Penticton and Back

All last week I had been planning in my head running to Penticton and back. I live in Kelowna and there is an old railway bed, the Kettle Valley Railway, that runs on the east side of Okanagan Lake. If I take the highway to Penticton it's about 65 km's, and about 72 km's to my mother's house which is generally the pit stop when I make this trek. And if I take the KVR trail it's only about 60 km. My goal was to do this run, there and back in one go. Originally I wanted to do it on Monday as I had both Monday and Tuesday off. I worked 8-4 on Sunday, and it was stupid busy and we didn't get breaks at work. I was tired but I still planned on doing it, so Monday I woke up at 6 am, looked at the weathernetwork online and noticed that there would be massive thunderstorms. So I sighed a big sigh and went back to bed.

Tuesday came and went and I still wanted to do the run. I had Thursday off so I planned on leaving for Penticton as soon as I was done work on Wednesday around 3:30 pm. I figured I would get to see the sunset and the sunrise. I took with me 4 bottles of homemade gatorade (2 for the trip and 2 to leave in the car for when I returned), 6 Clif shots, 6 granola bars, 2 apples, 9 of my home made energy bars and 2 apples, as well as my 3 litre water backpack.

I maintained a real slow pace. Averaging about 9 km per hour. But I quickly realized I was tired. Running after working an eight hour shift on my feet maybe not the best idea. I took my ipod with me and I made sure to have a drink of water at least every song. Tried to remember to east something every 40 minutes or so.

It rained a little bit around the lake before Chute lake, but only lightly and then it stopped. I was quite pleased with myself for not stopping to walk, but maintaining a nice easy pace. It was starting to get dark out so I made it my goal to get to Rock Oven Park before the sunset so I could scout the trail's shortcut while it was still light, as at that time I planned on returning in the dark.

While cutting through Rock Oven Park I was walking across a clearing and saw two black bear cubs... I was scared, but couldn't help but stand and watch them for a minute. They didn't even notice me, but I knew there would be a mama bear around so it was best to make like a tree and leave. I loathe bears and deer, they scare me; a lot. So out of spite I made sure throughout the run to save all my peeing needs for a time when I saw bear poo, and peed all over their shit. Take that bears!

As soon as I got out of the shortcut trails it started to rain. RAIN! Thunderstorms! Massive. The weather channel said there would be up to 1 cm of rain. Well I'm pretty sure that I got a centimetre of rain every 5 minutes. I still had 15 km to go before I got to my mothers house. My mom knew that I was coming, so within 30 minutes of the storm starting she called and offered to come pick me up, and like the idiot that I am I said "no, what would be the point of running if I got a ride" It took me about 40 minutes of running through even harder rain to call her back and ask for a ride. I was drenched; I could have rung a litre of water out of my shirt. I had worn a windbreaker, and not a waterproof jacket... oi. I was so glad to have a hot shower, warm dry clothes and a hot meal and a warm bed to sleep in.

The run on the way there ended up being 52 km, in 5:40. I felt good, wasn't sapped of energy and I stayed hydrated well enough that I kept having to go to the bathroom throughout the run.

Slept in until 10 am and decided I would leave around 11:30. I ran for the first 15 km back to Kelowna, and then decided because I was only running 6:30 min/km it would be easier to just walk at a brisk pace. So I walked around 8:15 min/km the rest of the way. Easier to walk a little slower than pounding the feet and knees for hardly any extra pace. On the way back I had about 30 minutes of hail, and about 45 minutes of light rain, then the sun came out. With about 15 km left before I got to the car the tendon of my right anterior tibularis started to really hurt, and I had developed a heel on the bottom of my left heel, and I was drained of energy as well. I was so ecstatic to see my car once I got there. The second run was 62 km, and 8:20.

I really don't think I had any problems with hydration or with maintaining energy. It's just that I don't think that using solid energy bars as my primary source of fuel was a good choice. It left me feeling very odd in the stomach, which is problem why I didn't eat enough. But I just can't maintain my energy levels with just using with just Clif shot gels. I need to figure out a new fuel plan for really long runs.

"Take time to smell the roses. Don't rush through each day or life. Force yourself to slow down and absorb the present moment., and actually notice your surroundings, the sights, the sounds, and of course, the smells. Life is about the journey, not the destination."

Keep on running

Nazzer