Things have been pretty quiet on the blog as we approach the end of the 5th year of our existence and soon the 1000th post. So let's get busy.
Running in Chicago has been reasonably pleasant of late. Other than a blast of polar vortex in early November, its been mostly above freezing and dry. Unfortunately I have been fighting a cold that won't quit so haven't logged the miles I could have. But still getting out for the 4-5s and the occasional 7-8s. All will change after New Year's so want to get that winter base up a bit in whatever few decent days remain.
As I mentioned to several of our bloggers, I have joined a Ragnar Relay team for the 200 mile LA-San Diego race in April. Not entirely sure how to train for a 12 person relay where we all run 3 legs of 3-8 miles each. The total mileage is very even with some runners doing 13 or so and at least one doing 23 (won't be me) and most somewhere in between. There is always the possibility that someone will get hurt and the rest of us will have to take an extra shift.
The challenge doesn't seem to be the mileage but the endurance of 30 hours in a smelly van with a lot of down time and only a little napping in between legs. Also not sure what to expect for the night leg each of us will pull.
There is a ton of info on the web site including some training tips but curious what you'all think as I look at that stuff in more detail. How would you train in winter Chicago so I don't let my teammates down and have some fun?
Folks I know who have done Ragnars have had a blast. They are mostly younger than us, but we are young at heart. If you are going to be doing 13-18 miles, I'd train like I would for a half marathon or a 30K. The tricky part, I suppose is stopping and starting, and the temptation to go faster in earlier legs than is wise. To deal with stopping and starting, perhaps two-a-days?
ReplyDeleteAlso, report back on whether it is fun. I could be convinced to broaden the FIMC criteria to include multi-day team races such as Hood to Coast: http://hoodtocoastrelay.com
ReplyDeleteOh, and by the way, this is the 1000th post!! Congratuluations Spencer you win!! I'm not sure what!!!
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