April 2nd Preview

You return to the new Mill Race path in Springfield this Sunday – except now you RUN there instead of drive. The distance is 19 miles, with our half-marathoners joining you for the first four of those.

The route: Oakway and Coburg Roads to Ferry Street Bridge and don’t cross. Turn left onto bike path, to Alton Baker restrooms and onto road. Follow road to the end at ponds. Turn right onto canal path and follow it under I-5, past boat ramp, to end of path at D Street in Springfield. Turn right on D, to 5^th Street.* Turn right, to SOUTH B (not North!). Turn left, to Mill Race trailhead. Follow bike path to Clearwater Park. Turn AROUND at far end of large parking lot beside the river, then come back the same way. This is a new route for us, so GPS distance is yet to be verified; it appears to be about 18.9 miles.

(* If you know well this part of Springfield, consider cutting through Island Park to South A to reach 5^th & South B. It’s less straightforward than the route above, but spends more time off-road and has fewer stops at intersections. Distance is the same either way.)

Bring a drink for delivery at 5.5 miles (Booth Kelly trailhead) 9.5 (Clearwater turnaround) and 13.5 (Booth Kelly again). Weather forecast: starting temperature in 40s with little chance of rain.

WEEK 13 LESSON: YOUR SPEED

Question: Should I train for speed during the week? And can I run short-distance races to improve my speed?

Answer: Do nothing for speed that might interfere with going long. Distance is far more important than speed in this training program. You’re mainly preparing here to go the 26.2 miles, not to meet or beat a time goal. Never substitute fast for long. Add a fast-training day in midweek only if you have recovered fully from the latest long run, or if you can be ready in time for the next one. Run a short race, of 5K to 10K, on the weekend only if it replaces a semi-long training run scheduled for the team that weekend. Running a short race does give you experience in dealing with the race-day atmosphere, which differs greatly from ours during training.

March 26th Results (9.1 miles)

With spring break from the university and other local schools upon us, I was pleasantly surprised with our turnout today. Eugene seemed to empty out this weekend.

Thanks to Lindsey for opening the store. She's two weeks away from her own spring marathon.

TODAY'S 9.1 MILES

(with per-mile pace, based on GPS average of 9.15; target was either to run at marathon pace, for recovery, or half-marathon pace, for speed training)

Neal -- 10.15 miles in 1:53:16 (11:09 pace)
Gary -- 1:22:18 (8:59s)
Kyoko -- 1:33:59 (10:16s)
Leah K. -- 10.15 miles in 1:22:07 (8:08s)
Rhonda -- 10.15 miles in 1:53:16 (11:09s)

Guest:

Sherri -- 10.15 miles in 1:53:33 (11:11s)

TODAY'S 7 MILES

(with per-mile pace, based on GPS average of 6.95; target was to run at about current half-marathon pace)

Bill -- 1:04:44 (9:18 pace)
Jan -- 1:15:10 (10:53s)
Jean -- ran untimed after L.A. Marathon last Sunday
Tatiana -- ran untimed after L.A. Marathon last Sunday
Renee -- 1:14:14 (10:41s)
Rachel L. -- 1:04:06 (9:13s)
Jessica -- 1:17:55 (11:12s)
Lorrie -- 1:17:55 (11:12s)
Rachel W. -- 1:04:14 (9:14s)

Guest:

David -- 1:04:06 (9:13s)

OTHER RECENT RUNS

(those reported to me)

Neal -- 6 miles on Tuesday
Kyoko - 12 miles on Saturday
Julie -- 20 miles in Salem on Sunday, 2:46:01 (8:18s)
Alisha -- 7 miles on Sunday
Trina -- 7 miles on Saturday
Leah W. -- 9 miles on Saturday in 1:32 (10:12s)

March 26th Preview

You drop to nine miles this week, running the first 4.5 with our half-marathoners who are continuing to seven. It’s the usual eight o’clock start from the Eugene Running Company.

The route: 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 Valley River footbridge. Turn AROUND at “0.0” milepost, then go back the same way: Autzen, Ferry and store. GPS distance is 9.15 miles.

Bring a drink for delivery at Skinner Butte playground (3.5 and 5.6 miles). Weather forecast: starting temperature in 40s with rain likely.

WEEK 12 LESSON: YOUR TEMPO

Question: Is all the running at marathon pace or even slower?

Answer: You sometimes run faster than that, just not on long-run days. Taking these too fast makes them too hard to repeat as often as you need them. We schedule a so-called “tempo run” every other weekend from the second month on. You can run faster then than in your latest long run, for about half that distance (11 and six miles, 13-7 and so on up to 21-10). How much faster? Roughly your half-marathon race pace instead of expected pace for the marathon – or as much as one minute per mile faster when you run shorter. These runs aren’t meant so much to increase your raw speed as to make the pace of the marathon feel “slower” and more comfortable.

March 19th Results (17.1 miles)

Not all days go as planned, but most of them work out as hoped when we have a backup plan. That one started early today with a call to Neal Benson. He quickly agreed to fill in as coach, a role he has played before with his own groups. Thanks, Neal! Thanks also to Lindsey Taylor for opening the store, and to Gary Hair's wife Susan for helping on the course.

TODAY'S 17.1 MILES

(with per-mile pace, based on GPS average of 17.08; target was to run no faster than your eventual marathon pace)

Mike -- 2:20 (8:11 pace)

Gary -- 2:46 (9:42s)

Kyoko -- 3:00 (10:32s)

Leah K. -- 2:20 (8:11s)

Anna -- 2:29 (8:43s) longest ever!

Leah W. -- 2:59 (10:29s)

Rhonda -- 3:25 (12:00s)

TODAY'S 6.2 MILES

(with per-mile pace, based on GPS average of 6.19; target was to run no faster than your eventual half-marathon pace)

Bill -- 1:00:05 (9:42 pace)

Jan -- 1:10:41 (11:42s) welcome back!

Stephanie -- 1:10:18 (11:21s)

Renee -- 1:10:41 (11:42s)

Alisha -- 57:24 (9:16s)

Rachel L. -- 57:24 9:16s)

Scott -- 1:00:00 (9:41s) welcome to team!

Jessica -- 1:11:26 (11:32s)

Lorrie -- 1:11:26 (11:32s)

OTHER RECENT RUNS

(those reported to me)

Bill -- 10K race on Friday in 48:37 (7:50s); 1st in age group!

Jean -- finished Los Angeles Marathon on Sunday

Tatiana -- finished Los Angeles Marathon on Sunday

Tori -- UO 5K on Tuesday in 23:44 (7:44s)

Rachel F. -- 6 miles on Saturday
Daniel -- UO 5K on Tuesday in 24:53 (8:01s) 
Kyoko -- 13 miles on Saturday, to start 30M weekend!

Julie -- 18 miles in Salem on Sunday in 2:25:40 (8:05s)

Scott -- UO 5K on Tuesday in 22:25 (7:14s)

March 19th Preview

You take another big step forward – and upward – this Sunday: to 17 miles, with an eight o’clock start from the Eugene Running Company. You’ll run the first three with our half-marathoners.

The route is a long loop and a shorter one: 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 Ososso footbridge and across, then back to Alton Baker Park. Turn AROUND at restrooms, then back to Valley River footbridge and across. Turn left, to Autzen footbridge and across, then back to Ferry Street and store. GPS distance is 17.08 miles.

Bring a drink for delivery at 3.1 miles (Senior Center at "1.5" milepost) and 10.5 miles (Alton Baker Park restrooms). Weather forecast: starting temperature in 30s with little chance of rain.

WEEK 11 LESSON: YOUR WARMUP/COOLDOWN

Question: When is the best time for stretching exercises, before or after the run?

Answer: Don’t confuse stretching with warmup. Stretching exercises don’t start you sweating or raise your heart rate. You warm up by moving – first by starting the run gently, then by easing into the full pace of the day. Treat the first mile as your warmup, making it the slowest mile of the day. If the warmup shifts gears between resting and hard running, the cooldown period is a necessary transition from racing to resting. When the run ends, resist the urge to stop suddenly. Instead, walk to cool down more gradually. After this walk is the best time for stretching exercises, which loosen the muscles that running has tightened.

March 12th Results (8 miles)

With the Cottage Grove Half happening yesterday, along with the Eugene Marathon preview run – plus the time change – our numbers were small this morning. But as I like to say on days like this, we had quality if not quantity.

Welcome to the team, Rachel and Lauren. Welcome back, Renee and Alisha.

Thanks to Lindsey for opening the store this morning. And to Neal for helping on the course.

TODAY’S 8.0 MILES

(with per-mile pace, based on GPS average of 8.00; target was either to go faster than your last long run here, for speed training, or same pace, for recovery)

Kyoko – 1:23:15 (10:24 pace)

TODAY’S 4.9 MILES

(with per-mile pace, based on GPS average of 4.87; target was to run at about the effort you’ll eventually continue for a half-marathon)

Manny – 51:36 (10:35 pace)

Bill – 47:07 (9:40s)

Jean – ran untimed

Tatiana – ran untimed

Lauren – 46:14 (9:29s)

Renee – 51:22 (10:32s)

Alisha – 46:25 (9:32s)

Rachel L. – 46:25 (9:32s)

OTHER RECENT RUNS

(those reported to me; Saturday’s Cottage Grove Half results were in a separate blog)

Jean – hour run on Saturday, to taper for L.A. Marathon

Tatiana – hour run on Saturday, to taper for L.A. Marathon

Gary – 5K race on Thursday in 25:55 (8:21s)

Kyoko – 11 miles on Saturday

Scott – 5 miles on Tuesday in 37:42 (7:27s)

Anna – 13.1 miles on Saturday

Rhonda – 10 miles on Saturday in 1:51:33 (11:07s)