Midnight search for porta-potties and zipper burns

I spent most of the weekend in the Azelea Garden area between Lloyd Hall and the Art Museum this weekend. My running friend Pete was running his first 100 mile race and I and many other USAFit/Philly folks were there to support him. If you'd like to read more about the event and what I did during the long hours of Saturday to Sunday and/or to see some pictures click here.

So why did I stay awake for 28 hours to do this? Because I wanted to really. At 51, as long as it's not illegal or immoral that should be reason enough. I am in awe of what Pete did and wanted to be part of it. I was not confident enough in my running to pace him. He insisted that he'd be going very slow almost walking most of the final miles but I worried about a personal mental or physical breakdown on my part. It's one thing if that happens when I'm out there on my own but not if I'm supposed to be supporting someone else; not for something as important as this was to Pete anyway. So I opted to stake myself at his home base and provide support and encouragmetn from there.

How does one prepare for this? Heck if I know I was making it up as I went along but here is what I did.

What to wear. Sounds silly but I had to be prepared for day and evening temperatures and the off-chance that I decided to run a loop after all. So my base layer was all running stuff. I chose track pants rather than running tights though for comfort. I put the running tights in my bag instead. I had a turtelneck followed by my USAFit Philly shirt on top. (All of us wore our team colors to the event). I wore my cold weather vest and brought a fleece one for later in the evening when temps dropped. I was warm enough mostly but the unfortuante side effect was looking like Mrs. Michelin Man.

What to eat. I picked up two wawa hoagies and wrapped them in four halves. I ordered them without condiments to avoid soggy bun syndrome. Didn't think though that roasted peppers were also to wet for not eating the hoagies right away. Lesson learned. Still good sandwiches. I also packed pre-packaged fruit cups, pretzel rods and 4 bottles of water.

A word about the water. I knew that the restrooms at Lloyd Hall would not be open all night. My plan was to use them just before they closed and then stop drinking until the morning. I thought they closed at 9 and after that going the rest of the night until they opened again would not be a problem. On a typical night I'd be sleeping anyway during most of that time. Well the bathrooms were locked at 8 not 9 and I didn't get there before that happened. By midnight I was in desparate need of a bathroom. Another phillyfit friend, Nancy, was sitting with me at the time. Her husband was running a loop with Pete. I knew there were porta potties along the Art Museum loop but not within walking distance. That is, not within walking distance when you really need one and it's very dark out. So Nancy and I got in the car and went in search of one. I drove and she looked for them. We found one about a mile and a half down the road. I do not like porta potties. I avoid them at all costs. I've been very lucky during my marathons to manage my fluid intake so that I don't need to use one. I really dont like them. Let me tell you they aren't anymore inviting at night than during the day. Forutunatley this one was near a street lamp that glowed through the opaque top providing a little light. I hope this was a once in a lifetime experience. Having said that I did survive .....

I should have packed sunscreen. Being outdoors for that many hours, even though chilly, I was still exposed to the sun more than I wanted to be. I had thought of bringing sunscreen but as often happens when I don't make a list I forgot. I'm paying for that a bit today with some stiffness and a bit of dehydration.

Another thing that would have been nice was music but not a big deal.

Zipper burns... To keep warm I had my layers and a down comforter. I zipped up my jackets and wrapped myself in the comforter for the wait between Pete's return to home base (about every two hours during the night). When it was all over and I had gotten some sleep I realized I had a sore chin. No mark, just felt roughed up. It took a bit of thinking until I realized it was from rubbing against the jacket zippers.

Despite all that I really enjoyed the experience. Pete completed his 100 miles and I met a lot of neat people along the way.