Now that's a Happy Birthday!

T and i dropped M off at camp and then headed over to Big Bear Staging Area (BBSA). on the way there it occured to me that i still hadn't figured out my gear, food and fluid needs. i threw EVERYTHING in the back of my car but i had until we arrived at BBSA to decide what to take with me to the start. T dropped me off at Lone Oak around 9:45, so far i was on schedule.

not knowing how long i would be out there i brought my 40 oz camelbak pack, my big waist pack that carries (2) 20 oz. bottles along with way too much food. plus one hand held bottle. i looked like the rookie posterchild. the waistpack and handheld bottle should suffice for race day...i may of looked dorky but i wasn't taking any chances.

i walked most of the hills and and ran the flats and downhills for most of the way between Lone Oak and Sibley. once i got to Sibley i used the restroom, filled my water bottle and gu'ed. something black and dangly above my head startled the shit out of me, i literally yelped. i never figured out what it was. a little while later, i got stung or bitten by an unidentified bug. i think it was a mean fly cuz i didn't notice a stinger left behind.

i also lost my good sunglasses along this section:(

fortunately, "I" didn't get lost once. considering i forgot my maps, that was a confidence booster. i am questioning the Huckleberry section though, i may of got lost on that last time though because it seemed a bit shorter this time around. i just stayed on the Eastbay Ridge Trail until i got to Redwood. i was an hour ahead of schedule. i filled my water bottles and headed towards West Ridge.

i've run this section the most and while i'll never be fluent in French as in the "French Trail" i didn't get lost here either and found Chown easily. i saw a couple of men running. both probably in their 50's. the first guy was really working the uphill section as i was all rubbery legged and barely moving the opposite way.

once i got to Stream Trail i rested for awhile. 14 miles down 3 to go. i threw out my gatorade and refilled my bottles with water. the cold water tasted better than my warm gatorade which i had in abundance!
my new Garmin didn't skip a beat and read 16:59 miles in 4:59:27 by the time i reached Big Bear Staging Area. i kept it on the whole time so this includes all the rest breaks i took.

i also took quite a few pictures along the way. i'll share those when i get them developed probably after the weekend. i know i've said this before but this route is Gorgeous!

so as far as birthdays go this one was pretty great. after tossing and turning all night i was a bit nervous about going out today so far by myself but i was prepared...heh, more than prepared as far as supplies go. i need to get more trail time in as eveidenced by all that walking. but there's no denying that walk or run this was one hell of a workout.