Fumbling Towards Endurance

We toe the line 22 hours from now.

Everyone asks how long it's going to take? It's funny, because I have no idea. In my mind it's not a race, but an event with a focus on having fun and finishing. That said though, in reality it is a race and once out on the trail my focus will be on maintaining a solid pace and moving along as quickly as I feel is safe. Just how that converts to a total time though I really have no idea. I'm prepared to be out there for up to 11 or 12 days. Anything faster than that will be a success in my mind. I know that if things go well I can do it much faster than that but there are so many things beyond my control that can cause it to not go well. This is of course what makes this race so exciting, scary, and, as the veterans say, habit forming.

One thing I do know is that if I reach McGrath I'll have gained more knowledge about this event then I was able to in 6 months of training and preparation. Will this make me even more hungry to line up again a year from now? Well, that's looking a little too far ahead at this point. First I just need to figure out how to get some sleep tonight and then eat as much food as humanly possible tomorrow morning.