On I went, out of the wood, passing the man leading without knowing I was going to do so. Flip-flap, flip-flap, jog-trot, jog-trot, curnchslap-crunchslap, across the middle of a broad field again, rhythmically running in my greyhound effortless fashion, knowing I had won the race though it wasn't half over, won it if I wanted it, could go on for ten or fifteen or twenty miles if I had to and drop dead at the finish of it, which would be the same, in the end, as living an honest life like the governor wanted me to. -Alan Sillitoe, "Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner"

Friday, August 12, 2011

Um, so, um, yeah, I think I may have gotten a saddle sore riding my bike on Monday. I'm just going to leave it without any further elaboration lest the conversation turns any more indelicate than it already is. But I may go down as the first person to ever get a saddle sore from riding her bike for less than an hour. Please recommend your favorite powders/gels/lubes to help a girl out. (Clearance bike shorts from REI are already en route.)

Other than that, I'm putting together a list of my dream races. A comment yesterday pointing out this race (8 Tuff Miles) got me thinking about it... Late winter vacation?

Definitely on my dream race list:


Incidentally, something that Comrades does (per their Wikipedia page) is pretty interesting: you get a different medal depending on your finish time. Honestly? Even though all of my medals would be made of tin, or plastic, or whatever other crappy alloy they gave to slowpokes, I like that. Why not make the medals actually have some meaning?

It's weird how attracted I am to hill races, when I don't particularly like running hills. Any dream races you'd include that I haven't?

Updated: Majo points out in the comments that I left out the Swiss Alpine Ultramarathon. Yeah, I did, because I'm not crazy. But I do know someone who is, so do check out Christel's report of the race. (Actually, maybe it should be on my dream list - it does seems gorgeous, and she makes it sound easy!)
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9 comments:

  1. Majo TinocoFri Aug 12, 08:54:00 AM EDT

    I use Alba un-petroleum jelly. For saddle sore (not as much of a problem since I got bike shorts) and everything else. And I'm not the only one! Check out this beauty: http://bcove.me/61x2g1gw

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  2. Majo TinocoFri Aug 12, 08:57:00 AM EDT

    And just so you know, the last time I posted a link to this product on twitter, I started getting all kinds of baby products and diaper rash ointment ads on my browser so use with care.

    Also, Swiss Alpine is missing from your list.

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  3. Carla @ I Run, You RunFri Aug 12, 10:12:00 AM EDT

    I don't like the idea of different medals. It took me just as much work to finish that marathon in 5 hours then the dude who finished in 3. Heck, by the time I was done he was probably showered and taking a nap! Don't tell me that my effort and sweat means less!

    As for the saddle issue, it happens. For me, buying a women's specific seat is what helped the most. Ah, and I heard good thing of Chamois butt'r (or something of the sort). It's like body glide for bikers (it's a cream, not a stick, so you can, you know, spread it easier...). Shorts never helped me much, but going sans underwear (or wearing one where the elastic doesn't hit the same spot the saddle does) helps. (Said that, I used to wear the same clothes back home as I wore on my way to work -- I would dry them under my desk -- so obvs, the "no underwear" wasn't usually an option... Oh, and we had showers, no worries!)

    Said that, when I used to commute to work, nothing made the issue really go away completely...

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  4. jenntuitionFri Aug 12, 04:38:00 PM EDT

    Uh...I'm going to my first adult "learn to ride" class tomorrow, and now I'm all freaked out. Apparently I'll have to do some booty pampering to prepare!

    Monistat Anti-Chafe Powder Gel, here I come.

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  5. UnknownFri Aug 12, 09:44:00 PM EDT

    Chamois Butt'r! Body Glide sells some product that's supposed to be for your bike, but I read the ingredients and it's exactly the same as regular glide, so you could probably use that in a pinch. Wait till you get butt chafing! Assos (no pun intended, that's really the name...) is supposed to be good but it's a lot more expensive.

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  6. TamaraSat Aug 13, 04:18:00 PM EDT

    I'm with you on Comrades. A friend of mine has done it a few times (this year as a tune up prior to Western States 100) and she's completely made these ultra distances seem achievable. (My friend is 50 and just started exercising 8 years ago. Not running 8 years ago. All forms of exercise! There is hope for us yet!)

    As much as I hate to admit it, I still feel a tug towards Boston. I don't expect to ever qualify for it and I'm not psyched about being a charity runner. So it might never get crossed off the bucket list. But I do still dream of it a little.

    Another big dream? Running Chicago again and doing it well. Having run it 4 times and finding myself getting IV fluids at mile 20 on one occasion, I have yet to put together a good race there.

    I must say that I have much better luck at marathons that I run with you, Tracy. In fact, the only 2 marathons we've run together were my 2 fastest. Sounds to me like I know exactly how to address my recent sluggish race times!

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  7. EmilieSun Aug 14, 10:08:00 AM EDT

    I go back and forth with the Knickerbocker 60k. On one hand, a 60k that's in a place I can walk to? Hell, yes! On the other, several laps around Central Park? Ugh. Because I don't get enough of that every day? My jury is still out on that one.

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  8. ChristelMon Aug 15, 03:09:00 AM EDT

    I rubbed The Body Shop dry skin cream on my butt blisters before I went to bed, and it seems to work. :)

    Comrades? Please do so I can join you! :)

    Swiss Alpine Marathon 50-miler...well, uhm...it's not easy easy, but it's not hard hard either. I'd say...go for it! :)

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  9. iliketorunandcookMon Aug 15, 12:55:00 PM EDT

    I'd consider doing the Mount Lemmon half.

    ReplyDelete

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