American River 50

On Saturday, April 14, I am going to run the American River 50. Starting near Cal Expo, the course winds fifty miles up the American River Parkway, along Folsom Lake, up the North Fork of the American River and finishes at the Auburn Dam Overlook.

I have been targeting the AR50 as a goal for more than 2 1/2 years. Including the birthday party, a photo album and the yet unfinished soundtrack, it is part of my effort to celebrate 50 years on this earth.

Unless something goes horribly wrong, I also intend to post a picture with the mileage and the pace to my weblog at least every hour during the run. If you are so inclined, you can check the weblog and follow my progress over the course of the long, long day.

Sharon and Jack are planning to meet me at Nimbus Dam Overlook about 9:30 a.m., at Beals Point about 11:00 a.m. and at Granite Bay some time between 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. Probably the only stop that I will do more than walk through the stop is Granite Bay. Larkin is planning to join me at Granite Bay and cover the last 18 plus miles with me. As long as I am ahead of the pace for the cut-off time, I will probably spent 5 minutes at Granite Bay.

Sharon and Jack are also planning to meet Larkin and I at Rattlesnake Bar and at the end of the run at the Auburn Dam Outlook. I have no idea what kind of pace I will carry over the last part of the run, but very rough estimates of my times at Rattlesnake Bar and the Finish are 2:30 p.m. and 4:50 p.m.