Dusk to Dawn-July 25th

As if adventure racing in general wasn't crazy enough in daylight, next weekend the Dusk to Dawn (beginning at 9pm) race at Lake Perry outside of Lawrence brings on a new challenge: DARKNESS....and lots of NOCTURNAL creatures. When the gear lists items such as:

Headlamp with extra batteries (I bought the most powerful one I could!)
White or Red Blinking Light to attach to pack
Whistle
Lighter/waterproof matches
Emergency blanket
Glowsticks (1 attached to racer's PFD and 1 attached to boat while paddling at night)
Minimum of 25 iodine tablets, or water purification system
Fully charged cell phone in waterproof container
Waterproof map case
Tool for plotting UTM coordinates (1:24000 scale)
Compass (1 for every 2 racers)
First Aid Kit
Strobe Light(s) (1 for every 2 racers required)
2 Handheld Aerial Signal Flares OR 1 Flare Gun with minimum of 2 flares (Flares must be aerial)

One should be very afraid. I am.....not so much for the creepy critters of the night (although that is a serious concern of mine), but for the vain and selfish reason related to the fact the race is a week before my sisters wedding...and since I am Matron of Honor...and since I don't want a repeat of the cat scratch look in my pretty black strapless satin dress, I promised myself, that no matter how hot and humid the weather, I will keep my North Face no rip PANTS on with tall, thick SmartWool socks to pad my already scarred legs. No messing around this time.

Pray for me.