I have really fallen in love with timed racing events - the freedom within a given structure holds so much promise for me on so many levels. It becomes running in it's purest form as almost all other distractions are gone. It becomes all about motion. And the mental challenge is tremendous as a runner can quit at anytime. At Freedom Park the temperature dropped to 22 degrees with a cold and steady wind - a heated tent waited at the end of every lap to warm runners and we passed our car as well. Spending long hours in the tent or simply going to the car to lie down (or worse - go home) was tempting - but miles only add up when a runner keeps moving - so we moved. All night. And into the morning. Of course some opt to nap and come back stronger and get more miles- that's a viable strategy and one that I'm sure I will take sooner rather then later. Yet right now my focus is more on continuous motion than pure mileage. This will change and my plan will change along with it - that's all part of the mental aspect of this game. My next planned 24 hour event is in March and I'm hoping to up my game and soon reach 100 miles. I think of these races as training runs as well as each time I make it through the night I feel that much more prepared for other long races where the structure is less than ideal (Mohican 100?) Anyway if any runners haven't run one yet I really urge you to sign up - even a 6 or 12 hour race just to get your feet into the game and onto the track. Thanks for reading.
Peace,
Eric
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