It is not necessary to be ‘fast’ to have goals, and the height and drive to hit those goals is set by the individual. Racing can be all about numbers and the set distances makes it easier to compare all the events run through the course of a year or years. Even though the difficulty level between courses can vary greatly, it is still worth cross referencing those times to compare effort levels and fitness…
It makes me happy that so many races benefit charitable causes. The twofold positives of getting exercise and assisting a good cause makes our hobby so much better. Now our running becomes about so much more than just being beneficial to us as individuals but for a greater purpose on some scale. Sometimes there comes an opportunity to make a greater impact, and for me personally, the Chasing Champions for the See Ya Later Foundation…
For some people, racing is the reason they run*. For others, it is just a measuring stick to be pulled out intermittently and held against past efforts. Of course, there are many other reasons to race, but it is safe to say we all expect the same things from an event. The first being, a well-marked course. It is hard to get going without direction. Secondly, a well measured course. It does not necessarily have…
Everyone knows Aesop’s fable about the tortoise and the hare. The basic premise is the fleet hare loses a footrace to the sluggish tortoise because he takes off too fast and stops for naps and breakfast, causing him to lose. In a very simplistic connection to this, they are the two basic strategies I tend to see in races. I actually label those who take off fast at the gun as rabbits, many do settle…
Sometimes it appears so simple, to see the person leading the race. Often the confluence of many chance factors, it is rarely a bad day to be the one running in front of the field. It is hard to imagine that person having a hard time or fighting interior demons, but that is often the case. Whether with the next person at their shoulder, or a half mile back, the lesson to remember is to…
640 meters. Kind of an odd distance, just short of half a mile. Inconsequential really. Would take about a minute and thirty seconds at top speed, almost three at cruising pace. But it has a special significance to me, one I discovered very recently while mulling over the reason I run. What I discovered shocked me, and made me look at running in a new light. 640 meters.
Disclaimer: Brian is fast. Not just fast actually, but super fast. His perspective on races is often different than what 95% of us will ever achieve. This series on “Fast Guy Problems” is not to attack races or race directors, and shouldn’t be taken as such. But, it can sometimes be difficult to understand what the top 5% experience as they are running so fast and we lose sight of them mere minutes after a…
Disclaimer: Brian is fast. Not just fast actually, but super fast. His perspective on races is often different from what 95% of us will ever achieve. This series on “Fast Guy Problems” is not to attack races or race directors, and shouldn’t be taken as such. But, it can sometimes be difficult to understand what the top 5% experience as they are running so fast and we lose sight of them mere minutes after a…
