A couple weeks ago I took part in the Roseau 4x4x48 Goggins Challenge. Starting at 8:00 on Friday evening, we walked/ran 4 miles every 4 hours. Those who complete the whole challenge do this for 48 hours, racking up a total of 48 miles. Since I was going to be busy on Sunday, I chose to just do half of it. So, four of us started walking at 8:00. (Two guys chose to run.) We finished the first four miles in about an hour and went home to try to get some sleep. Unfortunately, I didn't get any sleep... We were back ready to go again at midnight. This walk/rest cycle continued every four hours: 4 AM, 8 AM, 12 noon, and so on.
Now, if you're like me, this all sounds pretty easy. Just walking. How tough could that be? Well, I learned a lot about myself and my limitations. After the first two or three rounds, and almost no sleep, my quads started aching. I didn't see that coming. I started soaking in the tub during my rest breaks. It helped a little, but eventually I got to the point where it was very difficult to begin the next round. Even if I hadn't decided to only do half of the challenge, I would've been forced to quit at that point - it was getting that difficult to walk!
I got through the 4:00 PM round on Saturday afternoon and decided I would do 2.2 more miles at home giving me the 26.2 mile marathon distance within 24 hours. Those last 2.2 miles were almost impossible - it was getting that painful just to walk. I'm proud to say I did finish with my 26.2 miles. I'm calling it a Grampa's Marathon.
Should I try running this thing next year? Perhaps my running muscles will outlast my walking muscles...
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