I did run 8 miles on Wednesday morning. I run a lot by feel, and Wednesday I wasn't feeling it. I finished the 8 miles in 72 minutes (9 min pace). It was pretty slow, but I got through it and felt better the rest of the week. It seriously took me nearly 5 days to fully recover from that 18 mile trail run. It probably didn't help that I flew down the hill the last three miles. So what should I do now, I am headed back up to Lake Hughes in the morning to map out the half marathon course on the Garmin for Leona Valley Trail Races. It is an out and back course shaped like a V (up to the top, down the other side, turn around and head back. The elevation chart should look like the letter M. The course is a little long, 13.4 I think. We'll find out for sure tomorrow.
Another great Thirsty Thursday this week.
Also another great article on Joan Benoit Samuelson with a cool picture from Chicago.
Finally, the new Sports Doc at Runners World answers the question, "Should kids be running marathons?"
I agree with all the Doc's points. If progressed conservatively there is no reason kids can't run long distances. The Doc says, "The adults I know who ran marathons as 10- to 12-year-olds and are now in their 40’s and 50’s have no known problems." Look at the east Africans. These kids run sometimes up to 6 miles to school and then back home every day, with smiles on their faces. There is a reason why they dominate the distance events and that is early aerobic conditioning. He also states, "There is no evidence that long distance running causes any permanent growth plate injury in child or adolescent runners. The growth plate is vulnerable to injury, but probably at much greater risk in the contact and collision sports–football, basketball, soccer, ice hockey, and others that we actively promote for child participation–than in pain-free distance running for a child." I personally think that races farther than 10k should be limited until high school age and marathoning can wait until college age. At least that will be the rule for my boys.
How old were you when you ran your first marathon? Half marathon?
I was 15 when I ran my first half marathon (1:32) and I was 24 when I ran my first marathon (3:15).
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
Enjoyed the article on Joan Benoit Samuelson. Thank you
I ran my first marathon (3:58) on my 31st birthday in 1989. Way back in the late 1980's and early 1990's it seemed to me that people did not run marathons until they were older and no longer had the leg speed to be competitive in the 5K & 10K. Nowadays it seems like the East Africans are running the marathon distance at a younger and younger age. Do you believe that this is due to the prize money?
Chuck, the marathon is where the money is at. There aren't too many 5ks or 10k where you can take home $100,000. Plus with the increase in marathon participation, these guys are becoming more well known for sponsorships and endorcements. You wan't to make a living by running? The marathon is your best shot.
I ran my first Ultra in 1977 it was a 50K and I took a nap at the 26 mile mark so I would finish at my prediction time 4:45:00. I didn't know that was cheating, I was 17 years old. That was in April of 77, In Aug of 77 I ran the Santa Monica marathon in 3:30:30.
Post a Comment