Fastpacking in the Ozarks with Scott
When do you throw in the towel?
"When does Todd Chandler throw in the Towel," asked Matt DeRuyter after my outrun challenger for May, Jeremiah ClownfishCheck, ran back-to-back-to-back 20 milers this weekend. That means I’m currently down 76 miles, so it’s a natural question to ask, when do I throw in the towel.
Well, not today. It’s only May 12 which means there are 19 days left in the month. I only have to run 4 miles a day to cover 76 miles. Actually, I have to run 4 miles more than Jeremiah every day. That’s more of challenge. But why would I throw in the towel when I don’t know how many miles he will run.
If he runs 0 miles a day, I’ll catch him. If he runs 50 miles a day, I won’t. The reality will likely be somewhere in-between.
I mapped out the gap in miles across the days remaining in the month to create Todd’s Chart of Worry. I’m still well within the "I got this" zone. If the gap is still 76 miles at day 10, I’ll have moved into "it stinks." At 76 miles with 7 days remaining, and I’m into "oh crap" territory.
“This is not the end. It’s not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.” ~ Winston Churchill