Spring is here! March & April Running Update

Summer is slowly getting closer and with that the race in which I’ll try to run a 100K mountain race for the first time.

After a great ending of 2017 as far as training goes, the start of 2018 was a bit sluggish. One of the reasons was very nasty weather with big storms and very cold temperatures.

But this rapidly changed in the past two months. Spring has arrived and with it the running season really started.

With the warmer temperatures and the fact that the skies were not only grey but there was quite some sunshine, changed my mindset quite a bit. Just being able to wear shorts and a shirt gives back a great, free feeling.

But there’s something I need to carry more now: Water: So equipment on my longer runs changed from just carrying a small bottle to a small running vest with room for 1L of fluids and some other stuff.

I increased the number of 20K+ runs on hilly terrain to get some mileage and a decent amount of elevation change in. My training runs aren’t on too technical terrain yet. Also I did some first cycle rides as cross training.

In April temperatures already were up to almost 82° F (28° C) which is quite unusual. As much as I enjoyed it, my body needed a few runs to adapt to these new conditions.

At the end of April I participated in the first race of the season. It was a small 35k race with around 4’200 ft (1’400m) of altitude change.

I had some issues at the beginning. I was tired and needed some miles to get into the groove. After I while, short after reaching the top of the first uphill, I started to feel better and had a great time for the coming 10-15k.

The race organizers put in some really tough trails. Well not even trails, on one occasion they just send the runners through a dense forest on a very steep climb. Also the downhills that followed were on very technical terrain, some just over big rocks.

Towards the end of the race, around noon, it started to get really hot. I arrived after a bit more than four hours, a bit more than I anticipated.

Finish of my first race of the year

The fact that I had a hard time in the last stretch of the race was mostly due to lack of 30-35k long runs in my training. Something I need to change now in my preparation for the 100k race in mid July.

So that’s pretty much the goal now in the final 10-12 week training block towards the big race. Get in runs that last more than five hours and start training in the Alps on technical trails to simulate the race.

I hope that all goes well and I’ll be in ultra trail shape by summer.

Happy running,
mikula