the "90 miler" thread

[spidennis]

I've looked around but hadn't found a thread/forum for the racers/crew for the "90" so I'm starting one.

My name is dennis and I'm entered in the non competitive class "open touring". I saw the start of day 2 last year at long lake and I was hooked!

Last year I did paddle from Long Lake to tupper lake so when I found out about "the 90" I was keen to see some of this race before I left the dacks for the summer. I was prepared to do the race in the "yellow beast", a tandem 70 lb yellow plastic Aquaterra kayak with Spring Creek portage wheels (that I've modified) but since then have placed an order in for a RapidFire from Placid Boat Works. (oh yeah! and it should be ready any day now! )

My training this year has been in the "yellow beast" and I've done a long lake to tupper lake 12 hour run and some tupper lake rides up to the bog river falls and back. I'm also running the two trails up to coney mt on alternate days. It'll be interesting to see how much easier things will get once I have the rf and a better paddle, running up the mountain on the otherhand, well, is still tough, though my last leg, the downhill section on the backside is quite fun! I call it the bobsled run ..... and I thank the hiking club guys for clearing the trail and installing those bridges!

Last year, while doing recon at the start of the second day, I saw that most were using those energy gels. Is there a place locally (to tupper) where I can get them? Or is this a mail order thing? what is suggested?

I invite other racers and crews to chime in and ask questions, make comments, introduce themselves, etc. and I'll see everyone in Old Forge!

this is me, at the beginning of my first portage at raquette river falls last summer, just before it starting raining cats and dogs!

I don't any info. on the "90 miler"...I have done the route as a canoe trip a couple of times.
What I wanted to comment on was Coney Mountain...that's quite the little peak. Years ago I did an overnight camping trip up there. If I recall there was some kind of big white cross up there...I always wondered what that was all about. Is that still up there? Must be quite the workout running up & down that puppy

[DSettahr]

I've pit crewed for the Paul Smith's Canoe Team for the 90-miler for the past three years. I don't have any personal experience with the energy gels, but I know that most of our paddlers did just fine without them. Gatorade, water, candy and granola bars, and bananas kept them going each day.

Pit Crew is a lot of fun- it's basically 5% sheer excitement of passing over food and water to the paddlers during the caries, and 95% hanging around all day in the sun drinking the gatorade and eating the candy bars that are meant for the paddlers. (If you don't take care of yourself first, you can't be expected to help anyone else!)

Every year, the PSC team sets up a pit stop on the rock beneath State Bridge on Route 3 on the 3rd day of the race, and tosses food and drinks to our boats as they go by... sometimes we miss and then someone has to go swimming to recover the food, but last year I was 10 for 10 on banana tosses.

[fvrwld]

90 miler website

I never realized there were so many classes.

I'm curious Dennis, do you plan on really pushing yourself of do you plan on going at a more leisurely, steady pace.

[spidennis]

Originally Posted by fvrwld

90 miler website
I'm curious Dennis, do you plan on really pushing yourself of do you plan on going at a more leisurely, steady pace.

that's a good question. mainly I want to finish the course, but actual racing for time is not my goal, at least this year. I also race "enduros" on off road motorcycles, but rarely do it to try and win. Many times I take photos along the way, but mostly I help out other riders that get in a jam, I'm just returning the favor ...... so when it comes to this year's "90" I can gather I'll follow the same game plan, ride hard, smell the roses along the way, help out those that might need a hand, and ride hard again .... it's a plan anyway. Next year might be different, but I still don't want to let that little race devil get into my head too much, it makes time for only one thing and one person and that's not for me, I'm not a pro racer.

[Wldrns]

Yes, those energy gels are common. I've never gone that way, but I have changed the type of food I take in over the years. First of all, you do realize that you must eat, no way around it. If I go as much as 2 hours without taking something in, I feel the power curve decline. The problem is that your digestive system tends to shut down under high exercise. Another problem is you may be suddenly trying to put things into your system (dense, high calorie, unusual) that your system is not accustomed to digesting. As a result you become turned off by the thought of eating anything. I had problems with this when I first started doing the 90 Miler a few years ago.

I've had much success with fresh fruit, maybe a little dehydrated fruit (home dehydrated bananas seem to be best), a few dates taken all with plenty of diluted gatorade. Most of all I have really grown to like liquid supplements. Some people go for things like Ensure, or Boost. Those are fine but I also like liquid Instant Breakfast. It seems to go down easy no matter how tired I am and it remains appealing. Any of these contain from 250-350 calories per serving and are fast digesting.

If you look at my Yukon 1000 trip report post you'll see a container of cherries velcroed to the bow deck in front of me. I discovered that eating just one cherry every 20 minutes or so kept my stomach in a food receptive mode. With that method I had no problem eating other high calorie food including Instant Breakfast, and also a very dense super caloric Logan bread that I made for the trip. The cherries and fresh apples lasted into the third day, and by then my system seems to have adjusted to accepting the kinds of food I was taking in quantity. I had no food troubles or lack of energy paddling 18 hours a day for the entire 6 day 1000 mile trip.

[Connecticut Yankee]

Welcome to the "90 Miler", it is a great experience, as much a social event as a race. My son and I did it in the family class the last two years, 1'st year our goal was just to finish, last year we pushed it more and finished 2 1/2 hours faster than the first year, though the high water helped. This year I'm building a woodstrip guideboat for the race. Hopefully the boat will be done by the end of next week, just started the oars yesterday, got to get it finished in time for a bit of rowing practice.
The energy gells do work well, and are easy to take in, as Wilderness says, sometimes your body just doesn't want to eat but you absolutely need calories and replacement of electrolites. My son likes shot blocks better than the jells. Bananas and orange slices are good for you and go down easily. A sport drink of some type is very important, but don't take the stuff streight up, I water it down some, streight gatoraide will knot your stomach right up on a hot day (at least it does for me). I use Nuun tablets in my water, Camelback Elixer tablets do the same thing, replace electrolites and the citrus flavor seems to clean your throat and mouth and refresh you. Taking a gel every half hour to 45 min and you can really feel a boost in the system in just a couple of minutes. You can buy them at the EMS in Lake Placid. Try them on a long paddle though before the race to see what works for you. Back in the old days in my former life as a canoe racer and before the new gels etc. I ate bananas , orange sections grapes and drank watered down grapejuice.
You'll enjoy the race, and you'll make some new friends, each day you will be paddling along with the same folks going about the same speed as you. Don't get discouraged on the first day , it is absolutely the hardest, not just because it is the longest but the 3 long portages, though with your running up the mountain and getting a very light boat that probably won't bother you like it does my 58 year old worn out knees.
We adkforum paddlers should get together at the picnic at the end of the race, have an icecream and tell paddling war stories.

John M. A Connecticut Yankee

[ALGonquin Bob]

Where is Coney Mountain?
And if you're not already using those power gels, I would start now to be sure that the product agrees with you. Otherwise, stick with what you've been eating while training to avoid any unpleasant surprises. Personally, there are some food products that I can't eat. When I did the Adirondack Canoe Classic in my solo canoe, and later in a solo touring kayak, I didn't eat much (mostly Cliff bars or Cliff Shots), but be sure you are well hydrated leading up to the race, drink plenty of fluids with electrolytes while racing, do eat a good dinner each day, and start out with a hearty breakfast. I almost signed up again this year, but it didn't work out. Have fun!

[spidennis]

Originally Posted by ALGonquin Bob

Where is Coney Mountain?

from tupper lake, heading towards long lake, (past the end of tupper lake and 421) there will be a snowplow turnaround on the right, park there. (less than a mile from 421) there's two trails, the steeper one is directly across the hwy and the other is about 50ish yards back towards tupper marked with pink ribbons. both meet up towards the top on the south side. that white cross paddlewheel was asking about is (was?) on the north slope on the big tupper side. I'll have to check that out next time I'm up there. coney mt. is right on the edge of state land and also the county line (of franklin and hamilton). while driving on the hwy just past tl, you'll see an impressive bald peak (hill), that's coney mt. and that parking lot will be close. It's also just past "Lumberjack springs" and the path up to Goodman Mt.

pics help huh?


my running shoes:
(wish they were water proof but they do a good job anyway)

[spidennis]

thanks guys for all the nutrition information, I'll be testing them out during my training. I've been needing to really get after this subject for some time now because in my "offroad motorcycle enduros" the course is usually at least 5 1/2 hours long (flying thru narrow trails in the trees) and I'm completely spent at the end! this nutrition info will really help me out in both sports!

wldnrs, that yukon adventure of yours is over the top there man!

[Awetcanoe]

On the subject of energy enhancers you might consider this product,
http://www.medioncorp.com/hm/ediscs/...iscs-snapshot/
These are a tablet form of carbs and electrolytes.

They also have other blends designed for high temperatures and such.

[WinterWarlock]

Just wanted to share my experiences with the energy gels -

When exerting myself, I have a tough time keeping my sugar balanced....not a diabetic, but the opposite, and my blood sugar will occasionally drop very low. The gels make that much worse, as I get a short term spike, then a dramatic drop in blood sugar, to the point I get dizzy and faint.

Everyone's different, and I know plenty of people who use them, but for me they're a bit scary.

BTW - I get the same problem with RedBull and the like...I just leave all that stuff alone.

[spidennis]

we got the rapidfire yesterday. this morning I put my garmin 478 in the boat to see what numbers it turned up. I can hit 6.4 mph but can keep it above 6.0 in haul butt mode. turned down I can do 4.5 all day long I'd gather. time to do some of these trips I've been thinking about ....... including the long lake (state boat ramp) to tupper lake (blue jay campsite) route.

[spidennis]

my nutritional supplement update:

I tired Boost, and Ensure, but not too keen on their bulky plastic bottles, especially after they are trash.
Today I got some GU energy gels to try out (tomorrow). vanilla bean and lemon sublime .......
there's a whole world of stuff out there and I'll just have to try stuff out as I can, when I can.

Paddling sure is nice in the rf!

[Connecticut Yankee]

The "90 Miler is getting close. I've finished building my guideboat and have about 18 hours in it so far. I have tomorrow off and want to do about 3 hours on the Farmington here in CT. I was up in the Adks Mon-Wed this past week and did the final day (over the course of 2 days) from Fish Creek to Saranac Village. Biggest problem I have so far is getting my butt ready. The paddling I"ve done this summer rolled over pretty well to rowing but the rocking motion on the seat is definately different. 9 more days on the water to get ready.

See you all there,
John M, A Connecticut Yankee

[spidennis]

john, glad to hear you got your boat going! which class are you entered in? I got my portage device going yesterday but there's still some tweaking to do it it. where did the summer go? or when is it going to get here? I'm planning on some colder days at the race. If it's warm, then all the better ..... but what to wear? I'm from deep south texas, and this outdoor AC is really working good up here! last night was 40ish something?! burrr!

[spidennis]

Yesterday I did a training run, the day two from long lake to the crusher, then on to tupper lake, with full camping gear. It was from state boat launch site to state boat launch site and did it in 9 hours. the extra gear really slowed me down so it'll be nice to have an empty boat for the race.

I started in the heavy fog, and if it's the same way for the race, oh boy will that add a bit of a challenge to the front runners! I had to nav by gps as the fog was just so thick nothing could be seen, it was a complete white out. No other boats were out on the lake (whew) so I set my course for the best line I could, I just followed where the arrow was pointing me. my compass was packed in my camping gear and didn't want to fuss with getting it out but would have been nice to follow a compass bearing and let the gps display go to sleep mode to conserve battery power. when I got to the end of the lake and into the river the fog had lifted, at least there, and from there it was smooth sailing.
the falls come pretty quick in relation to the part of the trip after the falls, at least I think so, and I was still pretty fresh when I put into action my portage backpack frame. oh yeah baby, is that device ever soooooo nice! Light, quick to put on, and it balances the load nicely, and it's adjustable so I can slide the boat a bit forward or aft depending on what's happening. I was even able to pull out a sandwich and munch on it while on the way down. after the falls is the long part of the trip, the river twists and turns endlessly and I'm getting a bit tired. after the crusher I still have over two hours yet to go but after stoking up on some energy products I found that by I got to simon pond I was back to full paddle. Once I got back onto tupper lake I saw group of kayakers in the distance. I couldn't tell which direction they were headed but soon I found I was catching them and then I really poured it on for a sprint to my finish.
I still have a few things to fine tune before the race but I'm feeling much better about this all, but three days in a row? we'll see!

[Awetcanoe]

Nice run, Now you just get to see how well your body recovers overnight for the next days run.

[Awetcanoe]

To all you guys & gals heading to the 90 tomorrow. Have fun up there.
My wife and I will be working the event so we will see you pass by each day.

[Connecticut Yankee]

Be sure to give us some encouragement as we pass, my son and I will be in the guideboat class. We'll probably be the last guideboat but we'll be chuggin' along. Our boat is a light colored stripper guideboat and we'll be the big OLD guy with the skinney kid in the back, let us know your on the forum when we pass, It will be nice to meet some of you all.
We have plenty of paddling in this summer but I just finished the boat 3 weeks ago so haven't been rowing much yet, and we've only been in it together a half dozen times. We did go out on a local lake this past weekend, being Labor Day there were lots of big motor boats out so we got a feel for the guideboat in some big boat waves, quite seaworthy actually.
My avitar is us finishing the first day at Blue Mt Lake a couple years ago when JD was 15.
Good luck to all involved
and have FUN.

John & JD