A week to go!!

A week from now and I will be in Cuyahoga Falls signing in for the Burning River 100 Mile Endurance Run. I think the realization is just starting to set now, as I am starting to get a bit excited, or maybe it is nervousness. Either way there is not much I can do training wise now to make things better. The training has gone well, good, days and bad, but generally good. Each lousy training run is usually followed by a good one to boost my spirits. Last weekend I experienced the Vermont 100 first hand as I was crewing for my friend Catherine. We were supposed to Pace too, but we never got that far as she was pulled from the course at about 55 miles, as she wasn’t making the cut offs. It was still a very positive experience and I definitely picked up a few pointers here and there.
Walking during the heat of the day being one. Fortunately the BR100 course has a lot of shade and is mostly in the bush.
This is my last week of training long, albeit not as long as other weeks. Next week I will probably only run on Wednesday as I rest up. A long run on Saturday and then a shorter run on Sunday.
Next week I have to start getting my gear together, the sooner the better. We will leave on Friday morning, Roger driving my car.
I know I have a good crew ready and the pacers will help me through the tough spots. It will be an experience for them too.
How am I going to approach the race? Well go out slow and steady and see how the weather affects me. Walk when I need to, but try and run as much as my boy will allow. I have no idea what to expect later in the race. 50 Miles is as far as I have run, so…
The long term forecast at the moment is calling for possible Thunderstorms or showers, but warm and humid. What ever happens and how ever bad I feel, I have to keep the thoughts positive and think about the things that I know will keep my mind off the pain.
Shoes is another issue, which ones am I going to wear? I will start with road shoes and switch to trail shoes at some point, its just a matter of when to switch over. I have read numerous ideas about that and different spots where to change over. There are some generally muddy spots, but if they don’t get any rain it will be dry throughout so maybe road shoes through out is a possibility. I’m sure I will have trail shoes on for the most part though.