The Checkpoint "Official newsletter of the Atlanta TrailBlazers Adventure Racing Club" Volume One, Issue Six, September 2002 Editor: Jackie Williams Index Section One: Upcoming ATB Events Section Two: Training Tips/Gear Review, 151 Ways to Prevent Blisters by John Vonhof Section Three: Swap Shop Section Four: Side Notes SECTION ONE Upcoming ATB Events September Tues. 10th CLUB MEETING: Galyan's at Lenox in Buckhead; Topic: Adventure Racing Tips from Endurance Coach Sandy Geisel. Board Meeting 6pm; General Meeting 7pm. Free climbing on Galyan's three-story indoor wall and discounts to ATB members. Sat. 21st ADVENTURE RACING NAVIGATION CLINIC: in cooperation with Georgia Orienteering Club, followed by monthly meet. Sat.-Sun. 27th-28th FEATURED RACE: Endorphin Fix Two-Day Adventure Race @ New River Gorge, WV. October Sat. 5th FEATURED RACE: Second Annual Raging Russell Team Adventure Race @ Lake Russell Wildlife Management Area. ATB members receive $25.00 off the $225.00 entry fee. Tues. 8th CLUB MEETING: Topic: TBA. Location: TBA. Board Meeting 6 pm; General Meeting 7 pm. Sat 26th: Altamaha Wilderness Adventure Race @ Hazelhurst, Georgia. If 5 or more ATB teams register, all will receive $25 off the $225 entry fee. Check out www.trailblazerar.com to confirm event time and location or for more information. SECTION TWO Training Tips/Gear Review 151 Ways to Prevent Blisters by John Vonhof (excerpt taken from John Vonhof's book Fixing Your Feet: Prevention and Treatment for Athletes. First three sections, chapter to be completed in October newsletter) Most athletes hold a common misconception about blisters - that blisters are a simply a fact of life that one must learn to live with. Most athletes try tips that they learned from others. If those don't work, they move on to another idea. Most try for awhile, then give up and spend the rest of their life fixing their inevitable blisters. The fact is, there are many ways to prevent blisters. Adventure racer Dan O'Shea has spent eight years learning what works for him in preventing blisters, "I have trained my feet for the stress of my sport and they have a tough outer layer. For races, I use tincture of benzoin, followed by Sports Slick lubricant, and then a double-sock system." At the 1999 Beast of the East Adventure Race he raced with two first-timers whose feet were hardly conditioned to the rigors of a five-day race. After two days of racing Dan found that, " Both these individuals had blisters on top of blisters and could walk only with great pain." Dan and teammate Harald Zundel, both former Navy SEALS and experienced racers, had maybe one blister between the two of them. His story is a good example of how important it is to find what works for your feet. Over the years he has learned different blister prevention techniques that work best on his feet. But he also realizes that what works for him may change over time as he gets new or different shoes, as his feet change, and as he participates in different types of events under changing conditions. Dan has the right approach - keep on learning and always be open to new blister prevention ideas. Understand that while the blister prevention techniques you currently use may work today, they may not work tomorrow. Knowing what options are available will help you be prepared. The ideas that follow show the improvising spirit of athletes. Try one or two, then try a few more to find the ones that work for you. Things You Do to Your Feet Many athletes believe that what they do to their feet helps prevent blisters. They have identified many options that are worth trying. 1. Toughen the skin on your feet by walking and running barefoot on grass, dirt, and sand. - Matt Mahoney 2. I pamper my feet with a pedicure. - Veronica Williams 3. I keep my feet as soft as a baby's bottom. - Dave Scott 4. Form calluses on your feet. 5. Keep your toenails clipped short. - Pat & Walt Radney 6. I don't get blisters when my feet are wet! I even did my feet in streams. - Lisa Demoney 7. Keep your feet dry by changing socks whenever possible. - Mike Snow 8. Lightly sandpaper your feet every few days. - Mike Snow 9. For a week before I pack or race, I soak the soles of my feet in rubbing alcohol. - George Cole 10. Three days before an event, I apply an antiperspirant (Ban Roll-On) to all skin surfaces up to the ankles, especially between the toes. - George Cole 11. The more you run the tougher your feet will get. - Mike Snow 12. Give yourself foot massages whenever you can. - Karen Borski 13. Blisters and most other foot problems can be avoided altogether by hiking in bare feet. 14. Use a callus cream to soften calluses and prevent friction and resulting blisters. 15. One way to prevent blisters that sounds strange but works. Boil oak or hickory bark or tigs in water 5-15 minutes. Allow the water to cool. This makes a mild solution of tannic acid. Soaking feet in this solution will "tan" the skin on your feet and will help to prevent blisters. - Carl Schmid 16. My feet may have been in better shape from the running, but they weren't tough enough to deal with the stress that a pack was causing. You must train your feet also. - brick Robbins 17. Keep your feet soft and supple. I get a pedicure at least once a month smoothing out all calluses and rough spots, and put creams on my feet on a daily basis. When I hit the trails or raods, I use foot powder. Things have improved greatly. - Dave Littlehales Things You Apply to Your Feet There are many things you can apply to your feet to help prevent blisters. Lubricants and tape are two of the most popular. Powders are a distant third. Remember that whatever you apply to your feet will react to what you put around your feet. When you apply a lubricant, your socks will pick up some of it, and more application will be necessary. Tape works well, but tape applied poorly can be pulled loose as you pull on your socks. 1. Use Bag Balm as a lubricant to reduce friction. - Robert Blackwell 2. Apply Vaseline to your feet. - Annie, Phil Mislinski and Bob Slate 3. Johnson & Johnson Elastikon tape is great preventative medicine! It is porous and easier on your skin than duct tape. - Suzi Cope and Pat Wellington 4. Use strapping tape. 5. Apply five-inch strips of "cloth" style duct tape on the heels, the bottom front of the foot, and the toes. - John H 6. Apply Johnson & Johnson athletic tape over the spots that have been a problem in the past. - Karl King 7. Coat your feet with Hydropel Silicone Protective Ointment. 8. Duct tape known hot spots or problem areas. - George Cole, Bret Edge and Jeffrey Olson 9. Use Sports Slick lubricant each time you change your socks. - Dan O'Shea 10. Use tincture of benzoin to bond Blister Relief pads to you problem sports. - Jeff Wold 11. Use Spenco 2nd Skin covered with moleskin. - Rob Langsdorf 12. Rub your feet with rubbing alcohol every day for a month before starting a long hike. 13. Apply New-Skin Liquid Bandage in several layers over hot spots. - Kojac and Plodder 14. Use Gold Bond Powder, it is an indispensable cure-all for blisters. 15. Apply lanolin to your feet. 16. Apply Udder Balmas a lubricant. 17. Use clear nail polish in layers over hot spots. - Kojac 18. Use Avon's Silicone Glove cream to reduce friction. 19. Apply Tuf-Foot to toughen and protect your feet. 20. Use Zeasorb super absorbent powder on your feet. 21. Spray Mueller's Tuffner Clear Spray on your feet to toughen your skin. 22. Use Andrew Lovy's formula of A and D Ointment, Vaseline, Desitin ointment, vitamin E cream, and Aloe Vera cream. 23. Put moleskin over hot spots. 24. Duct tape really does fix everything. Placed over Second Skin, or other sterile bandaging, it prevents wear on the skin. - Sandra Kemper 25. Apply Band-Aid Blister Relief strips around your toes to prevent toe blisters. - Scott Weber 26. Use foot powder at every opportunity. - Karen Borski 27. Use adhesive felt, it is thicker than moleskin and sticks better. 28. Wash your feet every night when out on a hiking trip. - Karen Borski 29. We plastered our feet in a substance called Sudocream twice a day during a big race. Primarily designed to prevent diaper rash, this antiseptic healing cream leaves an oily trace on your feet and lasts for ages. - Brian Elliot 30. Use BodyGlide lubricant. 31. I put Band-Aid Blister Relief on any blister-prone spots prior to any race. 32. Apply multiple coats of tincture of benzoin to your feet as a toughener. Things You Put Around Your Feet What you put around your feet is one of the most important factors in blister prevention. The wrong type of socks, shoes or boots that fit wrong creating pressure points, and modifying your footwear can all help. This is an area where trying different ideas can really pay off. 1. Use two socks, a thin liner sock made of silk or polypropylene, with your favorite outer sock on top. - Dan O'Shea 2. Wear two pair of thin socks. - Buzz Burrell 3. Avoid cotton socks, they retain moisture. 4. Wear socks with Blister-Guard's Teflon Fibers. 5. Duct tape your socks in areas where you tend to blister. - Rick Lewis 6. I've had good luck putting pieces of lamb's wool coated with lanolin between the toes. This soft fibrous padding is usually available in the foot section of most drug stores and pharmacies. The natural lanolin in the wool was a break through, because no matter how well or completely I tape my toes, I blistered between them. - Ray Zirblis 7. To prevent heel blisters, put a piece of lambswool in the heel of the sock. - Joanne Lennox 8. Don't wear polypropylene sock liners. Until I threw mine away, I had horrible blisters which I had to duct tape. - BettySue Allen 9. Be sure to smooth the heels of your socks, and check the heels of your insoles and inside of your heel counters for folds and worn or torn material. - Jay Hodde 10. Well cushioned shoes. - Veronica Williams 11. Duct tape rough areas inside your boots. 12. Once I find a pair of shoes that fits well and works for my running style and choice of terrain I buy at least six pair. - Phil Mislinski 13. To prevent heel blisters at the bottom back edge of the heel where the insole meets the foot, put a small piece of lambswool or sheepskin on the edge on the insole to fill that space. - Joanne Lennox 14. Take time to really test a new boot before leaving the store. I usually wear mine around the store for an hour or more before deciding to tke it. It takes time, but consumes less time than having to return it or having to spend lots of time treating blisters. - Rob Langsdorf 15. Use sheepskin and lambswool. In a pinch you can cut the top off ragg socks or by unraveling the sock and getting a bunch of yarn. - Joanne Lennox 16. Breal in new boots by wearing them around the house, to work, church, etc. before going out on the trail. Then begin with some easy hikes before starting off on a long trip. Only when they feel good on a short hike are they ready for a longer one. - Rob Langsdorf 17. If you haven't worn your old boots for sometime, always take at least one break in walk in them before going on a major hike. Your feet may have changed and it may need to get reacquainted with the boot before making a long hike with it. - Rob Langsdorf 18. Switch from leather boots to running shoes for hiking and modify them with your knife if they feel to tight or hurt. - Kojac 19. Always wear SmartWool ultra thin running socks, they are great at wicking, dry quickly, and cause no irritation. - Phil Mislinski 20. Replace worn out shoes. - Kojac 21. Get boots that fit properly. - Cynthia Taylor-Miller 22. To keep your feet dry, look for shoes and boots with good ventilation. - Cynthia Taylor-Miller 23. Wear socks inside out. The seam that goes across the toes can rub the tops and sides of the toes and cause blisters. - Cynthea Taylor-Miller 24. Wear liner socks. 25. Wear SealSkinz waterproof socks. 26. Well made orthotics will help prevent blisters. 27. Weave strips of lambswool between your toes and around the tips of your toes, and add more as needed. Wash it occasionally to restore its loft and cushioning. - Michael Henderson 28. The heel is the first part of the sock to wear thin, get new socks before they get too threadbare. - Kevin Corcoran 29. Unless it's quite cold I wear well-ventilated trail running shoes when on the trail. - George Cole 30. Use shoes that are tested for the event and the distance. Have one model for cold-weather and another for trails in warm and/or wet conditions. - Doug McKeever 31. Wear Gore-Tex fabric socks. 32. Wear three pairs of socks, the first pair is a wicking sock, then regular socks. - Matthew Jankowicz 33. Wear rock climber's socks. They are thin and fit snugly. - Will Uher 34. To drain out seat and water, use a red hot nail to burn drain holes on the sides of your shoes right at the sock liner height wear the shoe bends. - Jim Stroup 35. Check a new pair of shoes or boots for problem areas, even if they are the same brand and size as your last pair. - Joanne Lennox 36. Coolmax socks do an excellent job of wicking moisture away from the feet. - Paul Alsop 37. Wear shoe gaiters to keep rocks, dust and dirt out of the shoes, which means that the socks stay cleaner longer. - Paul Alsop 38. Once I switched to another pair of shoes the blisters went away. Many shoes breathe better than others and are better on your feet. 39. For hiking I use an old pair of combat boots with the toes cut off about three inches across the top of the toes. Have a shoe shop sew a strip of leather about one-inch wide across the boot to reinforce the opening. This makes all five toes visible on both feet and saves the toes. - Billie M Thrash 40. First duct tape all problem areas, then apply a light coating of lubricant to your feet, put the first sock on each foot, apply more lubricant to the foot section of the socks, and then put on the second pair of socks. - Dalton Pulsipher Jr. 41. Put a patch of lambswool on a bruised, sore, or blistered area and secure it to the foot with duct tape. - Scott Weber Chapter excerpt to be completed in October newsletter. SECTION THREE Swap Shop If you have some adventure racing gear to sell, swap or want, Jackie Williams, jswilliams21 @hotmail.com, and we'll post it here. Send us the item, price, description, photo (if possible), and contact information. For Sale: Cassin Eolo Racing Harness (medium size) This is a great adventure racing climbng harness. It's very light weight and it meets all necessary regulations. It's only been used two or three times. I'm selling it because it's too big. You can get a full description at this link: http://www.argear.com/gear/grcassineolo.html. It retails for $69 plus tax and shipping. I would like to get $49. Marjorie Perry adventuremom@mindspring.com, (404) 822-7674 (cell) For Sale: 17 inch Schwinn Moab 2000. This bike is almost three years old. It originally cost about $900. It was only used for a year. It's been in storage for a year and a half. Would like to get $450. Marjorie Perry adventuremom@mindspring.com, (404) 822-7674 (cell) For Sale: Ocean Kayak Cabo, sit on top Tandem Kayak I am relocating to Germany in a few months and regrettably need to get rid of this kayak. It has been an awesome training tool. It is PERFECT for training and working on your open water stroke techniques, cadence/pace and paddle-muscle development. Once you master this thing, you will FLY on performance kayaks. It is the same, exact model Sandy, Todd, Bill Dean and I used in the Expedition BVI race. We even rigged cool sails on it for the race. (In fact, I bought it solely for the purposes of preparing for that race.) The following is a link to the CABO site and has the dimensions and features listed. I am in NC, so there will be additional shipping charges, but I am asking $500. Ocean Kayak Additional CABO Kayak in action photos from BVI available upon request. Contact Chris "Robie" Robishaw, (910) 867-7184, IMRobie@aol.com. For Sale: Women's Cannondale R400 This road bike is about ten years old but it is still in good shape and it's still a Cannondale. Frame size is a women's small-good for a person 5' to 5'4". Asking $100.00 or OBO. Contact Dawn Muscio at 770.436.0029. For Sale: Petzl Headlamps Two basic Petzl Headlamps for sale. Lamps are both single bulb with adaptable light radius. Take two AA batteries attached to the light. Asking $15.00 apiece. Contact Jackie Williams at jswilliams21@hotmail.com or 404.234.1861. For Sale: Draft Master Bike Rack Draft Master bike rack for sale for 2" receiver hitch. Fits four bikes. $100.00. Contact Becky Rentz at brentz3@hotmail.com or 404.325.8072. For Sale: Thule Roof Rack with Fairing Thule Roof Rack, fits two bikes and most vehicles. A short car adaptor for hatchbacks is also available. Excellent condition. Asking $200. Contact William Key at uacatz@mac.com. Werner Paddles 2 Paddles - Werner Point Paddles, a quality beginner/entry level paddle for whitewater or boats with a smaller girth. Fiberglass shafts and composite blades. One is 202 cm with a right hand control grip, the other is 204 cm with no grip. Yellow shaft and white blades. Excellent condition. $100 new, asking $49 each. Contact robbstanek@hotmail.com, or 770.745.5752. SECTION FOUR Side Notes Please send in your race results, articles and stories to Cathi Cannon, cathi@eyeprojector.com, to be included on the web page. Also if you read something interesting about gear, training, etc. that would be helpful to the rest of the membership let Jackie Williams know by e-mailing the article or where it can be found to jswilliams21@hotmail.com, by the 25th of each month and she will include the information in the next month's newsletter. If you're new to the sport and not sure about racing, volunteer for ATB. It's the best way to learn about adventure racing from the inside out. On that note, ATB is putting out a call for volunteers to help organize ATB events. Please contact Sandy Geisel (sgeisel1@aol.com) or Bryan Goble (goble1@hotmail.com) if you are interested in participating in any way. www.trailblazerar.com