Everyone begins their year with some sort of “resolution” and this year I wanted to successfully run a half marathon; a daunting task for someone like myself, who doesn’t have the super skinny runner’s build, and typically likes to stick to the weight-room and an occasional weekend soccer game in the park. After the many training miles, blisters, and mental preparation to keep myself going, I successfully finished my first half marathon with a sub 1:50:00  time.  Now, for you as the reader, it’s easy to make the excuse “oh I have X knee injury, or X problem keeping me from reaching this goal” — you can overcome this barrier, like I did. In the past I have suffered from hip issues, specifically sciatica, which in the end made me focus more in the gym, especially following high school.

As of now, I weigh 182 lbs and hit the weights about three times more than I go running — and let’s be honest, that is not exactly a successful formula for running. Even so, after some healthy smack talk from my dad and my good friend Christian, who also just finished his first half marathon to celebrate recovering from an ACL surgery, they had me motivated to beat the both of them.

From the start, my dad was a valuable source for tips on how I should train and what to expect come race day. The biggest thing he and Christian both said was that no matter what my best training time was going to be, comparatively I would run better on race day, no matter what! Whether or not there was a mixture of proper rest, a lot of adrenaline, and great execution of my training plan, they were right — I managed close to 4 minutes better than my best time previously. If I am being honest my biggest barrier to finishing was training myself mentally and physically to be able to run 13.1 miles. And not only that but to do it in a time comparable to my father and Christian (spoiler, I beat them both).

Generally on race day, for all you prospective runners, understand that if your start time is at 7 you will have to be awake around 3 am. Because the longer the competition, the earlier the start time tends to be, which is to protect you from running in the heat — any of you ever try running in 90+ degree weather? This includes driving to the bus pickup location, riding the bus to the start line, and then “patiently” waiting for the race to begin. Now the night before the race, I felt such a pressing mix of anxiety and excitement, that I didn’t really sleep more than 3 hours total because my mind basically told Mr. Sandman to jog on. After tossing and turning some more, I finally decided to get up and get my bowels going with a nice tall cuppa joe — the anxiety and excitement alone gave me enough issues to deal with, I wasn’t going to let having to poop mid-race ruin my time.   

Once on the bus, everything became very surreal. I could feel an energy from everyone else on the bus fueling the that sensation. This only increased as we sat and waited as the bus filled completely and began the drive at which point a flash of panic hit me like a suckerpunch. I began wondering how capable I was, questioning my training, how much is this rain going to affect me? A nervous chatter began on the bus as multiple people began talking about their feelings about this being their first race — just hearing others confirm their fears helped to quell mine. By the time the bus hit the canyon everyone was dialed in and ready to push each other to and through the finish line. Our feelings of excitement only grew and as our bus pulled up to the start line everyone began cheering, I mean everyone was hyped up — I don’t know about the rest of the people on the bus but I felt like a damn superhero!

As time ticked closer and closer to the race start, my adrenaline was pumping.  At 1 minute to start, time truly slowed down for me. I could feel each individual drop of rain hitting my arms, I could hear the gravel crunch under crowd of shifting feet. Now when I say you could feel the anticipation amongst the crowd of runners, this was a physical sensation. Similar to the saying: when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object — something’s gotta give. With 30 seconds to start I noticed the announcers  had begun playing “The Eye of the Tiger” — I will rise up to the challenge of my rivals! 15 seconds left me slightly stunned as the chant of the countdown pierced through the music. At 10 seconds I felt the crowd rhythmically pulsating forward and back wistfully waiting for the starter gun. With 5 seconds left it felt as if time slowed almost to a stop, all the energy and sound around me was muffled. I remember looking at the clock and seeing the fractions of a second ticking away. 3 seconds left. I felt like someone turned the volume back on to my life — honestly it was an explosion of sound. 2 seconds. Glancing around, seeing the determination in everyone else, I knew it was time. 1 second.. This was it, time is up, no more bullshit. I am committed. And I will give this everything I’ve got. Let’s go baby.  

The post How to Run a Half Marathon appeared first on FactoryTwoFour.

A Go Bag, as in “I gotta go, grab the bag!” is your emergency kit that will allow you to quickly disappear whenever the need should arise. No judging here – sometimes you’ve got to leave town without anyone noticing… The purpose of the bag’s contents are to allow you to slip into hiding with nary a trace. Hiding from all of today’s different methods of tracking is no simple task, and one slip up will spell the end to your life on the run. With these Go Bag essentials and some wits, you should just make it to your hideout.

• LifeStraw

Essentials first. You need water to survive, and although free and clean water is generally plentiful in developed countries it never hurts to be versatile and have your bases covered. LifeStraw is a really handy device that can turn any water source into a potential life-saving drink. Whether you’re hiding out in the woods or the Detroit slums, almost any water source is now safe for you.

• MREs

Sticking with pure survival, dehydrated or freezedried food will last just about forever and keep you going as you trek for the border. You’ll need to keep your strength up to evade your pursuers, and MREs are designed for just such situations. We even hear the Gumbo is pretty tasty…

• Money

Of course, you’ll need some flow to keep you alive beyond just the basics. But you can forget your Apple Pay and Paypal. Use anything digital and you’ll be found within the hour. Same thing with traditional magnetic cards – the bank can immediately see the store location and relay that info on to the Feds. No, you’re sticking with cold hard cash. Cash is king, and it will grease the wheels of your exodus. Prepaid cards are also an option here, and a few for backup can’t hurt.

• Clothes

When you bolt, you’ll have the clothes on your back. Generally these will be enough for most situations, but you’ll want a backup pair that is highly versatile. Items that work well in urban and outdoor settings. Think zip-off or cargo pants, decent boots, and a warm shirt. Your striking a balance here between clothes that can help you survive in the wilderness and items you could wear downtown and not stand out. You might not know where you’ll run to when you do take off, so keep things versatile.

• Map

You’ll want to know where you are going, and without Google in your back pocket you’ll need to rely on good old-fashioned maps. We recommend a decently thorough, but still pocket-sized, almanac of your entire country of residence. It’ll get you around and you’ll be able to see major landmarks coming. For finer detail, local gas stations and friendly locals are your best bet.

• eReader

No one has time to stop off at the library on their way out of town, and even if you did the police would quickly see that you checked out books on eating native plants and great escapes in history. It won’t take them long to determine what you’re up to. BUT, if you toss an old eReader (sans internet connection of course) into your Go Bag that you loaded up with the same books months or years prior, no one will be the wiser. eReaders have so much information density compared to lugging around paperbacks that packing one is a no brainer. Also you’ll likely have lots of time on your hands, so maybe now you can finally finish off Moby Dick…

• Gun

Hey, you’re already on the run. What are they going to do, throw you in extra-prison? Your life is now in your hands, and if you really want to get to that rendeavous point it might mean stealing a few cars or grabbing a few cash registers to keep you on the road. Even if you’re more Robin Hood than John Dillinger, you’ll likely want a piston for self protection. Fugitives rarely get to mingle in social polite circles.

• Burner phone

We highly recommend against any contact with your now-former life, but if you absolutely MUST call someone you’ll need a burner phone to keep you safe. These drug dealer specials will allow you to reach out and touch something without the handcuffs immediately touching you, but for our money it is best to leave behind any device that connects to any network. Better safe than sorry.

• Fake ID

Finally, you haven’t successfully run away just to get a new mortgage and cell phone under your same name. No, you’ll need a new identity and that all starts with a fake ID. China (because OF COURSE) is putting out some spot-on replicas these days to go for a few hundred dollars. These baby will pass any scan or swipe test and are basically the real deal. Just please choose a believable birthdate, no extra points for giving yourself another swing at your twenties.

A good Go Bag can be the difference between a life on the run and a life behind bars. While looking over your shoulder for the rest of your life doesn’t exactly sound like fun, neither do prison showers or a mob bosses trunk. Just having the bag will put your mind at ease as you know that at any given moment you’d be ready for a break to the border. Just don’t confuse it with your gym bag in the heat of the moment…

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