Thursday, April 2, 2009

Beautiful Weather

The forecast for today calls for temps in the 60s with mostly sunny skies. I'm planning an easy 12 miler on the bike path after work and it should be wonderful. It will be my first outdoor run in shorts and a short sleeve shirt so far this year.

I lifted last night and I'm a little bit tired today. I was going to lift tomorrow night after work, but with a long trail run on Saturday, I think I'm going to skip that workout. The people that I'm traveling to MA with are planning to run all of the race course we'll run in two weeks. I don't know if I'll do all of it, but they'll probably push me further than the 22-24 I'd been planning. So, I think I'll take a rest day before that run.

Looking at my logbook, tomorrow will be four weeks since my last complete rest day, so I think it's time.

I asked some friends yesterday about a training option later in the year. Last year, before WS, I ran the 50K at Pineland Farms, and ran 20 the day before the 50K. This year, I've been leaning towards doing the 50 miler, although I'd do it easily - not racing. That's five weeks before the 100.

In 2005, a tough 50 miler (Squaw Peak in Utah) was too much, too close to WS, and my late disintegration was very much related to that time on the Squaw Peak course. So, is five weeks on an easier course enough time to recover and do well at Western States or is it stupid. So far, every vote I have (one from a sub-24 buckle owner at WS, another from someone who was race-walked 100 miles in under 24 hours, another from a friend who finished just behind me at VT100 two years ago, and one from a friend who has two long DNFs at MMT, and is running Umstead this weekend) gotten has been against doing the 50 miler, preferring the 20/31 double. I see their points, yet I still think that mentally, after not going beyond 50K last year, that a slow 50 miler could help me. But, I'm not really sure or I wouldn't be asking the question.

Thoughts from either of my readers out there?

2 comments:

David Ray said...

Based on my vast experience of 3 50Ks, I vote for the 20/31 option.

Now what does the other reader say?

Damon said...

The votes are now 7-0 in favor of the 20/31 option, if you don't count my wife and me. I think the 50 miler, done at a deliberately easy pace, would be the best option. I haven't gone past 50K since the VT100 in July of 2007. I think that doing a slow 50 miler would be good for me mentally and shouldn't be too bad physically.

But, I'm still weighing my options. If everyone except my wife and me thinks I'm wrong, I need to pay attention.