Long Trail Gear List

Over the past few weeks I've learned first-hand that planning for a rugged 273 mile run through the mountains probably takes longer than actually running it.  With that in mind, I figured I'd share my gear list for my upcoming Long Trail run that kicks off at 6 a.m. on Monday, August 23. Hopefully this will help some of you when planning your future backwoods adventures!

Shoes

Hokas: Goofy-looking? Yes. Total feet-saver? Even more so!

For maximum feet preservation, I'll start off in a pair of super-cushy Hoka Mafates on Day One. Hopefully they'll save my feet a bit over the next couple days on the rocky trails. If I'm still on record pace after Day 2 and things feel good with the Hokas, I'll stick with them the rest of the way to pamper my feet as much as possible. If I'm behind the record after Day 2, I'll swap them out for a pair of Saucony Xodus v.2 or Montrail Mountain Masochists. I know I can burn up the trail a little faster in those shoes, even if it means my feet take a little more of a beating. ...and if I'm behind on the record at the start of Day 4, I'll throw caution to wind and strap on the ol' 7.8oz. New Balance 100s to put on one last mad sprint to the finish.    
Random Note: My review of the Saucony Xodus from May of last year remains the most-visited post of all time on this blog. It has received over 5,000 original hits, and a huge amount of those have come via a direct link from a Swedish running site. I swear, in that country, my post is like the David Hasselhoff of Germany.

Socks, Shins, etc.
Naturally, I'll be rocking the Drymax Max Pros on my feet out there. With blisters being mentioned in a couple recaps of previous record runs on the LT, I'm thinking I could have a nice advantage in the second half of the run.  Keeping the trail debris out of my shoes will be my trusty old Dirty Girl Gaiters, and proving I can support the running industry even further by wearing a fourth below-the-knee product, I'll have OxySox on to provide compression support over my calves (and yes, I cut the feet off the Oxys so I can wear my Drymax there instead).

Shorts and Shirts
No rhyme or reason to this line up of randomly collected stuff. I'll change every day, and layer as needed in the cool evenings/mornings. Everything from Adidas shorts to a Zippered windbreaker will be worn at some point, I'm sure.

Food
Lots of Hammer Gel, Perpetuem, and Recoverite. I'll probably grab whatever "real" food my parents have for me when I meet up with them every day too. I'm pretty sure a cold slice or two of pizza is going to sound really good after a couple days.

Other Gear

Love the Miwok. Great running pack for long adventures.

Since my crew re-supply stops will be limited to once-a-day (by my preference), I'll be running with the same pack I wore during my solo 142 mile Horse-Shoe Trail run last fall, the Gregory Miwok. In there I'll have my food, water, Mylar blanket for sleeping on the trail, change of clothes, and other essentials.

Some may question the benefit of wearing a pack when all recent record-holders have run without one (opting for multiple crew stops and pacers to haul their supplies instead), and those people may end up being right to question this move when all is said and done. But to be honest, I feel like I run best and enjoy the "adventure" of long runs when I don't have to worry about other people and can just embrace the solitude of it all. Sure, I'll waste a little time finding my own water along the way, and yes, my shoulders and back will probably be destroyed by the end, but I can also guarantee I'll have fun on my mostly self-reliant journey, and that's really what it's all about!