when life boils you some hot lemon tea

ah, there's nothing quite like watching the weather forecasts during race week.

some might say that a 50-mile race is a scorcher on distance alone.  no need to add temps that will be pushing the high 80s (°F).

in my previous post i shared a time-based goal that i'd established for myself at The North Face Endurance Challenge Series GORE-TEX® 50-miler.  i'd even positioned it as my 'B' goal, so as to provide myself a bit of cushion on either side should i exceed it or not quite reach it ... and i left open the caveat that the achievement of any of these goals could and would very well be dependent upon the hand that mother nature decides to deal to us ultra-wannabes.  and so it seems that heat will most definitely be a factor.

with the heat (and especially the humidity) we will all have to be extra-attentive to hydration issues.  given that my last attempt at an ultra distance in july saw my blood pressure bottom out i will also be paying close attention to electrolyte/sodium levels - and thus for the first time ever i will be packing  salt tablets as part of my race gear (with a plan to start taking them after about the first 3.5hrs).

i've also been doing some casual 'research' into planning for hot race days and the effect that those conditions can have on your body and race strategy - and one of the best resources that i've come up with is a video from the indomitable sage canaday which is definitely worth 8 minutes of your time if you are also going to be tackling blue mountain this weekend:

control what you can control and roll with the rest of it, that's what i say.  getting amped to hit that starting line at 5am on saturday and #GOlikeneverbefore!

when life boils you some hot lemon tea

left-handed vs. right-handed running

observational data tells me that more left-handed gloves are lost than right-handed ones.

....

but first, a bit of context:

a couple of weeks ago i made my confession to the faith community to which i belong - i have an addiction.

i am addicted to collecting lost, frozen winter outerwear.

i do this as i'm running.  in the last three seasons of winter training (outdoors of course) i've managed to collect headwear and mittens galore.  in fact, two of my favourite toques (a billabong and an underarmour) i came across as frozen flat to the roads.  both times i had to pry them off of the pavement and carried them home, rigid as a discus.

but what i've discovered this winter more prominently than any other is that most of the gloves and mittens lost/discarded on the roadways, sidewalks and snowbanks are left handed.  easily by a 4 to 1 ratio.

while you may not care how many people are walking around with just a covering on their right hands, it has become a minor frustration to me as i try to compile pairs to be able to actually wear.

this is all preamble (necessary or unnecessary) to a quick comment about winter running gear.  i don't know whether or not it's because i've grown up in the snow belt of south-central ontario or because i'm just a little off-kilter (i definitely have been accused of the latter), but my standard winter running apparel consists of:

• a nike dri-fit, lined shell jacket (about three and half years old now, purchased with a g/c from the local sportchek)
• a running room canada-branded reflective nylon sleeveless vest (because my shell jacket is almost completely black with only minor reflective accents)
• women's running room fit-wear reflective wind pant (easily 10 years old, with nylon front-of-leg panels and polyester rear-of-leg panels - bought from a goodwill store)
• the underarmour beanie toque (found dead on road)
• various combinations of gloves and mitts (also victims of snowplows)
• underneath all of the outerwear is usually my standard running gear - polyester tees or l/s tops, unlined poly compression tights and poly socks (all in single layers)

this gear has served me well in all sorts of conditions, ranging from 0 deg. celsius (the point at which i usually put away the shorts) to -35 deg. celsius and 20-25cm snow days.  i try to observe the general rule of 'dress for 20deg (F) warmer' in order to prevent overheating, and the subsequent possibilities of overperspiring leading to hypothermic simulation.  so you won't find me looking like the michelin man.

i also don't tend to run with any kind of hydration or fuel.  being a morning runner, i'm motivated by the desire to get home and have breakfast.  hunger has a way of motivating me to move faster.  while i don't necessarily recommend this as a good running practice (dehydration can be a significant issue in the winter), i find that it does help train my body to burn fat more efficiently.

anyway, i'd love to hear what other outdoor winter runners wear as they combat the elements.  and it would be great to also accumulate more data to confirm whether or not other neighbourhoods are populated by right-handed only glove wearers.

left-handed vs. right-handed running