Peak & pique

The weather gods blessed us here in Hog Heaven with decent weather for yesterday's Bix 7-Mile road race.  It was sunny and seasonably warm.  In contrast, most of this summer has been unseasonably hot.  I used the Bix as a training run in my preparation for the Pikes Peak Ascent (now only 20 days away!) and the North Face Endurance Challenge (48 days away).  While I didn't race, I did have a time goal, and I fell a scant 10 seconds short of it.   So, I was pleased with my effort and the outcome.

With only three weeks left before Pikes Peak, the coming week will be my last hard week before the race.  My schedule calls for a couple of maintenance runs (60-90 minutes), a hill workout, and a long run (I'm shooting for a minimum of 20 miles depending on the weather). 

I'm doubly excited right now.  I've begun the countdown to my "big" races--Pikes Peak and North Face--and the Olympics are underway in London.  I watched some swimming yesterday and plan to catch more swimming and some women's gymnastics today.  But, the "good" stuff--the running and jumping--doesn't start for several more days.  Stay tuned.

I miss the old days when ABC covered the Olympics.  ABC put the competition first.  NBC can't see beyond entertainment.  I guess that explains the prominent roles of such sports experts as Ryan Seacrest and Meredith Viera on the broadcasts. 

Okay, I get it.  It's not always easy to get outside and moving--especially at the height of summer heat or the depth of winter cold.    But, here's a good reason for any season:  Regular exercise not only adds years to one's life but it also enhances the quality of those years.  See here for inspiration: http://news.runnersworld.com/2012/07/23/exercise-adds-almost-4-years-to-life-span/

Running coach and Competitor magazine contributor Jeff Gaudette questions the efficacy of the 20+ mile long training run here:  http://running.competitor.com/2012/07/training/are-you-overemphasizing-the-marathon-long-run_55719

Jeff (and others) might be right, but I'm not convinced.  So, I'll keep doing what I'm doing.  For the time being anyway.   During most of the year, I do NOT do 20+ mile training runs.  But, during the build-up to a marathon or ultramarathon, I try to do as many as I can.  That's usually 4-6 during the peak weeks of training.   It's nice when toeing the starting line to know that you can run the distance.  The great unknown for me is how quickly I can cover the distance.