Breaking the Cycle: Training to Race Trails with Speed

Overcast Start to Running Scouting the Voyageur Course Near Duluth

Where has time gone in the last two weeks? With four weeks out from Voyageur 50, I am looking forward to the last push of high mileage to show up ready to crush my mediocre rookie performance last year. Not that I was disappointed by my effort (1st 50 ever in 8:36:00), but I feel more knowledgeable and prepared to race well this time around. Since making the transition to trail running, my view of the "trail community" is ALMOST entirely positive. Compared to road running or cycling, the atmosphere is much more relaxed, runners are eager to volunteer and help each other, and most importantly, everyone is like minded and open to meet new friends! With this being said, one misconception gets under my skin. The misconception is this: Performing well over an ultra-distance trail event doesn't require speed training. If you are looking to truly maximize your race on the trail, this couldn't be any further from the truth. Not only does slogging long miles at one speed put you in a doom loop of slow times, but it does nothing to boost your fitness. True, most people can't run as quickly on the trail as they can on roads. However, climbing and descending hills well takes an elevated level of fitness and strength that you won't need on the roads. Getting in 1 or 2 speed based threshold or fartlek type runs per week will allow you to run comfortably at a faster rate...and that is guaranteed. What does a distance speed workout look like for someone running a marathon or a 50k? Here is an example that is meant to boost my threshold and allow for faster, more comfortable splits while racing long.

11 Mile Workout
1 mi. warm-up at 7:15 min/mi
3 mi. - 18:25
0.5 mi. at 7:30 min/mi
3 mi. - 17:55
0.5 mi. at 7:30 min/mi
3 mi. - 17:40
0.1 mi at 7:30 min/mi
1 mi. cool-down and stretching

The key to this workout is to adjust the splits so that you are fighting exhaustion but not totally maxed out and wrecked for the week. By running easy in between sets, there is time for a short recovery before the next set.

My Last Two Weeks:
Over the last two weeks, I have been at between 80-90 miles per week. Balancing a life outside of running and a full time desk job has been a stretch at times, but there is light at the end of the tunnel with key races coming up. I have taken a few day trips to break the typical training courses up. Last weekend, I had the opportunity to run in Duluth, taking a day trip and running 4.5 hours of the Voyageur trail. The course looks beautiful this year and getting back to Jay Cooke should be a treat since flooding basically washed the entire course away last year. During our course preview, we found wild asparagus, stumbled upon what looked like a squatter property riddled with shotgun shells, picked up a few ticks, and cooled off in a few rivers. All in all, it was a great weekend day trip that left me inspired!

Coming Up... This week I head to Bozeman, MT mainly to reset my buttons until August. The grind of cubicle life has left me pretty flat, so I am looking to fill a week with adventure in the mountains. I plan to document a few of my more epic runs including a ridge scramble that ties together four 9k - 11k ft peaks, climbing 9500ft of elevation before descending in Bozeman 22 miles later. This should challenge the flat-land legs and give me a preview of the Bozeman Ridge Run course I am set to race in August. Additionally, I have picked off a couple other peaks based on summitpost. I will put my phone in my pack...not only for safety, but to capture the beauty...Look for some beauties and laughable stories upon my return! Cheers!