Ultramarathon Daily News|Thursday, July 25

Hey gang, Sean here covering for Schranz while he lives the good life abroad. I’m based out of Sacramento where I do my best to creatively train for mountain running adventures while living at 35 feet above sea level with flat pavement.

Caffeine can be one of the most effective (legal) performance enhancers, but how to best use it in this silly sport of ours? Jason Koop breaks down the benefits and drawbacks of caffeine during long endurance efforts. What’s been your experience? Have you ever gone overboard, or wished you had an extra vivarin in your pocket?

The always entertaining Cory Reese finished Vol State last week. Here’s his report. I’m glad he was able to find a hat along the way that matched his outfit so he didn’t look silly.

This article looks at why marathoners hit the wall and lose power in the last third of a race. My takeaway is KEEP EATING! As an aside, I recently read Alex Hutchinson’s book Endure and it was fascinating, well worth checking out.

Men’s Journal gives us 100 adventures (and 10,000 ads) to distract us from work. My personal opinion is that there are always adventures nearby, no matter where you live, if you are able to get out and get creative.

Speaking of adventures, I’ve been asked from time to time what is the best mapping program to plan a run. Caltopo.com is an amazing (free) resource that is about the best map porn site I’ve found. Pair it with Gaia GPS on your phone and you are set to go exploring. Who knows, you may find something that isn’t on Google.

Phillip Garcia just set a new FKT for the 12 month “grid” in New Hampshire’s White Mountains. The only other person to have done the grid in a year is the legendary Sue Johnson. Imagine an FKT effort that lasts a freaking year!

And don’t forget that today is National Hot Fudge Sunday Day. Go run a bunch of miles and treat yourself to some ice cream in the sun afterwards. Cheers!