  The race is well supported, but it's nice to have some of your own stuff.  To get an idea what goes into my drop bags you can see my checklist here.

Heartland is one of my favorite races.  It was my first ultra when I did the 50 miler back in 2004.  You can read my race report and see a lot of photos of the course here.  I've also paced friends in the 100 miler twice (meaning that I joined them in the second half of the race and ran/walked with them to keep them motivated and moving) so I've seen the entire course and know what to expect.  That may not help much, but it's better than having no idea what the course and terrain will be like.

I'm a little nervous about this race because I'm not really prepared/trained adequately.  This was one of my goal races for the year but my training wasn't going well so I had decided to skip it (even though I had already registered).  When my dad was diagnosed with prostate cancer it reminded me that you can't always put off your goals; you need to go for it, do the best you can do and try to make it happen.  Since I had already registered I decided to go ahead and give the race a try, and to use it as the opening race in my effort to raise money for the Prostate Cancer Foundation.

Next Friday the family will drive up to Cassoday, Kansas, for the pre-race briefing, packet pickup and pre-race dinner.  The race will start Saturday morning at 6:00 AM.  The cutoff for the race is Sunday at noon.  That means I have to finish the race in 30 hours; my goal is to finish in 29:59:59.  :)  I just want to finish.

Thanks to EVERYONE who has donated and pledged money towards my goal.  You've all been incredibly generous, and as a result I have raised $450 and have received pledges of $3.01 per mile, equaling $1,321.99, for a total of $1,771.99!  Because of your generosity I've already reached 40% of my goal.  Each mile at Heartland will earn $3.01, and the entire race will earn $301!  That will give me motivation in those later miles when things are tough and I don't feel like going on.

If you haven't donated yet and would like to, go here.  If you want to make a pledge, email me with your "per mile" pledge and I'll let you know my mileage after each race.  That will allow you to spread out your donation over seven months.

There's a quote I heard from some of my friends with Team in Training that I will keep in my mind as I race:

"I run because I can. When I get tired, I remember those who can't run, what they'd give to have this simple gift I take for granted, and I run harder for them. I know they would do the same for me."

Thanks again to everyone for your support.  Check back for an update on the race on Sunday, October 12 or Monday, October 13.