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Hardesty Constitutional + up&down EPIC bonk

November 8, 2014 (Morning)

Exercise Type: Run

Weather: 40s->nearly 70, really nice!

Comments:
The plan today was to do another long, easy (but heavy vert run). Some hunters were doing The Constitutional (Hardesty + Sawtooth + Lost Creek + Goodman): 18 miles, ~4500 climbing.

My plan was to do that...TWICE. Once easy with them, then again on my own.

Met Dan-o, Hammer and Emily at the TH, and left just before 9. EASY summit ascent. Felt really good, despite yesterday's heavy work. The HR was *outrageously low*: not sure if this is truly good, or if I'm SO fatigued that it simply didn't climb. But I did the summit in 70:30 with an average of 143!! Incredible!

Wound up waiting a LONG time for Emily to summit. She's doing MAF, so keeping it really easy. It was at least 60s up there, so I wasn't complaining.

From there, we finished the loop, with me hanging back with her while Hammer and Dan drifted ahead. Felt GOOD: VERY easy, and form-focused.

Finished the loop in 3.5hr run time (about 4hr, total, with breaks). I felt VERY good and ready to do the second loop.

On the first loop, I drank about 3x16oz water, but no cal's. For some reason, I thought I'd be fine doing a WHOLE other loop after drinking a HALF a recovery drink (with very low carbs). Emily and Dan-O even gave me some leftover candy bars at the TH parking lot, but I just threw 'em in my truck. I grabbed my iPod and off I went.

Felt pretty good on the opening climb, but I could feel muscle fatigue. About midway up, I thought, "You know, I'm just gonna do up and down - 28+ miles - then save the double for three weeks".

...About 15 minutes later, I was HURTING. I was committed (as always) to run the whole climb, but I had to stop and walk twice, I was so worked. The HR wasn't too high (16x), but I was bonking, bad! I'd brought a full 16oz, but drained it.

Hit the summit in :70 again, and sat down: dizzy, foggy, weak. "Oh, boy. I'm in trouble", I thought. I have to now get down this mountain. I actually LAID DOWN at the summit, on some rocks, to get ready, then I began the 5+ mile, 3300' descent.

I made it maybe a mile down before I felt SO terrible I had to SIT DOWN. I sat there with my head on my knees for a good minute, then kept staggering down. It was BRUTAL.

The legs were fine - and the HR LOW (like 110-130) - but I had nothing left! Vision was a little blurry and coordination sucked. I made it halfway down and stopped to deuce, hoping to get SOME sort of physical relief, then kept going.

I got a tiny boost when, in total desperation, I began to wipe my hand on my face, then LICK IT, trying to get salt! It was salty as hell, and it actually worked a little! But I was still in a BAD place, just barely getting a foot beneath me as I stumbled down the technical descent, stopping to walk a few strides every few minutes.

With a mile to go, I finally tripped and fell, bruising my right knee and hand. I dusted myself off and staggered forward til I got to a downed log blocking the trail...and LAID on that for a minute.

Then, finally, I staggered the last mile to the truck, the only thoughts fueling me was the half a cold, leftover pizza that was in there, waiting. I staggered up to the parking lot, hit the truck, grabbed the pizza, recovery drink and water, and threw it into the truck bed. I climbed in and just SAT THERE, half-conscious, and pounded the pizza.

Dear Lord! EPIC, EPIC bonk. My brain came around pretty good, but damn, that drained me. Pounding ALL that pizza, then the candy bars, did a MAJOR number on my stomach, which was in total gut-rot for the rest of the day.

Lesson learned: it's totally doable to go no-food, no-water on short (<4hr) runs in cool conditions. >4 hours? AND after a hard effort the day before? I need A LOT more. No excuses.

I may have had worse bonks before, but I'm not sure when. R2R '13 and that Quarry+Cool run we did ('12?) are in the same league.

Wore the orange N2 trails again.

PM: rebounded enough to watch the Ducks game and have a few beers at Matt's.