Friday, April 24, 2015

Xterra Lake Las Vegas Pre-Race


Training has been interesting. I had a good four week stretch, then it caught up with me with about a week left in the ski season. I took a few extra shifts at work and I found myself putting in fifty hour "weeks" in four days. There are only so many nights you can get four to five hours of sleep before it catches up with you. I still managed to put in 30-40 mile weeks (I am a very low mileage runner) so my mileage really didn't suffer.


I would say that my first real race of the season is on Sunday -- Xterra Lake Las Vegas Trail 21k. This is a good chance to test trail fitness and see how my body reacts going from 10,200ft to 5400ft to 1800ft. But, the most important thing is to have fun.


As many of you know, I started being coached by Brad Hudson of Hudson Training Systems in April. So far I have been happy and challenge with the workouts. I realized I really didn't know that much about training at 10,200ft, but I still want to get fast! The great thing about ski season being over is I now have more options to come down for his group speed workout. I am starting to lose some leg speed by doing most of my training in Leadville, so it is nice to go down to Boulder have a quick group to train with.


My friend Anthony asked me how training has changed since moving to 10,200ft. I think there are a few big changes. The first change is that pace is slower on everything. You can put forth the same effort, but still be running slower than Boulder or sea level. That can start to mess with your mind and make you wonder if you're slow, lacking fitness, or if it is just the altitude. The second biggest change is there is always snow on the ground. The cushioning from the snow is nice, but that also slows you down. Just another thing to factor into the workout. And, the third thing is that to do speed work, you need to find something downhill. You learn to become good at downhill running.


I had a quick trip to California in late March, and this is probably my favorite picture from the trip.


College friends also came to visit in March. Running at 10,200ft is fun... Right, Ross and Ben?


And....one Vegas pic.

I hope training/racing is going well for y'all, and good luck to those getting ready to race.