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** If you are slightly too fast and overheat, it takes a long time to recover you core body temperature.
** If you don't drink quite enough, dehydration comes on fast. It's easy to underestimate your fluid needs as you can be sweating at your maximum sweat rate and feel dry because of the rapid evaporation.
** Because of the high fluid intakes, getting the right amount of salt is critical and [[Hyponatremia ]] as a more common problem.
* A sleep deprived cameraman who was filming the race said 'Death Valley is the coldest place on earth', and I think he's right. The temperature may be hot, but emotionally it's a cold and inhospitable place. However, I rekindled my love of the desert, with its austere and harsh beauty. There are two sayings; 'God made the desert so men could find their souls' and 'going for a run clears my head, but running 100 miles distils my soul'. Running so far in the desert can a uniquely purifying experience.
* A good crew is important in many ultras, and none more than Badwater. Having a good crew will make a huge difference at Badwater.
There were a number of things that didn't work for me at Badwater.
* '''Avoid all exposed skin'''. I had a slight gap between my running tights and my socks, which was enough to get a little sunburn and a little sand chaffing. I also had fingerless gloves and next time I think I will go for the full finger type. I could feel the wind and the sun burning my fingers, and if you touch something metal it's easy to get a burn.
* '''Lack of preparation'''. I run the marathon distance on a regular basis, but I don't do any walking in my training as generally I don't walk much on my races. I wasn't expecting to do more than a handful of miles as a pacer, so I didn't think that would be a problem, but I ended up covering over 75 miles. Walking is different from running, using different [[Muscle|muscles ]] and putting different stress on your feet. At the end of the first day my feet were sore and they were painful all of the second day. The pain is similar to [[Plantar Fasciitis]], so I wonder if it would help to strengthen underside of foot.
* '''Sandstorms'''. I was not prepared for the sandstorms, which were not massive, but none the less they make life remarkably unpleasant. I think I need some close fitting glasses or even skiing goggles.
* '''Lack of sunglasses'''. My sunglasses are pretty good, but at Badwater I wanted something much darker during the day, and I needed clear sunglasses to deal with the sand at night.
* '''Wear white'''. I was dressed nearly completely in white, but not quite. On the first day I had some shorts over my white tights, but I didn't bother on the second day as I could feel the difference in the heat. The other problem was my [[Shoes|shoes]], which were light blue and got too hot.