Michael: Remembering to Forget

Conducting silence;
The whir of the hummingbird
The only music.

Monday, August 27, 2018

Sunday, at long last, was Bulldog. I thought it might be my last chance to compete against Ron Paquette and a great opportunity for one of us to set the age group record in the 25K. Ron already owns the record for the 50-59 age group bracket in an astounding 2:02. I had been told a few weeks  earlier by a work colleague that Ron wasn’t planning on competing. That same colleague, days before the race, had asked if I had checked the roster to see who was competing. I hadn’t and wasn’t going to. I wanted to run my own race and not worry about whether Ron had changed his mind or not, or whether some other age group hot shot had signed up.

In my preparations for the race, I reminded myself that, for whatever reason, I always seem to forget at least one thing when it comes to race day no matter how far I prepare in advance or what checklist I follow. Sunday morning I thought I almost forgot to use band-aids for nipple guards; something I only do for longer races. On looking around I only found one band-aid and was actually a bit relieved that that was what I had forgotten. I could live with the risk of a few sore nipples if that meant relief from whatever other things I could’ve forgotten.

But halfway through the drive to the race, I realized that wasn’t the most important item I’d forgotten. In the fridge, back home, was my UltrAspire flask filled with Skratch Lab’s electrolyte mix. I had wanted to go hands free so I opted to use my UltrAspire Revolt pack. I had the pack, but not the flask (Note to self - next time use sticky note on pack to remind that flask is chilling in fridge.).

Fortunately Kimme was there and her level head turned to viable options. No, turning around was too risky and not worth the hassle of having to rush through all the hassles of final race preparations like bib pick up, warming up, going to the bathroom, finding parking…. So option number two was to use a standard Smart 17 ounce bottle that she had in the car. That didn’t have a sport top but in a pinch…

Next she thought that a gas station might have a bottle with a sport top and since we’d pass right by one on our way, why not give it a shot. So right after pulling off the 101 at Los Virgenes we stopped at the gas/7-11 station and found a Smart bottle with a sport top and also another product called “Electrolyt” that would serve as my Skratch Lab substitute.

I was also relieved that I had decided to wear shorts with a few pockets, otherwise I’m not sure how I’d carry my one Hammer gel and packet of Run Gum. It seemed my problems were solved.

One smart thing (Yeah!) I’ve been doing for a while was leaving to races with plenty of time to spare. So upon arriving at the race over an hour early we had a few minutes to walk around before the volunteers would check in 25K runners. That’s when we ran into Fleet Feet’s of Thousand Oak’s tent and I considered purchasing a handheld. And that’s when Jeff Vannini, I’m presuming the manager of the store, approached us and asked if we’d like to try a test vest - the Nathan 4L Vapor Krar. He kindly fit it for us. I gave him my license for security, and I was nicely back to a hands free situation.

The vest fit perfectly and worked great. In fact I had to remind myself in the last half hour of the race that I had my Run gum stashed in it’s front pocket under the small flask I had been drinking out of, or I would’ve had another memory lapse. I just wish I could justify another pack, but I just can’t see how to fit this one into the line up. For one, although I do use collapsible flasks on occasion, I’m not keen on them in most situations. When racing, bottles are easier to fill and when training, bladders have more volume. And I already have a Naked belt when I do want to race or run with collapsible  flasks.

But Jeff was very helpful and also gave me some advice worth thinking about when it comes to my shoe line up for a 100K I want to do next year, so I’m going to get those shoes from Fleet Street if I can.

This is a long way to get to the “All’s well that ends well” part of the day’s events, but both Kimme and I had a very good time. And, no doubt, possibly my last Bulldog 25K will be one of my more memorable experiences when I look back at my running life. Next year, if all goes well, I’m going after the 50K age group record, and damned, I know it’s not likely I’ll get any faster, I just hope I don’t get any more forgetful.