The countdown to 24hrs of Great Glen

So I'm in the final stretch coming up to the big 24hr race at Great Glen. Rob Bousquet and I will be racing as a two-man team on single-speed bikes. It's going to be two men, two bikes, two gears and one dream--to be the best! Hah. My dream, more of a potentially sleep deprived delusion, will be to survive. I got my last big training ride in on August 1st: just under 6hrs on the bike and just under 50 miles covering trails in Bradley Palmer, Willowdale and along the Bay Circuit Trail. I'm amazed at the amount of great trails in my back yard, and I can't believe how many of them are new to me. This Bay Circuit Trail will definitely needs further exploration. Anyway, I survived the training ride without complications. I was getting sore--not sore/tired legs, but sore neck/wrists/butt. I'm thinking that with the frequent breaks and ability to stretch between laps will help mitigate that at the 24hr race. And, I carried just about all the water/fuel I needed for this last ride with me--another thing that I won't have to worry about at Great Glen. Nope, I'll just have to worry about staying awake and keeping those pedals churning, mile after mile, hour after hour...

I still have plenty of preparation ahead of me before I'm ready to head north too. This is my first week at a new job--which is great, but I'm basically heading home each night and trying to organize and pack gear. Here's tentative list:

• helmet (2)
  sunglasses (2)
  jerseys (up to 10)
  shorts (up to 10)
  socks (up to 10 pr)
  cycling shoes (3)
  gloves (all)
  t-shirts (4)
  shorts (3)
  underwear (3)
  flip-flops
  coat hangers
  first aid kit
  camera
  Water
  Gatorade (liquid and powder)
  Gels
  Bars
  Food…
  towels
  tent
  tarps
  air mattress
  sleeping bag
  camp chair
  camping lights
  kenda 10x10 tent
  folding table
  Rig (that's my bike)
  D440 (that's a back-up bike)
  cycling lights (all & charged), including blinking red lights
  extra tubes
  disc pads
  chain
  extra bolts
  pedals
  work stand
  tool kit
  bike wash materials
  

And, I might be bringing my friend Doug who has graciously offered to give up his weekend to help out (and to watch me suffer).

So much packing and preparation--why am I doing this? Stay tuned...