22 hours. I'm a sleeper.
Getting there:
We (Chas, Brad and I) left Lisa's house around 6:30am friday morning in great spirits, loaded with all types of power food and drink.
The start:
Headed out on the C&O canal around 8:30am from Spring Gap (about 10 miles southeast of Cumberland, MD) ready to conquer the world, or at least Shepherdstown WV, a hundred miles down stream.
The beginning:
The first miles past effortlessly and required conscious thought to hold back and not go out at too hard a pace. Eric joined us on bicycle after the first seven miles and biked slowly along side. We mixed fast walks with slow jogs for the next 30 or so miles. Stopping along the way where the car rendezvous with Lisa had been arranged. Fighting off the first pains and doubts did not seem too difficult.
After 40 miles:
Things still looked good at 40 miles. Everyone was on schedule for 100 miles in 25 hours (4 miles an hour.) But the walks began to slow down and the jogs were becoming fewer and farther between. By this point the night fall was upon us and the mostly cloudy day turned into an evening of light showers and balmy 40 degree temperatures. However, the full-moon was still providing enough light so that it was not necessary to use any additional lights.
Around the 45 mile mark I went out ahead of Chas and Brad with a slow jog. A few miles before our designated 50 mile aid stop, in Hancock MD, the first serious pains set in. The muscles around my hips were starting to cramp, and shooting pains removed any thoughts of continuing to jog, it was a walk now.
Arriving at 50 miles:
I arrived at the 50 mile mark cold and tired; at least it wasn't raining. Emory had arrived to join the support crew and add some more personality to the whole entourage. It was obvious the he was there to party!
The first thing was warm clothes, then into a sleeping bag to get warm and to eat. My legs were stiff and the decision to continue was not an easy one. After getting warm and nourishing myself with a 7oz. beer, a can of cold soup (no more gas for Eric's stove), and various other snacks, pain killers, etc., another ten miles or so to the next check point didn't seem too bad, and that would at least be 100 kilometers! Chas and Brad chose to celebrate 50 miles (by sleeping) and from this point on it would be a solo effort.
Into the night:
The next 12 miles were not easy. It was cold, it was dark, it was wet, my feet hurt, my upper legs ached, I was tired, I was alone... The bike support presence was becoming erratic. However, I knew that Emory had gone a head to the next check point and was going to hike in to meet me on the trail, so I plodded along (even pulling out some short jogs) knowing I would eventually run into him coming the opposite way.
Sure enough, around mile 56 or so Emory appeared with a backpack full of beer and an excellent (alcohol enhanced) attitude. On to mile 60 I was still able to keep a good pace and arrived at Emory's car ahead of him. A very short break and it was just 2 more miles to Lisa's car.
Into the mind:
The 2 miles from 61 to 63 really began to test me. I was beginning to stumble mentally and physically but I made it. The weather was down right awful, the support crew seemed as beaten down as I was, everyone was tired now, and it was after 3:00am.
I decided to apply a healthy dose of Mole Skin (foot bandages for blisters, etc.) and some dry socks. I thought it would be enough to get me 10 more miles to Williamsport, MD and over the 70 mile mark. I trudged off into the wet darkness on the verge of that fine line between courage and stupidity.
Out there:
The first few miles seemed manageable. The bike support visited once and then passed on ahead. I caught back up with a napping Eric with bicycle by his side, took a short break and continued on to be passed one last time by my support. What would be the last six or eight miles of my journey were to be experienced completely alone.
As I walked these final miles I strained to stay standing. Pains came from my feet, my shins, my thighs, and my hips. But I think the mental state resulting from the lack of sleep and prolonged physical exertion (we are around the 20 hour point) was what really got to me. I was "falling asleep at the wheel", periodically regaining conscious awareness to find myself several feet off the trail heading into the woods. I stopped often to rest, standing, hands on my knees and my head down. I would rise after a short while usually to experience a light-headedness that caused me to buckle at the knees and stumble to catch my balance (although I never actually fell.) On at least one occasion I laid down in the middle of the trail for a short rest, but I could not stop.
The end:
I arrived around 7:00am at Williamsport to be greeted by Lisa, with the rest of the crew soundly sleeping in cars and on the ground. Without much to say, I just retired to a sleeping bag and quickly shut off my remaining consciousness as the sun rose.
Results:
22 hours, 73.5 miles, and I _will_ give it another try...
NOTE: I did try it again on two more occasions with my best being about 86 miles.
I'd say about 72 hrs. After the birth of each of my children I'd never get any sleep for the first 3 days. After my last child we finally figured out is was the pain medicine they gave me that was causing panic attacks and the inability to sleep. Just awful--especially having a crying newborn and c-section pain!
There is no way I could stay awake for even 48 hours straight. I just get stupid and mean.
Now, I have on several occassions gone for a week (+/-) getting only a couple hours a night. After about 7 days of that, what ever I was doing just doesn't seem nearly as important. When I came home from college after finals, it was pretty common for me to eat a big meal and sleep for 14 hours straight. Man. I would love to be able to do that again.
"...the longest I've ever gone without sleep was about 85 hours, with the help of a ton of coffee, Diet Coke, and Reeses Peanut Butter Cups."
Have you tried American Ginseng? (Panax quinquefolium) I'm talking about the real wild root, not Walmart capsules or Siberian Ginseng (which is not even in the ginseng family). Once you've loaded up your system with it (about 30 days) you will find that you can survive on much less sleep and remain alert. I sleep on average 3-4 hours per night during our season from Sept. 1 through the end of November.
BTW, 56 hours while driving across the U.S. from NY to WA. Never again.
Used to get by on four hours of sleep a day, but it had to be EVERY day.
Slept for 6 hours, woke up, drank a half gallon of milk and then slept for another 8.
When Mrs. B had surgery, I stayed awake 36 hours until she was out of the woods. Smokes, and self-hypnosis. I may have done it a bit longer in younger days.
The 80s...I passed out a lot.....
I think my record's somewhere around 48 hrs, but my husband once pulled off a 96 hr no sleep jaunt while on a submarine deployment. He had half stumbled into the crews mess and ran right into the XO. XO asked him what was going on, he told him, and the XO ordered him to the rack (bed).
46 hours. Pharmaceutically propagated.
At the end I was hallucinating.
Thank G-d I don't have to live like that any more!
I never did get used to eating corn flakes for supper and pork chops for breakfast though.
Regards,
GtG
January
18 minutes. I have a sleeping disorder and fall asleep with no prior warnsfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfiosfio
44 hours with the help of hard labor pains. Before that I would pull one all-nighter a week (Thursdays) while in my first year of law school. It would be from about 6 am Thursday morning to 6 pm Friday evening but then I would crash. I was a real social stick-in-the-mud that year. It was pretty hard on me although I didn't necessarily feel it at the time. I do remember driving alone back home for Thanksgiving, a four-hour drive, and idly watching my left hand keep dropping off the steering wheel. I would haul it back up and it would drop off again after a minute or two. Didn't feel groggy or anything. I thought the arm incident was mildly amusing but I'm glad I didn't have any traffic emergencies to deal with during that trip. Real dumb.