hill efforts.

steady climbing.

😤

Sunday long usually feels pretty good…

course recon +

Got to bed early Friday night, but only got about 4-5 hours of sleep. Breakfast / pre-load: water, black coffee, coconut Electrolit, LMNT seltzer with energy drink + 2 Ketone IQ shots, 2 fresh baked chocolate chip cookies from Lidl and more coffee with half & half (drank less than half) once I made it to Boiling Springs. Forgot to bring water or pre-mix my Maurten bottle, but luckily the gas station in town was to open within minutes of my arrival and didn't need to drive back to Rutter's. Got suited and booted while I waited for the store to open. Injinji mid crew trail socks and some very well worn and broken in Hoka Tecton X 3s on my feet. Did a lot of training in these and wouldn't be my first choice for the intricate technical sections, but great overall for the longer rolling terrain. Under Armour 5" shorts with the speed pocket holding three Maurten 100s. Orange DSG micro-t, just in case anyone's hunting squirrels on the AT. Arc'teryx cap. A special note about the Maurten drink mix: three 160s in a single Nathan soft flask mixed with 500ml of water works. It works. Tried it a week ago like that for the first time. Try it.  

Shout out to Uber driver Todd for giving me a ride to Miller's Gap parking area. Walked, jogged and hiked my way to Darlington Shelter while consuming my first gel slowly over the course of the warm up jaunt and started a little later than I wanted to beat the rising temps. Perfect conditions though. Definitely picked the right day. Had to nudge off very subtle early warning signs of stomach cramps which just seems to be par for the course on longer efforts. Felt really good most of the way. Only a couple early stumbles but no falls. Wasn't focused on hitting certain splits. Did not look at my heart rate once. Really just went by feel out there today. Was confident that I was on schedule, but also had a sense that it might get tight the closer I got to Boiling Springs. Almost nailed my fueling, but ran out of fluids in the last mile and a half or so. Boiling Springs was a bit warm, but not bad. Consumed all my gels before Boiling Springs, rationing each one in thirds and fourths. Stomach cramps / side stitch finally grabbed me turning into the corn field, of course!... Kept moving at about 8-8:30 pace. The pain subsided as I started climbing, but ultimately had nothing left. Didn't look at my cumulative time once until I saw 2:07:?? once I was climbing. That gave me some motivation but couldn't keep running and had to mix in some hiking. My stomach was turning on me too. Towards the very top when I slowed to a hike the last couple times my legs cramped and spazzed almost like a pinball machine. Crazy! Never had that happen before. My calf, my adductor, my quad! Trotting instead of hiking helped and finally I finished.  

I initially thought the overall FKT slipped through my fingers in that last mile or so, but was happy to get the unsupported mens record (got the crown on the segment... will have to wait and see if FKT verifies for the overall record [so anti-climactic lol 🤷‍♂️]) I don't think I've ever guaged my effort that well for that long. Definitely wanted to be able to hammer that last climb to Center Point, but also don't believe I've ever gotten that much out of myself during a long distance challenge. I really emptied the tank. This is my most competitive year by far: 4 races and one FKT so far vs. 3 races and one failed attempt last year. Still one or two in me for this year, but might be cross training my way through much of it. Really impressed with how well utilizing 3 & 4-day weekly training blocks with hard tapers is working. Tapered 5 days for this off a 5 week "build". Not what I wanted, but got away with it. This year has been marked by high intensity and low volume. Haven't had a 60+ mile week for 11 months now and only one week in the 50s this year. Also was dealing with lower back fatigue / tightness from pushing it a little too hard in the weight room last week. The way I train is inspired out of my work schedule, but my ambition isn't always compatible. This has been one of the most difficult and challenging years in my life so far finding out that I am Autistic and ADHD, struggling to come to terms with that and I am really proud of myself for being able to check this one off. Every day I wake up with the odds stacked against me and somehow I keep going. ThankYou FKT and Appalachian Trail Conservancy 🤍

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andyranaway _

Cumberland Valley AT Unsupported (disputed) Overall FKT - or - Autism Spectrum Disorder Level 1: Requiring Support

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hill efforts.

steady climbing.

😤

Sunday long usually feels pretty good…

course recon +

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