THE TRAIL RUNNER’S COMPANION

I’m here for a trail race that’s 12 miles long, straight up to the summit and back down. But, I wonder, why not sleep in and then head out on my own to enjoy a comparable trail-running challenge, without any company or competitive pressure?

I ponder this question as I look at the mountain and feel nervous butterflies that make me queue up to use the bathroom before the start. The answers unfold: I’m here partly because of the people around me—not only my trail-running buddy, with whom I carpooled, but some of the top names in the sport. Sponsored athletes like Dakota Jones of Colorado and Emelie Forsberg of Sweden stand nearby to toe the line. Other top trail-running names such as Anna Frost of New Zealand, Sage Canaday of Colorado, and Jim Walmsley of Arizona are here as spectators and volunteers to cheer on other runners and work at an aid station.

It’s pretty awesome, I think to myself, that the so-called “elites” of this sport are the opposite of elitist. Thanks to the friendly vibe of the top runners lining up and rubbing elbows with runners of all levels, along with the event’s small size (200 participants), there’s a palpable sense of camaraderie.

This is one reason I race or volunteer at trail races, I remind myself: to be a part of a sport that creates a feeling of bonding more than of rivalry. That bonding happens in no small part because the trail humbles us all. It’s us against the mountain, and we’re all in it together.

And, I’m here to mix things up with my racing. I raced ultra distances earlier in the year; now I want to see how I handle this submarathon “Skyrunning” race, part of a mountain-racing series (see the sidebar later in this chapter) known for its intense combination of speed and steep, technical terrain.

I’m also here to challenge myself to do better than the prior year. I shake my head when recalling how poorly I performed, and how painful those 12 miles felt last time. I paid for the hubris of thinking, Twelve miles? No problem—I can wing it!

This time, I’m better prepared. I’ve acclimated to the altitude and practiced this type of climb. Once the race starts, I pace myself smarter on the switchbacks. I power hike with purpose when the air becomes so thin that running would make me hyperventilate. I attack the summit—a quarter-mile so steep and slippery with loose rock that we have to use our hands—with equal measures of confidence and patience. Then, I pedal my legs down the mountain for the 6 downhill miles as if I’m trying to set a 10K PR, as fast and agile as possible on the rocky footing.

I cross the finish line thirteen minutes faster than the prior year, feeling victorious even though I place somewhere in the middle. I don’t care that some twenty women finished ahead of me. I feel euphoric that the company of others—and the challenge of the summit—pushed me to do so much better, and to expend such a higher level of effort, than I would on an everyday 12-mile trail run.

That’s the final answer to why I race: Trail races pull out potential and give cause for celebration (or, sometimes, commiseration) at the end. Competition can bring out the best in us.

Should you race? If so, then why, how, how often, where, and at what distance? That’s what we’ll cover in this section. In the following chapters, we’ll focus on training and race-day execution of submarathon through ultra-distance races.

I hope to inspire you to register and train for a race, at least once in a blue moon, because I truly believe you’ll develop your potential and reach higher levels of athleticism and joy through trail racing. You’re more likely to set and reach goals, and connect with the sport’s community, by signing up for trail race.

When I line up for a trail race, regardless of the distance, I feel a goofy, amped-up excitement, like a kid approaching Disneyland. When I join the crowd at the start of a road race, however, I feel like I’m back in high school about to take the SAT. It’s hard to explain this difference in feeling and attitude toward trail and road races, but a fellow coach and colleague at Trail Runner magazine articulated it superbly.

“Running a race on the road or track is like a competition to see who can stay in the sauna the longest. It might be fun at first, sure. But after a while, everything starts to burn, and the competitors only stop when they feel close to death,” wrote David Roche, a two-time USA Track & Field (USATF) trail national championship, in a Trail Runner article. “Trail racing, meanwhile, is like running through sprinklers as a kid. It tickles and might be uncomfortable at times, but you emerge on the other end giggling deliriously.”¹

Roche goes on to explain that road (and track) racing involves linear movement over a mostly flat and smooth surface. Trail racing, by contrast, involves myriad variations in pace and effort in response to the ups and downs of the route profile and to changes in terrain. “Basically, think of it like an EKG,” he wrote. “On flat roads, you push until you are flatlining. On trails, your EKG mirrors the terrain—which in most races ends up looking like a nice, healthy heartbeat.”

Besides diversity of terrain and hill profile, you also have a fantastic diversity of events to choose from in terms of distance and region, whether you want to run among coastal redwoods, high-desert hoodoos, mountain aspens, or eastern foothills.

What distance and destination inspire you? What event makes you say, “I’m putting that on my bucket list”? This should be your “A” race—the event that motivates you the most and determines the structure of your training season.

Some coaches believe you should toe the line of a race only if you truly plan to race; that is, only if you are willing to give it your best effort. I prefer, however, to think of races in three distinct categories—A, B, and C—and to use B and C races to train for the A race.

● Your A race is your top goal, the culminating event of your training season. This is the race you feel most passionate about, and where you give it your absolute best shot!

● Your B race is your dress rehearsal, usually a shorter distance than your A race but on similar terrain or in similar conditions. This is the race (or races, if you plan more than one B race in your season) where you practice all the elements of good race-day execution, such as getting to the starting line, testing race-day gear, mid-race refueling/rehydrating, proper pacing, and strong finishing. You race hard, but you expect to have a few glitches or low points, and to learn from them. A B race gives you the experience needed to nail your A race.

● Your C race is a just-for-fun training run—a chance to run with others, experience a new route with aid station support, and earn a T-shirt in the process. Using a trail race as a supported training run is a great way to discover new trails and meet new people.

Trail runners typically use C and B races as stepping-stones to a longer, more challenging A race. But your A race doesn’t have to be longer. For example, if you’ve built up to marathon or ultra distances in one season—say spring through summer—then you might want to mix things up by focusing on speed and technique in the following season. Therefore, you choose a trail halfmarathon in December as your A race, with a goal of a personal best for the half-marathon distance.

Now let’s review the general categories of trail-race distances, and for whom they’re best suited.

Don’t equate “short” with “easy.” A trail 5K, 10K, or 10-miler can be extremely challenging, whether you’re a beginner and it’s your first trail race or you’re a seasoned long-distance runner trying to push the pace.

For example, the oldest trail race in America, the 7.4-mile (approximately 12K) Dipsea Race, is exceedingly difficult and highly competitive, even though it’s relatively short. First run in 1905, from Mill Valley to Stinson Beach north of San Francisco, the Dipsea has some 2,200 feet of elevation change over rooted, uneven terrain, and it climbs numerous stairways built into the hills.

WHERE TO FIND, RESEARCH, AND REGISTER FOR RACES

Ultrasignup.com is the hub where most trail race directors list their events. Though the site is called ultrasignup, you can find and register for scores of sub-ultra-distance trail races there as well. Use the site’s Race Finder tool to search for an event by date, distance, and degree of difficulty.

Trailrunner.com, the site for the American Trail Running Association; Ultrarunning.com, the site for UlfraRunning magazine; and Trailrunnermag.com, the site for Trail Runner magazine, all have comprehensive searchable calendars of trail races.

Realendurance.com, one of my favorite sites, is a treasure trove of information, but only for ultra-distance events. The site pulls data such as elevation profiles, maps, race reports, course records, finisher counts, and even a handy tool to compare an event’s difficulty to other similar events. The site also accumulates data on individual runners’ personal bests at different distances, and a record of past races completed.

That said, you also can choose from many gentler short trail races. Many trail events offer multiple distances—such as 5-mile, half marathon, and 50K—with the 5-miler being a mellow loop, and the longer distances featuring more challenging hill profiles and terrain. In other words, these events offer something for everyone.

Short trail races typically are offered in distances of 5K, 5-mile, 10K, 12K, or 10-mile. These distances are a great choice for runners who want to:

Your training for a shorter-distance trail race will depend to a large degree on your level of experience and your goals. If you’re new to trail running, you should focus on the principles covered in Chapter 3 (building a base), and Chapter 4 (conquering hills and navigating gnarly terrain) to gain the level of fitness and skill you need to safely cover these distances. You also will want to practice the tactics discussed in the following two chapters, which cover race-specific training and race-day execution.

If you’re a seasoned trail runner eyeing a short-distance race for a quicker, more intense challenge than what a longer-distance race offers, then you should get psyched up for workouts focusing on speed and hills (introduced in Chapters 3 and 4, and covered more in the following chapter) while deempha-sizing the distance of your weekly long training run.

In most cases, a weekly long run that builds up to two hours is plenty if you’re training for distances up to 10 miles. Two hours equates to 15 miles for a runner averaging an 8-minute pace (which is fast by trail standards), or 10 miles for a slower runner averaging a 12-minute pace. If you are a beginner, and simply trying to finish your first trail 5K or 10K, then building up to a peak long run of 60 to 90 minutes would be adequate.

In road racing, the 26.2-mile marathon remains perennially popular, while the 13.1-mile half is the fastest-growing running event in the United States. Likewise, the half-marathon has grown in popularity among trail runners, with more race directors offering trail half-marathons as a gateway to longdistance trail racing.³ A less common division, the 30K (18.6 miles), also shows up more frequently than it used to as an option at trail-racing events.

VERTICAL KS AND SKYRUNNING: BRUTALLY STEEP AND EXTRA SLOW

“Race you to the top!”

The timeless challenge of a run to the top of a hill spawned a lung-busting, quad-burning, trail-running trend in Europe during the 1990s that is now growing in North America: that of extreme uphill running, such as up ski slopes and across mountain ridges where the mountain meets the sky. Known as “skyrunning,” and governed by the International Skyrunning Federation, this niche has its own circuit of races governed by rules that define Skyrunning-sanctioned events at various distances (see skyrunning.com and usskyrunning.com for details and lists of Skyrunning races).

The shortest of these is called the “Vertical Kilometer,” defined as: “Races with 1,000m [3,280 feet] vertical climb over variable terrain with a substantial incline, not exceeding 5 kilometers [3.1 miles] in length.”² Usually, these races take place at high altitude. All these conditions add up to a killer 5K, not well suited for beginners!

A premier Skyrunning event in the United States takes place in early September at Big Sky Resort in Montana. Called The Rut, it offers a 3-mile Vertical K, plus longer races. The Rut’s Vertical K rises from a base elevation of 7,500 feet to 11,100 feet (where participants take a tram back down the mountain), making for a gain of 3,600 feet in just 3 miles—nearly a 23 percent grade. If that didn’t sound hard enough, the route features exposure (drop-offs and a high risk of injury if a racer were to fall), and extremely rocky, uneven footing. It takes the men’s winner close to 45 minutes to finish, for roughly a 15-minute-per-mile pace—a speed unfathomably slow by road-racing 5K standards.

How do you “run” a Skyrunning event, which has so much un-runnable, extreme vert? In reality, you mostly hike it. Participants tend to run from the start line until the climb intensifies, and then they find a rhythm of brisk hiking with intermittent jogging.

To train for a Skyrunning race, practice a high number of short, steep hill repeats once a week (such as 8 x 60 seconds), and walk or jog easily back down after each one to recover and reduce the stress on your legs. Also practice long, steady hill climbs and descents during your weekly long run, and integrate plyometrics and lower-body conditioning into your routine once a week, such as box jumps, step-ups, and lunges. Be sure to follow each of these hard workouts with an easy-run day or full rest day.

The half-marathon, 30K, and marathon-length trail races are great for runners who:

● have finished half- or full marathons on road and want to make the transition to trail running

● want a race distance long enough to require building up to multi-hour-long runs in training, but that doesn’t eat up an entire day

● want the challenge of a long-distance trail event, but don’t feel ready to commit to training for an ultra

● eventually want to graduate to the 50K ultra-distance and need shorter races for practice

Think of these half- to full marathon distances as the Goldilocks category of trail racing: not too short, not too long, but just right. Almost anyone with a consistent training base can train for and complete these distances successfully, and enjoy spending many hours (but not too many!) on the trail in the process, without having to delve into the more nuanced aspects of training, troubleshooting, and refueling/rehydrating that ultrarunning demands.

What’s the minimum time commitment involved with training for a half to full trail marathon? For a half-marathon, I recommend building up to at least 30 miles, or at least 5 hours, of running per week, and sustaining that peak volume for two weeks, for the three to four weeks before your goal half-marathon. For a full marathon, try to build up to a minimum of 35 to 40 miles a week during three peak-training weeks, or at least 6 hours of running each week, before tapering for the goal marathon. These recommendations for minimum peak-training volume will not guarantee a strong performance, but they should assure that you have trained enough to make it to the finish line if you pace yourself reasonably.

My husband half-jokingly calls graduating to ultras “going down a slippery slope,” because of the likelihood that 50Ks will hook you and make you want to try even longer distances. Can you build up to 50 miles? If so, then why not push to a 100K (62 miles)? What about crossing over to “the dark side,” and running through the night to go a full 100 miles?

The curiosity of the unknown, the dramatic highs and lows, the camaraderie nurtured among runners facing a challenge together, and the thrill of crossing a finish line after so many hours of concentrated physical effort, all combine to ignite the passion and commitment of trail runners who develop into ultrarunners. (In Chapters 12 through 14, we’ll get into detail on what ultras are all about, and how to train for them.)

● are willing to tolerate more discomfort, more risks, and less certainty about factors such as terrain, route, and weather for the deeper satisfaction that comes from accomplishing longer, more challenging distances

● are willing to spend an increasing amount of time running (and hiking), and are able to devote approximately half a day on some weeks to a long training run

Once you start researching and hearing about trail races, you may feel compelled to sign up for one every month. Be careful! Don’t be like my friends (and me, I admit) who’ve compulsively registered for multiple races during a single night, our trail-racing dreams fueled in part by one too many beers.

You should plan your A races strategically, to allow for proper training and recovery around them, and also plan B and possibly C races leading up to them.

I recommend planning races—and the training that builds up to them—in blocks lasting four to six months. For marathon and shorter races, you can reasonably calendar three A races in a single year, which usually corresponds to three seasons, such as spring, late summer, and early winter. For ultra-distance races, especially 100-milers, I recommend just one or two A races in a year.

Let’s consider one example of how to outline a training season month by month. (The following chapters will get more specific about how to plan training week by week.)

A new client approached me in December seeking a goal race to motivate her, to boost her fitness, and to rekindle her joy of running. Her running lacked consistency and had started to feel like a chore. She generally ran three to four times a week, 20 to 25 miles total weekly, and earlier in life had run one marathon, two half-marathons and a 10K—all road events. She didn’t run on trails much but felt intrigued to try it. She also wanted to run another marathon in the next year or two, but didn’t know if she wanted to do a trail marathon or try a road marathon with the goal of qualifying for Boston. The prospect of training to qualify for the Boston Marathon felt exciting but also stressful.

She and I researched races, and settled on one that appealed to her because it promised beautiful views, springtime greenery, and a challenging but not impossible elevation profile: a half-marathon on the slopes of Mount Diablo. The race date was early April, giving her three solid months to train and a couple of weeks to taper.

● February: Add additional hill training and trail-specific techniques, plus race a trail 10K as a B race

We also planned for her to rest and run minimally for the remainder of April, at which time she would decide whether to train for a late-summer trail marathon or try to qualify for Boston at a road marathon.

She had a blast running her first trail half-marathon, which took her just over 2:30—a significantly longer time than the sub-two-hour road half-marathons she raced before. But she felt her trail effort had been harder and more satisfying than the road races. Fired up by trail racing, she chose a trail marathon to race in early October, giving her five months to prepare. She put her Boston goal on hold for the following year.

● May: Consistent training to maintain her half-marathon endurance and improve cardiovascular fitness

● June: Same as May, plus a C race (a trail half-marathon for fun with a friend, part of a weekend getaway)

● July: Same as May, adapted to accommodate her family’s summer travel August: Building volume and race-specific training, plus a B race (a 30K trail event mid-month), followed by an easier week

Fast forward to the autumn season: My client had achieved consistent training for the year, building up from weekly mileage in the mid-20s and only running three to four times a week to weekly mileage in the mid-30s and running five times a week. Most importantly, she enjoyed running much more than she had the prior year. The trail races motivated her, but week-to-week consistency and joy of running were the real payoffs.

She nailed her trail marathon in a time of 5:15—a full hour slower than her road marathon time, but more exciting and fulfilling. Shortly after she crossed the finish line, she enthusiastically told me, “I want to run a 50K!”

I advised her to take a week off following the marathon, only hiking and lightly cross-training, and then run a reduced amount—according to how she felt, not following any schedule—for another three weeks. It was important to make sure she recovered adequately and took a break from the intensity of training for long-distance trail races. I also suggested she try something different with her running or cross-training before seriously starting to train for a 50K.

She consequently decided to run her town’s Turkey Trot 5K on Thanksgiving, and to challenge herself to run it fast. In early November, following the trail marathon recovery, she restarted weekly speedwork. On Thanksgiving at the 5K, her speed and endurance from a year of consistent running on the trails resulted in a 5K PR. Elated, she made plans to train for her first trail 50K and a Boston-qualifying road marathon the following year.

Now that you have a month-by-month picture of choosing and planning for trail races, let’s dial in the training for sub-ultra-distance races, week-by-week.

RACE ON TRAILS

CHAPTER 9

CHOOSE YOUR RACES AND PLAN YOUR SEASON