On the edge

I often get asked, how do you train for a crazy event like the Tahoe 200 which has big climbs / descents (40,000ft), altitude, heat, cold at night, lots of miles and it’s a non-stop event so sleep deprivation willl be another challenge.  I can’t replicate the conditions so I have to rely on consistent training, a lot of it on tired legs, and throw in some Scottish hills to shred my quads on the downhill but nothing will come close to the mountains around Lake Tahoe.
The other and probably the most important aspect is preparing my mind.  My experience has shown that it’s your mind that gives up before your body.  After all it’s the “health and safety officer” and wants you to stop before there is damage.  However the “factory settings” are set with a big safety margin and you have to test that margin on a regular basis so you know how far you can push it.
This weekend has been a testing one for me.  I had to swap the order of my runs so the shorter run was on Saturday - 18km at Chatelherault.  When I finished my watch told me I needed 36 hours recovery - well that wasn’t going to happen and I wasn’t going to dwell on it.  Today the weather forecast was shit - snow and wind and if I didn’t finish by 1pm then the winds were 40 mph.  I was meant to be running for 3hrs and 10 minutes and had planned my route before I’d seen the weather forecast.  Unfortunately I had no pals to run with and those two factors should have made me change the route as I was running in the middle of nowhere which was high - there’s a wind farm up there so there’s a clue!
When I headed out the snow was lying and I could have worn trail shoes.  As I climbed the wind was picking up and the snow started to sting my face.  I considered lifting my buff over my nose but my headphones were tangled and I didn’t want to take my ski gloves off.  The gloves felt like boxing gloves with the weight of the water but my hands were warm.  Before I hit the big climb I managed a gel but not easy with the gloves on.  Shortly afterwards my shoe lace came undone and I had to take my gloves off.  Getting them back on wasn’t easy and my fingers were now numb.  As I reached the top of the climb it was a white out.  Two cars coming in the opposite direction hadn’t slowed down and left me looking like a snowman!  I was constantly trying to get my fingers to move and knew I wouldn’t be able to get a gel or any food out.  This was not a good place to be in and I’m in the middle of nowhere.
I had my phone with me if I was really stuck but this would have meant taking off my gloves.  I was determined to keep moving as the temperature had dropped and the wind was getting stronger.  I was really starting to think about my safety and had agreed with myself that if a car was heading in my direction I’d hitch a lift.  I also comforted myself with the thought that these are the positions you need to get into to try and replicate when you want to chuck it.  No cars came so I struggled on and found my way home having cut the run short by 30 minutes because that would have been extremely stupid! It was an ugly run but I’d definitely been “on the edge”.  Straight to bed with a hot cup of tea and a couple of hot water bottles to allow me to heat up slowly before going into the shower.  My fingers weren’t functioning.  All sorted now as I’m washed, watered, fed and have my feet up watching the footie.  My body feels fine and my recovery run tomorrow will flush out any nasties.  In hind sight I should have changed route or found someone to run with.  I need waterproof mits that can be taken off and on when needed so I can feed myself on the run.  Every day’s a learning day, today just happened to be a very cold one.