After a long cold Spring and no chance to acclimate to heat, runners should push a lot of water and sodium from the very start of an ultra. 1. Drink water and take some salt BEFORE the race begins. Race Directors will please provide, water AND CUPS at the start line. 2. You need 400 to 800 mgm of sodium per hour under hot conditions. The average small pretzel or saltine found at the aid stations has only 30 mgm of sodium. If you're drinking water only, you'd need 13 of those per hour to get in enough sodium. Even if you're taking a sportsdrink, one or two pretzels may not be enough. Most drinks are on the low side of the sodium requirement because the drinks would taste like sea water if they had sodium levels equivalent to 800 mgm/hour. 3. Colas typically contain little or no sodium. A steady diet of half cola, half water could lead to inadequate sodium in a few hours of running. 4. Don't be fooled by running in dry weather. Sweat may evaporate so fast that you think you're not sweating much when in fact you're sweating a great deal, and losing water through your lungs as you exhale. 5. Don't assume that you are hydrated if you pee late in a run. If you are low on sodium, your body will be forced to dump water to keep you from going into a state of hyponatremia ( low sodium ). Thus it is possible to be dehydrated and peeing at the same time. 6. If you do get dehyrated, take salt and water together. Your body will not properly re-hydrate if you don't have sodium on board. Therefore, avoid soda and sparkling waters unless you also take sodium. 7. Don't trust your sense of thirst in an ultra. Most people are actually dehydrated by the time they register as thirsty. 8. If you do get dehydrated, your blood pressure will be low. If you jump into a hot shower after the run, the blood vessels near the skin will dilate and your blood pressure will drop so low that your heart cannot push blood to the brain for a few seconds and you will pass out in the shower. If you need to clean up, use a wash cloth wet with tepid water. 9. If you feel dizzy or have a queasy stomach, slow down or sit for a while. If it is really hot, you weren't going to have a PR anyway, so why kill yourself to finish a few minutes sooner? 10. The runners most in danger of dehydration are not the speedsters at the front of the race, but those at the back of the pack who spend more hours out in the heat. 11. If there is ice at the aid stations, consider wearing a white, mesh cap in which you can put ice cubes. It may look silly, but may also help cool your head a lot. It worked wonders for me at the hot, humid '94 Vermont 100. ----------------------------- I will echo the statement: it is just as stressful to be Race Director on a bad day as it is to run. Karl King, RD Ice Age 50 kking@omnifest.uwm.edu 4/23/96