Rocky Raccoon 100M

First of all, I want to thank everyone that sent me well-wishes on my second attempt at the Rocky Raccoon 100-mile Endurance run February 1^st. It was indeed a success, and now the first of four successive one-mile runs is down. More importantly, though, was what the completion showed.

My last quarter of 2013 was ripe with injury, sickness and misfortune –at least in the training sense. I was unable to get in the prerequisite training miles required to complete a one hundred mile footrace. Or so I thought. For three years, I firmly believed the mantra of the ‘hunnerd miler.’ It is a simple, and time-honored premise. To run a 100-mile race, one must average a bare-bones minimum of one hundred miles cumulatively each week for several weeks before the taper period of the event. I always believed this basic rule of thumb.

Unfortunately, I could not follow this training plan. Time and health prevented me from breaking 30 miles each week, much less a hundred. So what I did was increase my cross-training ten-fold, and really pushed specific run drills for the miles I did run. Instead of a long slow twenty miles, I would do 2 miles of speed intervals followed by 3 miles of hill repeats. I did one day per week of fast-packing with 20-30 pounds and did close to 20 hours of weight-training, plyometrics and bootcamp-style workouts.

Although wary going back to a previously failed race, I felt better physically than I had in six months. I started at a moderate clip, and used a terrain-based run-walk for the first 40 miles. Then I went into a fast power-walk for the last 60. I could feel the residual strength from the targeted run and fast-pack training immediately, but the true payoff was the cross-training classes for core, upper body and leg development. I finished faster than expected and was running again in less than 48 hours.

So I argue that there is another path to distance. If you have the health, the time and the will to get in your 100 miles a week, I have seen the system work time and again. But if you find yourself having to balance life, work and a race deadline, targeted runs and cross-training might be the thing that gets you over the hurdle.

You’ve all heard it. Every seasoned ultra-runner says it. 6-time Olympic running coach Bobby McGee has written copious amounts on it. It, of course, is the mental aspect of running. Little more matters during those low points of an ultra.

No matter to which training philosophy you subscribe, the power of the mind will direct the actions of the body. Last week, I discussed the different approaches to training for endurance events. Neither amount to much unless you’ve conditioned the mind for those 12, 24, 48 or more hours of constant, grueling forward progression. Your legs are only as fresh as your mind allows you to believe. Even a short-term wavering of will can be catastrophic. A decision to drop is instantaneous and irreversible.

Bobby McGee trains athletes to mentally prepare for races. One of his many lessons is to (if possible) simulate or run the actual course beforehand. Try to acclimate to possible weather, altitude, terrain and other factors in your training. This does condition the body; but more importantly, it gives a relaxed familiarity leading up to the event. A great example would be hosting an event at Kiwanis and the Endor trail (CARA, anyone?). Having a home court advantage makes all the difference mentally.

During Rocky Raccoon, I went in determined. It was a “vindication” race. I had failed this mild course once due to a wavering mental state. By identifying that weakness and spending months overcoming it, I had little chance of failure. I did, however, start to hit the “dark moments” around 88 miles, as the temperature dropped 35 degrees and it began to pour rain. In fact, this RR100 had the lowest completion rate (57%) of its 22 year existence. Most folks dropped early from the high temps and humidity or at the end when the deluge began.

The key is simply this –You will conquer any event you truly want to complete. Stay mentally strong, either through simulation training or a hard-as-nails pacer that when keep you moving against your shattered will. It really is all mental. Training is essential, but the mind determines the only outcome that matters. Will you leave with blisters, bruises and depression, or blisters, bruises and a buckle? Your body is going to be battered either way, so why quit without the prize?