Running in the Heat

Last month I did something new with surprising results. I ran in the sun in 100+ without stopping and didn't die or pass out. This changed my previous opinion that anything over 89 was too hot for running. It became "punishment" for not waking up at 5am and running before work. One thing I did keep in mind was "Once your body temperature climbs to 104 degrees, you're in the heatstroke danger zone."

After keeping in the furthest regions of the back of my mind I finally said out loud that someday I would like to attempt to do the Badwater Ultramarathon. Just like how I started thinking about running a Marathon when I had yet to do a half and my longest run was only 6.2 miles now I am thinking of doings Ultra Races. I hope to find out December 9th what 26.2 miles feels like.

The Badwater Ultramarathon describes itself as "the world's toughest foot race". It is a 135-mile (217 km) course starting at 282 feet (86 m)[1] below sea level in the Badwater Basin, in California's Death Valley, and ending at an elevation of 8360 feet (2548 m) at Whitney Portal, the trailhead to Mount Whitney. It takes place annually in mid-July, when the weather conditions are most extreme and temperatures over 120 °F (49 °C), even in the shade, are not uncommon.

I think it was bad/good that last week after my spark of motivation with TC I read the story of David Goggins. I had already head about Badwater and follow it on facebook but now I have a story that made it seems less like a pie in the sky goal. I posted a quote by him on facebook on Saturday. 

"Life is not always going to be this care free happy place that we would like it to be. What life throws at you is a lot of negativity. It's what you do with that negativity that makes you a stronger human being. When you hear the words, no, you can't, impossible, never...what do you think to yourself? Do you cower inside and run from the challenge. Or do you face it...head on...asking for more?

Failure is an option. It's what you do with the failure that makes you who you are. Our failures mold us. I have failed at several things in my life. What sets some of us apart, is that when we fail, we can't sleep at night. It haunts us until we have our time at redemption."

Here is a runner's world article on him I really liked. http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-243-560--12944-0,00.html

"I’m nobody special. Let’s be perfectly clear… I don’t like to run. I don’t like to swim. I don’t like to bike. I do this to raise money for the children of soldiers killed in combat.... Like I said, I don't like running. I don't like biking. I don’t like swimming. I do it to raise money. But, now that I'm in this sport I want to see how far I can push myself."