My Runs are Entering Double Digit Mileage

To the runners (or those with similar knowledge) reading this blog:
1. Please explain gel packs to me. Is this something that I would like? At what distance do I need to start taking gel packs with me in addition to water?
2. Please explain a "hydration strategy" for long runs. How much water should I be drinking when I stop? How often should I stop for water or Gatorade? Is there a frequency that's too often to stop for liquids?

I ran 10 miles this morning. I ran from my house, around Lake Harriet, (quickly becoming one of my favorite lakes for the view of the sailboats, band shell and downtown Minneapolis), and back home. If you're in town here, Minnehaha Parkway and Minnehaha Creek and pleasantly and surprsingly green. The trees are coming out. And the wild violets are in such full bloom they look like a carpet in some spots. For those of you not in Minneapolis, this is my running route.

Lake Harriet Bandshell. Photo from here.

The first time I ran it, I made it to the lake and around part of it before suffering, um, distress. I walked the rest of the way. The second time I definitely made it around the lake before I started walking. Eventually I started adding miles to the run home, first running to Nicollet, then to the expressway, then to a little farther. Today I ran all the way back to Chicago Ave and then ran intervals (this is how I add miles to the long run) the rest of the way.

Today, at the Portland Ave stoplight another runner and I were waiting to cross the street. She turned to me and said, "you must be doing a long run, I saw you running when I was taking my daughter to school." Sweet!

I just purchased a Fuel Belt after getting thirsty on my runs, needing calories on my runs, and seeing a lot of other runners with this particular product. (Although Amazon only had them in black. I'm feeling like I missed out.) After one run, I'm prepared to declare the thing a winner. I read the reviews pretty carefully before I bought it and they were all pretty much right. The belt is tight (it's not too small, it's supposed to be that way) but doesn't rub on clothing. Two hands are required to get the bottles out of and into the belt, but I'm always walking while I'm drinking so it's not inconvenient. The bottles do not leak. It's very nice to have both juice (I didn't have any Gatorade today) and regular water on a run. I could tell having fluids while I'm running makes a big difference. I felt better during the run and not as tired when I stopped.