Packed 5 gels and 32 ounces of water. This was my second attempt at the end to end unsupported FKT. My first was 22 seconds too slow. Fast forward 2 weeks and the trails have substantially more leaf coverage. The night before I was pretty confident I wouldn't be able to run faster but I also knew I was more fit with one full time trail completed. My hope when training throughout the summer was I wouldn't still be breast feeding. My youngest had other plans. I knew the night of rain would make the trail slick and the boardwalks slicker. This would be my last attempt this fall. All these thoughts running through my head. I cannot escape from the list of negative thoughts before a race or an event. They become so debilitating that I feel like it takes herculean effort getting myself to the start. At the trail head, I tell myself, "just try". The first miles with substantial climbs are a lot slower than I had hoped. The leaves took away my downhill advantage. I was really tentative at first feeling my ankle from my first attempt tweaking out a bit. About 7 miles in I realize I lost a gel on the trail and my paces would not be fast enough. I dwell on this for a second then push on, knowing that I have completed the major climbs. I will make the most of this day. I was super lucky with the road crossings and the downed tree was clear which slowed me down the first attempt. The Crescent Trail Association does a tremendous job maintaining the trails on a weekly basis (TrailsRoc too - couldn't get around without their awesome trail signs). I notice the bridges were higher and the boardwalks were reinforced from 2 weeks ago. However the boardwalks were so slippery from the rain I was not able to run on them. Because of my conservative downhills and boardwalk sections, I was able to push the pace on the twisty rooty rocky sections towards the end and really exceeded my expectations for this run. Pretty thrilled I was able to cut 2 minutes off!