Hutchison said the Badwater challenge is as much about the science of getting the proper hydration and nutrition as efficiently as possible as it is about running, walking or hiking 135-miles. She hopes to do it in 40 hours.

"You lose more water than you can drink," she said, adding that she has studied this issue extensively in preparation for the ultramarathon. "The person who can figure all that out will make it."

She said her friends and family have been very supportive of her unusual endeavor.

"They all think I can do it," she said.

Her five crew members — Stephen Speckman, Margaret Rose, Jodi Derouchey, Drew and Andrea Harrell — all volunteered upon hearing she was signed up.

"The reaction I got a lot was, 'Man, you're crazy! Do you need any help?'" Hutchison said. "It wasn't hard to get a crew at all. I was surprised."

That's because the race can be as agonizing, as exhausting and as dangerous for the support crews as it is for the runners.

"The medical people treat the crew members more than they do the runners," she said. "I think that's because I will have five people looking at me, making sure I'm OK, but who is looking at them? I think I have a really well-prepared crew, though. And hopefully they'll watch each other."

Her crew will also work in shifts, so while some are helping her along the route, the others are resting in hotels they've rented along the race route. As the start of the race approaches, she alternately battles nerves and excitement.

"I'm really nervous," she said. "I think I'm just wondering, like I always do, if what I've done is enough. I actually feel very good about my physical training."

Hutchison said she would eat her last whole foods Sunday night and then it's all powdered nutrition until the race is over. Her post-race celebration plans?

"I think I'll want to sleep," she said.

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Editor's note: Deseret News staff writer Stephen Speckman is a member of Lorie Hutchison's crew and is documenting her race with photos and stories.

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E-mail: adonaldson@desnews.com