So let's go over what we did learn from our first little training hike.
1) 14 miles is possible even when you are severely dehydrated.
2) It is better to start out moderately and finish strong than love like young bull in heat.
3) We need to plan our fluid intake better- At least 24oz per hour when you start out well hydrated- This is an approximate because we may need less when its cooler but more when really hot.
4) We will not be very hungry but eating is a must on our hikes- it will not be an option to eat on the trail because energy will be needed in a steady state for the long distance.
5) Training is a must !! 48 miles will require us to be in the best shape of our lives so train , train, train !!
6) Dogs can drink brown water and like it - my dog took a bath , rolled in it, drank it, and then smiled as I sat in the shade watching in envy. We cannot afford to drink it so we will be bringing water filter bottles on the trail to filter swift running water if need be.
7) I need some sort of ballsack deodorizer - maybe a combination of arm n hammer, sand, and perfume so the moisture is whisked away while I smell good.
8) Matt doesn't need sunblock because we now know a 3" layer of salt does the same job
9) 4000 pumps of a water filter in trickling brown water gets you approx 4 oz of tan water !! But Andy was kind enough to offer it to all of us first before he drank !! What a nice boy !!
10) Hallucinations are real when you are low on fluids and sodium. I started yelling at the end of the hike because I thought I saw dancing fairies ,holding bottled water, flying around me .
11) Accelerade is top notch - I have never hiked as hard and as far up steep terrain and felt absolutely no soreness the next day. It was astonishing the difference that it did make for Andy and I. Go get some and train with it.
12) I have thought many times about the relationship between food and my gas - I eat and therefore I am !! I only hope that I lead the whole way so you all can enjoy it as well. 8))
13) Stephen is a smart man !! The only one to finish with full cognitive ability and still was able to share his water with us.
14) I am glad that life brings us such humor as in the ability to laugh at ourselves and learn. I love this stuff !!Next hike coming up is November 30 and will be another long one !! Be ready for 20 miles !
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Our First training hike for R2R2R - May 2010
This is our team site that we will be using to journal our journey on our way to our Rim to Rim to Rim hike in the Grand Canyon in May 2010.
This is the first entry in , hopefully, a series of entries that will journal our prep for this mammoth hike.
Come on and sing with me boys !! To all the hikes I've loved before....the trails I've walked on and loved so much more.... !!! Goodness gracious alive , Willie Nelson couldn't have sung it any better. The tune did ring so true on our first training hike that we completed on Friday. Wait this just in.... dee dee de dee dee .. "Headline News here... Arizona Space satellite reports 4 men found wandering through the mountains of Tucson with no water. One man reported to be wearing a thick ring of salt caked on his face in an attempt to block out the sun. Not working for him !! Another of the group found hallucinating because he drank water that he pumped out of a cesspool in an attempt to ward off dehydration. Even still, another man found wandering in circles at Catalina State Park yelling at... well, apparently no one. He is muttering something about how he could have more fun pasting honey on his privates and throwing himself in the middle of a pack of unneutered bears. The 4th man has yet to be found. Oh.. but we just spotted him, and he seems to be sunbathing near the trail where the other men were found on. He is sitting with plenty of water and is smiling ear to ear as he gives himself a hard earned shower with all of his excess water. More on the story at 10 !!" Okay, so if I had to rate the hike on a scale of 1 to 10.... it would have been a -2 . I don't think that much went right for us on Friday, but I am hoping that we take a lot from this one. Let me recap the day for you!-
-
0630 wake-up - eat homemade pancakes - Ummm...I likey !
- 0730 running late so hurry and pack a sandwich ... 100oz bladder with a little extra water is plenty and who has time to think about it right now !
- 0830 arrive at Catalina State park - step out of truck - my dog has taken a dump all over the back and rolled in it. He is very happy to see us !!- On the trail at 0835 and we are hiking fast !!! So fast that we don't even smell our own gas because the whole group has moved past it by the time its potent
- 0910 - We are at the top of the ridge and I see a salt ring building around Matt's face already, and I feel SOPS ( Sudden Onset Poop Syndrome) kicking in.Well, almost... I was in that in between stage where you don't know if you have to fart or take a dump . I fart and no solids pass so I am good !!
-0930 - We arrive at Romero Pools only to find that there is no running water and only one small cesspool off to our right. Cooper, my dog, dives in and drinks away !! I don't care at this point because I can't see straight because I have sweat in my eyes from working so hard. Matt has been leading the way up the mountain since the onset of our hike.
-1000 - We are moving so fast up the trail that I have no dry piece of clothing on my body at this point , and I am wondering who this guy Matt is. He is some sort of weird mix between a jet fighter transformer and a pit bull. As I keep looking at him 50 yards ahead of me on the trail I am feeling both amazed at his conditioning level and violent at the same time. I am thinking of ways that I can create a diversion to make him stop the pain I am feeling in my lungs.
1100 - I catch up to Matt for a brief moment and he tells me that he wants to trail run for a while. I wish that I had a pistol with a silencer.
1110- We reach the 6 mile mark on the trail and Stephen is going to chill for a bit while we head up another mile on the ridge.
1115 - I can smell myself as I hike
1130- Almost out of water already and at a very steep portion of the trail. Matt bonks, I have severe gas, and Andy gets to hike right behind me 8)
-1200- With water running low at mile 7 and the three of us tired , we stop for a bite to eat. No one want s to eat at this point because we are all redlining which makes us uninterested in food. Andy and I manage a PB & J and Matt only has a few bites of the sandwich that I made for him. My feelings are hurt. 1220- Matt, Andy , and I head back down the ridge after comparing fluid levels in our Camelbaks. Something very shocking comes to mind.... We don't have much water to get us back and we have all been sweating excessively. I see a thick ring of salt on Matt's face and he becomes my salt lick for the rest of the hike.
1245- We meet up with Stephen after heading down the trail a bit. He has plenty of water in his pack !! Smart man !!
1400 - We have about 4 miles left to get back to the truck and all of us are basically out of water except for Stephen. I feel like it has gotten about 20 degrees hotter in the last 1/2 hour and I can't escape my smell anymore. My ballsack smells in a way that it has never smelled before and I am tempted to rub some of Cooper's dung that he has stuck on myself. Maybe I am hallucinating at this point but I think that I had a class 4 shart on the way up the trail from exerting myself too much.
1430- Find sitting water - Cooper lays in cesspool again and drinks water - I am envious that he has the courage to drink brown water and enjoy it - I choose not to even though it looks really good. Instead , I start eating the plastic of my Camelbak reservoir in the hopes that I can get a little more water out of it. Andy, plops down next to Cooper and starts pumping water from the cesspool using his filter. I am thinking of trying to pee a little in my mouth so I won't die in the desert on out first training hike. Matt, Andy , and I are completely out of water so Andy drinks some of the pumped cesspool stuff. I laugh inside because I think of him wearing a diaper for the next two weeks while he tries to get rid of the Gallardia from his system. Stephen has been nice enough to share his water with all of us on the way down so we don't die. I have sunspots permanently burned into my cornea's from looking straight into Matt's salt covered face without having my sunglasses on. Very bright light !!
1515- Manage to get down ridge and have 1 mile to hike to truck. I am officially hallucinating and start yelling for no reason. Something about smashing my privates and still having more fun than on this hike. I am sun burnt and am walking with my arms behind my back to try to hide them from the sun rays. Matt asks me if this is a new sort of hiking technique and joins in. We look like a team of paired figure skaters as we stumble down the path. Matt and Stephen finish strong and I crawl to the finish line a little ways back.
1530- Back at truck - need water - poo smeared all over back of truck- dog does not want to get in - I don't blame him- I need to scrub my ballsack - we need a drink - not having fun!!
1545- Pull into Giant gas station and drink the best thirstbuster of gatorade that I think I have ever had. I lick Matt's face for a little added salt.
1615- Pull into home wondering what just hit me. 14 miles down today and a whole lot of learning to come.
Part 2 tomorrow- The lessons that we took from this hike.
This is the first entry in , hopefully, a series of entries that will journal our prep for this mammoth hike.
R2R2R - 48 miles in less than 20 hours - May 1, 2010 - 0230 hours - Go time !
So here it is- Volume 1 of Team R2R2R : Our first training hike - October 2, 2009 - 14 miles !
Come on and sing with me boys !! To all the hikes I've loved before....the trails I've walked on and loved so much more.... !!! Goodness gracious alive , Willie Nelson couldn't have sung it any better. The tune did ring so true on our first training hike that we completed on Friday. Wait this just in.... dee dee de dee dee .. "Headline News here... Arizona Space satellite reports 4 men found wandering through the mountains of Tucson with no water. One man reported to be wearing a thick ring of salt caked on his face in an attempt to block out the sun. Not working for him !! Another of the group found hallucinating because he drank water that he pumped out of a cesspool in an attempt to ward off dehydration. Even still, another man found wandering in circles at Catalina State Park yelling at... well, apparently no one. He is muttering something about how he could have more fun pasting honey on his privates and throwing himself in the middle of a pack of unneutered bears. The 4th man has yet to be found. Oh.. but we just spotted him, and he seems to be sunbathing near the trail where the other men were found on. He is sitting with plenty of water and is smiling ear to ear as he gives himself a hard earned shower with all of his excess water. More on the story at 10 !!" Okay, so if I had to rate the hike on a scale of 1 to 10.... it would have been a -2 . I don't think that much went right for us on Friday, but I am hoping that we take a lot from this one. Let me recap the day for you!-
-
0630 wake-up - eat homemade pancakes - Ummm...I likey !
- 0730 running late so hurry and pack a sandwich ... 100oz bladder with a little extra water is plenty and who has time to think about it right now !
- 0830 arrive at Catalina State park - step out of truck - my dog has taken a dump all over the back and rolled in it. He is very happy to see us !!- On the trail at 0835 and we are hiking fast !!! So fast that we don't even smell our own gas because the whole group has moved past it by the time its potent
- 0910 - We are at the top of the ridge and I see a salt ring building around Matt's face already, and I feel SOPS ( Sudden Onset Poop Syndrome) kicking in.Well, almost... I was in that in between stage where you don't know if you have to fart or take a dump . I fart and no solids pass so I am good !!
-0930 - We arrive at Romero Pools only to find that there is no running water and only one small cesspool off to our right. Cooper, my dog, dives in and drinks away !! I don't care at this point because I can't see straight because I have sweat in my eyes from working so hard. Matt has been leading the way up the mountain since the onset of our hike.
-1000 - We are moving so fast up the trail that I have no dry piece of clothing on my body at this point , and I am wondering who this guy Matt is. He is some sort of weird mix between a jet fighter transformer and a pit bull. As I keep looking at him 50 yards ahead of me on the trail I am feeling both amazed at his conditioning level and violent at the same time. I am thinking of ways that I can create a diversion to make him stop the pain I am feeling in my lungs.
1100 - I catch up to Matt for a brief moment and he tells me that he wants to trail run for a while. I wish that I had a pistol with a silencer.
1110- We reach the 6 mile mark on the trail and Stephen is going to chill for a bit while we head up another mile on the ridge.
1115 - I can smell myself as I hike
1130- Almost out of water already and at a very steep portion of the trail. Matt bonks, I have severe gas, and Andy gets to hike right behind me 8)
-1200- With water running low at mile 7 and the three of us tired , we stop for a bite to eat. No one want s to eat at this point because we are all redlining which makes us uninterested in food. Andy and I manage a PB & J and Matt only has a few bites of the sandwich that I made for him. My feelings are hurt. 1220- Matt, Andy , and I head back down the ridge after comparing fluid levels in our Camelbaks. Something very shocking comes to mind.... We don't have much water to get us back and we have all been sweating excessively. I see a thick ring of salt on Matt's face and he becomes my salt lick for the rest of the hike.
1245- We meet up with Stephen after heading down the trail a bit. He has plenty of water in his pack !! Smart man !!
1400 - We have about 4 miles left to get back to the truck and all of us are basically out of water except for Stephen. I feel like it has gotten about 20 degrees hotter in the last 1/2 hour and I can't escape my smell anymore. My ballsack smells in a way that it has never smelled before and I am tempted to rub some of Cooper's dung that he has stuck on myself. Maybe I am hallucinating at this point but I think that I had a class 4 shart on the way up the trail from exerting myself too much.
1430- Find sitting water - Cooper lays in cesspool again and drinks water - I am envious that he has the courage to drink brown water and enjoy it - I choose not to even though it looks really good. Instead , I start eating the plastic of my Camelbak reservoir in the hopes that I can get a little more water out of it. Andy, plops down next to Cooper and starts pumping water from the cesspool using his filter. I am thinking of trying to pee a little in my mouth so I won't die in the desert on out first training hike. Matt, Andy , and I are completely out of water so Andy drinks some of the pumped cesspool stuff. I laugh inside because I think of him wearing a diaper for the next two weeks while he tries to get rid of the Gallardia from his system. Stephen has been nice enough to share his water with all of us on the way down so we don't die. I have sunspots permanently burned into my cornea's from looking straight into Matt's salt covered face without having my sunglasses on. Very bright light !!
1515- Manage to get down ridge and have 1 mile to hike to truck. I am officially hallucinating and start yelling for no reason. Something about smashing my privates and still having more fun than on this hike. I am sun burnt and am walking with my arms behind my back to try to hide them from the sun rays. Matt asks me if this is a new sort of hiking technique and joins in. We look like a team of paired figure skaters as we stumble down the path. Matt and Stephen finish strong and I crawl to the finish line a little ways back.
1530- Back at truck - need water - poo smeared all over back of truck- dog does not want to get in - I don't blame him- I need to scrub my ballsack - we need a drink - not having fun!!
1545- Pull into Giant gas station and drink the best thirstbuster of gatorade that I think I have ever had. I lick Matt's face for a little added salt.
1615- Pull into home wondering what just hit me. 14 miles down today and a whole lot of learning to come.
Part 2 tomorrow- The lessons that we took from this hike.