Like the “super moon,” the course seemed unusually brilliant and exaggerated in its beauty. Little did I know on that blissful, escapist day that disaster would strike 36 hours later.

Like the “super moon,” the course seemed unusually brilliant and exaggerated in its beauty. Little did I know on that blissful, escapist day that disaster would strike 36 hours later.
Two clients nailed their races at the Way Too Cool 50K and the Napa Valley Marathon, in spite of a short training period of about two months. Subtle but important changes to their weekly routines and race-day plans made big differences and might help you, too.
At the starting line, do you say it’s “just a training run”? Here’s how to use a race as an effective, deliberate training run to help fulfill a longer-term race goal.
Doing “just” the 50K felt like pedaling behind the big kids with training wheels on my bike. Here’s my Sean O’Brien 50K race report, with bonus content at the end: “The Idiot’s Guide to Race Day Planning.”
At a 50K race, which I used as a pack training run for the Grand to Grand Ultra, one runner wondered if I was a Marine and another asked, in all seriousness, if I eat dog food.
I approached the Diablo Trails Challenge 50K as a pre-Miwok 100K reality check and final long, hard run before tapering. But at a certain point I made the decision to race, not just run.
I decided it was finally time to run Cool, which is widely viewed as the spring kickoff to the year’s ultra racing season. Could I make it a PR?