EMS Shopping Trip

I drove over to Eastern Mountain Sports after Zumba today to pick up some gear for the Rock the Ridge 50 Mile Endurance Challenge. It suddenly feels very real and I am getting nervous.

Rock the Ridge sent me 20% off at EMS, which is awesome because I needed a hydration pack, a headlamp, and some fuel.

I had wanted a hydration vest at first, but these aren't carried in stock at the Carle Place store (who knew?). Eric, my exceptionally helpful salesman, recommended the Camelbak Octane LR. I got mine in skydiver/egret, otherwise known as blue and white. The lumbar reservoir is pretty nifty and I think I will prefer to wear something that puts the weight on my lower back.

I bought a Princeton Byte headlamp. It has 3 settings: red light and two white lights. I'm not sure I'll be spending much time running in the dark, but I am super excited to wear it just the same. I have no idea where my last headlamp went but it was sick wearing it around the Egyptian desert.

I bought some citrus and raspberry flavored Clif shots and shot bloks because they are one of the few energy gels I can swallow without choking. I also like the margarita flavor but EMS didn't have any.

I came home with my bounty and was very excited about my purchases. My parents were less than impressed. My mother also had trouble understanding what a hydration pack is until I started drawing comparisons to the bag inside a box of Franzia.

New Sneakers for My First Ultra

This morning I went to Eastern Mountain Sports in Carle Place to get a pair of trail running shoes and some special socks for this Saturday's race. EMS moved across the street last November (I had no idea; I asked), and the new store is located across the street at 204 Glen Cove Road.

I was promptly directed to a shoe guru named Jason who was very helpful (and cute!). He gave me a pair of Brooks and two pairs of La Sportiva trail running shoes to try on. The La Sportiva shoes felt the best, and we decided the all-purpose pair were better suited for my needs. Slight problem. They are grey and orange. Grey is practically my favorite color, but I hate the color orange. I hate it almost as much as I hate clowns. I think I hate the color orange because I hate clowns. I almost asked if he had them in any other colors, but I figured he would've told me if he did, and I was slightly embarrassed to admit that I have a clown-phobia-caused disgust of a color. Otherwise, the shoes are sick!

Jason helped me pick out double-layer synthetic WrightSocks. The Dri-WRIGHT II fabric wicks moisture and the double-layer offers padding for the 31 miles I will be covering next week. As much as I love my Old Navy cotton fitness socks, they have a time and a place, and an ultra is not one of them.

I hurried home to throw on some shorts and a tank. I couldn't wait to try out my new socks and shoes on the trail in the woods across the street from my house. The weather was 68 degrees and sunny, perfect running weather in my book, and I ended up getting a nice tan on my face and arms today.

Now I'm not scared of many things; I'm scared of mediocrity and clowns. I don't care for rats, and they make me kind of nauseous, but it's only mediocrity and clowns that terrify me. But I kept on getting nervous while running on the small trail in the woods... What if I accidentally stepped on a den hidden beneath a pile of leaves and I was attacked by disgruntled animals? What type of animals live in the woods of residential areas on Long Island? No one knew I was out there, and I don't think death by angry skunk is the way I want to go.

I ran around the trail for a while, before heading out into Oyster Bay and down to Roosevelt Beach. I ran along the beach, and then headed back up Mill River Road. Yesterday my IT band freaked out after a mile and a half. Today I ran over 3 miles without a problem, and then only after pounding pavement. After that, I stayed on sand or the embankments on the sides of the road, and my leg felt much better. Hopefully a sensible approach to exercise this week will prepare me for Saturday's 50K.