What's Next?

Training for a long race goes better if you run with a group that shares your goal and a coach who has helped hundreds runners reach theirs before. You set the goal, and we provide the group support and coaching advice for carrying out our proven plan. This round of training, number 27, targets the Eugene Marathon (on May 7th).

The Eugene Running Company has sponsored this training group since its launch. More than 500 runners have joined us, and their finish rate in marathons is 99-plus percent.

The team usually meets at the Running Company on Sunday mornings at 8:00. The fee for our four months of marathon training is $100.

We welcome runners of all abilities and experience levels. However, we strongly recommend that marathoners have run at least six miles before this training begins.

To reserve a spot on Joe’s Team, contact the coach: joesrunteam@gmail.com. You run with half-marathoners, who are training for Cottage Grove and Eugene at shorter distances. The calendar for winter and spring 2017:

January 8 – 7 miles to start Eugene Marathon training

January 15 – 8 miles  

January 22 – 9 miles

January 29 – 10 miles

February 5 – 11 miles

February 12 – 6 miles

February 19 – 13 miles

February 26 – 7 miles

March 5 – 15 miles (Joe is away)

March 12 – 8 miles

March 19 – 17 miles

March 26 – 9 miles

April 2 – 19 miles

April 9 – 10 miles

April 15 – 21 miles (on Saturday; from Hayward Field)

April 23 – 10 miles

April 30 – one hour

May 7 – Eugene Marathon at 7:00 a.m.

October 9th Marathons

Our marathoners did themselves -- and all of us -- proud on Sunday. Five of them ran marathons in three different states and British Columbia. All finished.

Moving from east to west, Jean Cordova ran 5:19:49 (12:12 pace) and Tatiana Cordova 6:05:51 (13:58s) in the Chicago Marathon. No pair travels better than this mother-daughter team.



At the Twin Cities Marathon, Rashi Arora ran 3:53:03 (8:53s). She lives in that area but synched her training with ours.



At the Portland Marathon, Bill Bezuk ran 4:11:58 (9:37s). This came just a few months after knee surgery.



And at the Victoria Marathon, Leah Kirkland ran 3:40:16 (8:24s). This qualified her for the 2018 Boston Marathon.

October 9th Preview

October 9th, the date you circled a long time ago, and have trained for and thought about ever since, is now here. Safe travels and smooth runs to Rashi in Twin Cities, Bill in Portland, Jean and Tatiana in Chicago, and Leah in Victoria. We're all eager to hear how your races went.

WEEK 22 LESSON: YOUR NEXT

Question: How soon can I run my next marathon after finishing this one

Answer: How does six months later sound? You could run another one much sooner (as soon as a month later, according to the usual recovery timetable). But two marathons per year is a reasonable limit, which is why I schedule only two annual rounds of training for our team. This leaves half the year free to do something other than train for and recover from marathons. Spring and fall are the best times to run this distance because our weather is most reliably cool and dry then. Though we target races in those seasons, it also means doing most of the training in wet Oregon winters and warm summers. If you want to run races in those seasons, keep them shorter.

October 2nd Preview

You October 9^th marathoners’ usual one-hour run coincides this weekend with our half-marathoners’ six miles. So why not join them for that distance?

The route (with an eight o’clock start from the Eugene Running Company): Oakway and Coburg Roads to Ferry Street Bridge and don’t cross. Turn left onto bike path, then onto road near Alton Baker restrooms. Follow road to its end at ponds. Turn right on canal path, to I-5 underpass. Turn AROUND there and come back the same way: Alton Baker, Ferry and store. GPS distance is 6.12 miles.

Bring a drink for delivery near dog park, about 1.5 and 4.5 miles. Weather forecast: starting temperature in 40s with rain likely.

WEEK 21 LESSON: YOUR RECOVERY

Question: What should I do in the days or weeks after this race?

Answer: One of the most important phases of a training program is also one of the most overlooked. This is what to do AFTER the race. It doesn’t end at the finish line but continues with what you do – or don’t do – in the immediate and extended period afterward. Right away, rest until ALL soreness has left the legs, usually most of the next week. Once you’re running again, follow a popular guideline of allowing at least one easy day for every mile of the race (about four weeks after a marathon). One day per kilometer (or six weeks post-marathon) might work even better if the race was especially tough. During this period, take no really long runs, none very fast, and avoid further racing. Run easily until the prospect of training for another race excites you.

Florence Half-Marathon Results

We couldn't have picked a much better day on the coast for our latest half-marathon as a team: sunny with light  wind. We also couldn't have had much better results: two age-group winners, plus two seconds and two thirds.

Thanks to Piper Ruiz for conducting a fine first-time race. And to Michele Clemo and Alyse Stone for helping on the course.

TODAY'S FLORENCE HALF

(With official times and per-mile paces for our summer team and recent alumni)

Neal -- 2:16:54 (10:27 pace) 2nd in age group

Bill -- 1:48:15 (8:16s)

Jeff -- 2:24:05 (11:00s)

David -- 1:51:32 (8:31s) debut half; 2nd in age group

Renee -- 2:17:01 (10:28s) 3rd in age group

Dan -- 2:05:51 (9:37s) 3rd in age group

Leah -- 1:38:12 (7:30s) 1st in age group, 2nd woman overall

Norm -- 1:37:39 (7:28s) 1st in age group

Trina -- 2:42:27 (12:25s)

Rhonda -- 2:25:32 (11:07s)

Our Graduates

Elly -- 1:57:14 (8:57s) 1st in age group

Sean -- 1:54:07 (8:43s) 2nd in age group

Carrie -- 2:09:36 (9:04s)

Gina -- 2:09:58 (9:56s)



OTHER RECENT RUNS

(those reported to me)

Rashi -- 10.1 miles in Minnesota at 8:07s

Jean -- 10 miles in Eugene on Saturday

Tatiana -- 10 miles in Eugene on Saturday

Laurel -- ran in Massachusetts

Sara -- ran in California

September 25th Preview

Most of our summer team is starting the fall at the new Florence Half-Marathon this Sunday. I’ll go there too, so (in football terms) this is a “bye week” for EWEB training in Eugene.

If you aren’t running Florence and want to keep to your schedule, I recommend 10 miles for marathoners and five for halfers this weekend.

The Florence race starts at Miller Park (1651 18^th Street) at 8:00. Packet pickup is at the park that morning, beginning at 6:15. I’ll be there from seven o’clock on, then at about the halfway point of the race. A course map came to you by email.

If you want a drink delivered at about 5.5 and 6.5 miles, hand it to me before you start. Weather forecast: sunny with starting temperature in 50s, rising toward afternoon high in 70s. 

HALF-MARATHON LESSON 10: YOUR RECOVERY

Question: What should I do in the days or weeks after this race?

Answer: One of the most important phases of a training program is also one of the most overlooked. This is what to do AFTER the race. It doesn’t end at the finish line but continues with what you do – or don’t do – in the immediate and extended period afterward. One popular rule of thumb is to allow at least one easy day for every mile of the race (about two weeks after a half-marathon). One day per kilometer (or three weeks post-half) might work even better if the race was especially tough. During this period, take no really long runs, none very fast, and avoid further racing. Run easily until the prospect of training for another race excites you.

MARATHON LESSON 20: YOUR SUCCESS

Question: How can I judge how well I run in the marathon?

Answer: A great beauty of running is that it gives everyone a chance to win. Winning isn’t automatic. You still have to work for success and risk failure, especially when the event is a marathon. But unlike other sports there’s no need to beat an arbitrary standard (such as “par” or an opponent’s score). You measure yourself against your personal record – which you might be setting for the first time in this marathon. To the runner, the personal record, or PR, represents one of the greatest advance in the history of this sport. The invention of the digital stopwatch worn on the wrist turned everyone into a potential winner. Here was a personal and yet objective way to measure success and progress. No one can set a PR but you. No one can break a PR but you.

September 18th Results (21.1 & 5.5 miles)

The end of this training round is near. Three of our marathoners peaked in mileage today. Half-marathoners came down to their one of their shortest runs of this cycle, tapering for next Sunday's Florence Half.

Thanks to Lindsey for opening the store this morning, after her own 22-mile run the day before.

TODAY'S 21.1 MILES

(with per-mile pace, based on GPS average of 21.1; target was to run at a pace you hope to hold in your upcoming marathon)

Bill -- 3:10:55 (9:02 pace)
Leah -- 2:54:51 (8:17s)
Max -- 3:07:02 (8:52s)

TODAY'S 5.5 MILES

(with per-mile pace, based on GPS average of 5.53; target was to match last week's pace for a shorter distance, for recovery... or to go faster, for speed training)

Jeff -- 59:20 (10:43 pace)
David -- 46:38 (8:26s)
Dan -- 50:06 (9:03s)
Norm -- 7.0 miles in 54:43 (7:47s)
Trina -- 1:06:02 (11:56s)
Sara -- 40:54 (7:24s)
Jeanette -- 57:30 (9:29s)
Rhonda -- 7.1 miles in 1:22:08 (11:34s)

OTHER RECENT RUNS

(those reported to me)

Rashi -- 22 miles in Minnesota on Saturday at 9:27s
Neal -- Rogue Half-Marathon race on Sunday at 10:31s; 2nd in age group
Jean -- Blerch Half-Marathon race on Saturday
Tatiana -- Blerch Half-Marathon race on Saturday
Laurel -- 9 miles in Massachusetts on Saturday at 9:00s

September 18th Preview

Marathoners go up to your peak training distance, 21 miles, this Sunday, and Florence Half runners come down from yours, to 5.5 miles. You’ll be joined by new teammates who are starting their build-up for EWEB, also at 5.5.

Fittingly, that shorter course (with an 8:00 start from the Eugene Running Company) will take you to the EWEB race’s start/finish: Oakway and Coburg Roads to Ferry Street Bridge and don’t cross. Turn left onto bike path, to Autzen footbridge and across. Turn right, to EWEB Plaza. Turn AROUND there and come back the same way: Autzen, Ferry and store. GPS distance is 5.53 miles.

The 21-mile course: same start as above, then at EWEB continue to Owosso footbridge and across. Back to Alton Baker parking lot and turn AROUND there. Back the same way: Owosso, Autzen, Ferry and store. GPS distance is 21.10 miles.

Bring a drink – for delivery at EWEB turnaround and finish of the shorter run… and at EWEB, Alton Baker turnaround and maybe other places (if we get help) in the longer one. Weather forecast: cloudy with with rain likely and starting temperature in 60s, rising to an afternoon high in the 70s.

WEEK 9 & 19 LESSON: YOUR TAPER

Question: How much should I run the last week before my race?

Answer: Run as little as your conscience will allow. It’s too late now, with the race just days away, to do anything that will make it go better. But it’s never too late to make a mistake – most commonly running too far or too fast – that will come back to bite you on race day. Take at least as many rest days as you would before a weekly training run. Take nothing longer than you would on a normal week’s easy run, and ideally shorter. You won’t forget how to run this week, and you’ll race better the more rested you are.