April 17th Preview

Your Sunday distance drops to less than half of last week’s as you taper for the marathon. The 10-mile route (from Eugene Running Company at 8:00) avoids serious conflicts with the Run for Autism being held that morning at Alton Baker Park.

Our 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, past Valley River footbridge to “0.5” milepost. Turn AROUND there and come back the same way: Autzen, Ferry and store. GPS distance is 10.15 miles.

Bring a drink for delivery at about three and seven miles (Ferry). Weather forecast: sunny with starting temperature in low 50s (with day's high reaching 80s).

WEEK 16 LESSON: YOUR STRATEGY

Question: What is the best way to pace myself during the marathon?

Answer: Even if you’ve done everything right in training, you can cancel all that good with as little as one wrong move on race day. The first and worst bad move is to bolt from the starting line far faster than your training pace. Crowd hysteria and your own raging nervous system conspire to send you into the race as if fired from a cannon. Try to work against the forces of the crowd and your natural desires. Pull back the mental reins at a time when the voices inside are shouting, “Faster!” Be cautious in your early pacing, erring on the side of too-slow rather than too-fast. Hold something in reserve for the late miles. This is where you reward yourself for your early caution, by passing instead of being passed. Being the passer rather than the passee is a lot more fun.