Eating Drinking and running.

A question always comes up when I mention the Brew Run Run. “How do I do this running, eating and drinking thing without throwing up?” Well, who says you’re not going to throw up? No. Just kidding. Like many pleasant events, the BRR is easily accomplished without any retching or nausea. You just need to not get too crazy and stick to a plan.

**When it comes to food, gauge where you are and where you want to be**. If you are a little hungry, have a little food. All of the legs of the run this year are fairly close together. No need to carbo load with a plate of onion rings at every eating opportunity (unless you want to). And the eating opportunities are limited. The reason there is a little time built in at NoLi is because there may not be much food for the next few hours. There is popcorn at Budge Brothers. I am going to eat some but not a whole bunch. Why is their popcorn so good? Because they pop it in butter, that’s why. No harmful vegetable oils. It is better to run a little hungry than a little full.

Many of the breweries say they will have a food truck on Saturdays. But, you can’t always count on them to be there, nor, in terms of speediness or portion control, can you always count on them if they are there.

Black Label has a bakery right next door and it looks like some kind of Asian food place will be opening soon. I am guessing Asian because there were four big rice cookers still in their boxes in the construction area.

And don’t forget “beer is food.” At least, that’s what my mom always told me when I was in elementary school. There will be no shortage of this liquid nutrition. 

**When it comes to beer, gauge where you are and where you want to be**. I find running with a slight buzz one of my most pleasurable experiences, in my very limited repertoire of pleasurable experiences. My legs move effortlessly. There’s a song in my heart and probably on my lips. Hops seem to be nature’s advil - working their subatomic fingers, massaging your mitochondria into an intercellular happy ending. But there can be too much of a good thing.

I limit myself to one (sometimes two) beers at each stop. There is no shame in asking for water instead of a beer at a brewery. That kind of hurt typing that, but it’s true. The breweries are in it for the long haul. They would rather you have a pleasant time at their place and come back again and again, instead of you being forever scarred and the centennial trail temporarily marred by drinking beer when you shouldn’t.

**When it comes to running, gauge where you are and where you want to be**. This is easy. If you are going to run this thing, realize walking counts the same as running. So does riding your bike, taking the bus or getting a ride. This isn’t a race. By simply showing up you are a winner (positive affirmation time). I hope we all get to be together at different places, but you may want to hang out at one place longer than the other. Or, you may want to vamoose half way through. You may be starting about the same time we’re finishing. That’s cool. Don’t hurt yourself. Have a good time and see Spokane in a way very few folks get to.

Thanks!