Vol State, signs

Super boring.  This post is for me!

Leaving KY, entering TN

Opposite side of sign above.

Shannon, Jay and I get to the sign at the same time.

Martin, Mile 29

Dresden, Mile 42

Gleason, Mile 48

McKenzie, Mile57

Huntingdon, Mile 67

I liked this sign because I used to run on WY Hwy 22

Clarksburg Mile ?

Parker's Crossroads, Mile 82

Lexington, Mile 92

Parsons, Mile 107

Tennessee River, Mile 114

Linden, Mile 125

Leaving Linden, Mile 128

Hohenwald, Mile 143

Hampshire, Mile 161

Cross Bridges, Mile 167

Columbia, Mile 175

Culleoka, Mile 188

Lewisburg, Mile 200

After Lewisburg

Shelbyville, Mile 223

Wartrace, Mile 232.  I did the stretch from 227 - 232 for Bonnie who has had hip replacements and can't see well.  She started walking, lost weight and has changed her life!  She will be doing a 24 hour race soon!! Go Bonnie, GO!

Whispering Oaks Campground was AWESOME.  They gave me lunch and offered me beer!

Manchester, Mile 243

Pelham, awesome cafe, Harry and Ollies, mile 267

Mtn. View, mile 270 ish?

Monteagle, Mile 274

Tracy City, mile 280.  From here to Kimball were, hands down, the worst stretch of road in the entire race

Jasper, Mile 296

Kimball, Mile 300

South Pittsburg, Mile 304ish

New Hope, Mile 305

Turning up Sand Mountain, Mile 307

Going into Alabama!  Mile 308

Last turn on pavement before the corn field, Mile 311?

314 miles in 9 days and the meds that made it possible

When a person has adrenal insufficiency, they are unable to produce:  cortisol, aldosterone, DHEA, testosterone (women), progesterone (some women).  If you can't maintain a good blood sugar, blood pressure and muscle mass, you can't do much.  Sometimes, people die from lack of cortisol and aldosterone.

I replace all of these hormones and thyroid hormones.  Replacing hormones while on a long run is challenging.  Knowing how to replace them takes study of medical journals, understanding of human physiology and listening to other's experiences.  Next, there's a LOT of trial and error.  Years of it.

Most of my pills are round and white.  Quite annoying because they all look the same after they've been in a back pack for a week and have been jiggled around for 250+ miles.  Good thing I can tell some apart by taste or I'd be pretty screwed taking DHEA instead of hydrocortisone.

The first three days, I did what I've done in training runs:

• 10 mg HC, .1 mcg florinef (I usually take .075 but splitting the pills that little was too much work), 12.5 mcg T3, 12.5 DHEA and probiotics
• One hour into running, I took 5 mg HC and 2 salt supplements/hour, T3 at regular times (11 am and 2:30 pm),  6.25 DHEA at 11 am also
• The last dose of T3 and DHEA were questionable because the pills crumbled up and I couldn't tell what they were for certain.
• On the really rainy day, I only took one sodium supplement/hour
• 100 mcg of T4

On the third day, I started having trouble with nausea, crying and inappropriate muscle soreness.  The third night a light bulb went off in my head, I was under replaced!  The fourth through ninth day, I took 10 mg of HC/hour for a total of 100 - 150 mg/day.  I needed it.  I did have some trouble sleeping but I do whenever I get a lot of exercise and also did on the first three nights when I was taking 50-75 mg of HC so I don't think it was the HC.

When I had my breakdowns on the road, it was almost always due to needing to eat and needing more HC.

I was very careful to stay hydrated.  On the hot days, I drank about two gallons of water.  No Gatorade.  I didn't want to drink hot Gatorade, it was just not appealing to me.  I had a few Icees.  One root beer and one gingerale.  Ice water was a treat.

If I had to do this all over again, I'd start out my adventure with 10 mg/hour of HC.  For any race under two days in duration, I'd stick to 5 mg/hour.

I was also careful to eat when I was hungry during and after the race.  When I finished my other multiday run, which was half the distance, I returned home feeling very hypothyroid.  After doing some research, I discovered that the body needs food post race to stay out of the hypothyroid state.  During my international travels immediately post race, I didn't eat much because I was too dumb to convert my money into Euros so I had no money to eat.  I bought a huge bar of chocolate and that's all I had for about 24 hours.  Gross.  I suffered when I returned home.  I took the eating thing to heart and have not felt hypo.  

If you've got any questions, please ask.  

Vol State, pictures of the weird stuff

WHAT?!

Cans of Vienna Sausages across Tennessee

Weight limit 10 tons.

This looks like the remnants of a Vol Stater that quit.  Discarded shoes, back pack and food containers.

  

I was slap happy when I saw this.

  

Toilet bowl float hung on the opposite side of the guard rail

The Vol State mantra.

I could start a head shop with the number of pot pipes I find on the side of the road.

Engine, painted and decorated.

Yes, I'm a perv and could only imagine the porn magazine in everyone's mailbox.

  

For one second, I thought this alligator was real.

I felt like this on Day 8.

A proud Tennessee runner.

Polaris snowmobiles in Tennessee???

Yep, church and guns and ammo.

I tried to keep my feet dry.

Tampoons, not tampons!

Classy.

A swollen face is what I woke up to every morning of the race and for a week afterward.  Enough to scare a person!

Swollen and painful feet the day after the race.

"Start a new life get to know Jesus"
"By Vandalism Great Advice"
Sorry if this is offensive to some, you have to admit, it's funny.