Tuesday, April 12, 2011

A Quick Note To The Haters

This morning I went out and killed a 20 mile run. It got hard at the end but felt awesome! During my run I made a tiny but kind of important decision: I'm running the marathon with my water bottle. I was gonna try to figure out how to do the aid station thing and actually gave it a whirl at a 20 mile race a few weeks ago... It just didn't work out that well.

I've gotten some remarks from people about carrying it during a race and I kind of don't dig that. It made me a little self concious so I was trying to ween myself from my trusty Amphipod bottle. But here's the thing: I don't actually care anymore. I'm not gonna waste my time spilling and/or choking on Gatorade or Powerade or whatever and I'm not gonna waste my time worrying about it. So say what you will (that it looks lame or I must suck at running) or post some idiotic line on Let's Run like "I wonder if she takes walking breaks, too". Yeah, spend your time on things like that. I'll spend mine winning another marathon.

9 comments:

  1. An added bonus is you can squirt your haters.

    At the Salida Marathon (granted it's mostly on dirt roads and trails) every one of the top 8 finishers carried water bottles. There were what, 5 water stops, so it was feasible not to.

    I think that's a road vs. trail/ultra thing. Roadies don't think it's cool, trail/ultra people don't care.

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  2. I'd just tell them to suck it, but I'm a guy. You can just ask them how it feels to get smoked by a girl w/a water bottle.

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  3. I love being able to hydrate at a pace that's right for MY body. And I do much better sipping consistently than gulping quickly. I can't imagine racing without one! (And an added bonus is being able to run through the aid stations passing everyone who's stopping.)

    Stay strong and remember that you run for YOU and no one else!

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  4. Spray water on the haters with your bottle!

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  5. Good for you! I have learned that you have to do what works for you and not worry about what other people think or say. Good luck in the rest of your preparation Heather! I am sure you will run awesome and run extra fast for me since I don't get to do mine!!

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  6. ha ha! yes! the amphipod has a support system!! i love it! kara, oh man you're killin' me! i wish i could do something to help... it's gotta be frustrating, but like i said you'll be stronger for it in the long run :)

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  7. Forget the haters you can wave as you pass them! You've gotta do what makes you most functional in a race and puts you in the best position to place high. I'm not a fan of the aid station congestion myself.

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  8. Forget those elitist "free runners" and carry that Amphipod bottle proudly!

    My hubs and I just found out we are expecting and my doc wants me to run with a Camelbak on my back for ALL race distances...even a 5k! Yep, I'll be the nerd...with a Camelback...running a 5k.

    But whatever, its hot and hydration is important. And if the Amphipod helps you stay in your groove, then keep it!

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