Run Run Away

Question:

To get people out of the 5/10K rut our  running club hosts  a Grand Prix series of races that start at 1 mile, 4 mile 5 mile, 15k, 20k,10 miles and up to and including a 1/2 marathon. In order to score points and get the brass ring you need to do both sprints and endure.  Obviously constructed to minimize any biasness. This forced sharing  has opened a few eyes.

Our annual team comp includes 4 and 5 mile races, as well as some half marathons and the marathon. I wish they’d include the mile, but they don’t. We have more of a 4/5 mile rut here (though there are also several decent half marathons during the year too), because those are the distances that best suit the geography of central park. Cheers, — Donovan Rebbechi http://pegasus.rutgers.edu/~elflord/

Response:

 To get people out of the 5/10K rut our  running club hosts  a Grand Prix

series of races that start at 1 mile, 4 mile 5 mile, 15k, 20k,10 miles and up to and including a 1/2 marathon. In order to score points and get the brass ring you need to do both sprints and endure.  Obviously constructed to minimize any biasness. This forced sharing  has opened a few eyes.  <<       Running clubs tend to be a little different around here, too.  Both the Cross Country Club of Dallas and the Ft. Worth Runners Club have monthly races that go through a variety of distances.  Of course, they are targeted towards people who will identify themselves more as runners, as opposed to casual runners.  But what I’m referring to is this: Oct 30  0800  RUN FOR THE HILLS 5K, Eagle Mountain Country Club, Fort Worth Oct 30  0900  TCOM DO DASH 5K / KIDS’ 1K, TCOM Campus, 3500 W. Camp Bowie at Montgomery, Fort Worth Oct 30  0900  FOUR SEASONS COOL  5K / 1 MILE, Four Seasons Resort & Club, 4150 N. MacArthur, Las Colinas, Irving Oct 30  0800  LIVIN’ IT LOUD 5K / 1 MILE, Shops At Legacy, Legacy & The Tollway, Plano Oct 30  0900  HUBBARD ROCK’N'RUN  5K / 1 MILE,  Harry Myers Park, downtown Rockwall Oct 30  0800  PLANO PACERS 5K / JR .7 MILE SPRINT, Bob Woodruff Park, Plano      Those are the DFW-area races for this Saturday.  I’ll probably do one of them although right now I haven’t a clue as to which one.  Of there were a four- or five-miler in the pack, though, chances are that my decision would be much easier.      Last Saturday would be an even better example – there were nine races, all 5Ks. Mike

Response:

 We have more of a 4/5 mile rut here (though there are also several decent

half marathons during the year too), because those are the distances that best suit the geography of central park.  <<      Coincidentally, I’ve run two races in Central Park and one was a four-mile, the other a five-mile.  Also, I should have looked at the local calendar a little closer – there’s a four-mile in Ft. Worth on November 6. That’s the same weekend as the Dallas Half Marathon or CCCD The Half or whatever the hell its official name is. Mike

Response:

   It’s an interesting distance to race at. I bet the organizers wanted *something* to set it apart from the plethora of other runs in the area (last weekend, for instance, there were 10 5Ks on Saturday and a few other races on Sunday).  <<     I don’t know why one of these races that are scheduled for the same day as a jillion other races doesn’t try altering the distance slightly – say a four-miler or a five-miler – to separate themselves from the crowd. Mike —

I think 8K, 5 milers and 10 milers are excellent distances as is the 15K (a person favorite of mine).  <<      I like 10 milers and 15Ks, too, but I can understand why these are less common as they’re not going to appeal to the numbers that the shorter distances will.  Four- and five-milers wouldn’t be as intimidating so the race will still attract some casual runners as well as race-addicted people who were tired of weekly 5Ks. Mike

Response:

I think 8K, 5 milers and 10 milers are excellent distances as is the 15K (a person favorite of mine).  <<     I like 10 milers and 15Ks, too, but I can understand why these are less common as they’re not going to appeal to the numbers that the shorter distances will.  Four- and five-milers wouldn’t be as intimidating so the race will still attract some casual runners as well as race-addicted people who were tired of weekly 5Ks.

To get people out of the 5/10K rut our  running club hosts  a Grand Prix series of races that start at 1 mile, 4 mile 5 mile, 15k, 20k,10 miles and up to and including a 1/2 marathon. In order to score points and get the brass ring you need to do both sprints and endure.  Obviously constructed to minimize any biasness. This forced sharing  has opened a few eyes. -Doug

Response:

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – How would a "metric" half marathon be 8.1 miles when a marathon in metric terms is 21.1 km?  That is 13.1 miles.  I am confused. In cycling, a century is 100 miles and a metric century is 100 k. In running, they’re saying that a half-Marathon is 13.1 miles so a "metric" half marathon is 13.1 k. Get it? No, I do not get it.  I think it is ridiculous.  A metric century makes perfect sense as being 100km.

(Top-posting corrected) I’m not saying it makes a whole lot of sense. I’m just showing you where they got the idea: they changed "miles" to "km" and called it metric. Everyone was shouting about how they couldn’t see where they came up with the distance, and that’s how they did it. –Harold Buck "I used to rock and roll all night,  and party every day.  Then it was every other day. . . ."       -Homer J. Simpson

Response:

No, I do not get it.  I think it is ridiculous.  A metric century makes perfect sense as being 100km.

Sam, I think it’s the same concept as "lite" beer. LOL Mike Tennent "IronPenguin"

Response:

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text –  That’s an interesting term, a metric half marathon that is 8.1 miles. It’s 13.1K. I have the race flier in front of me. (Assuming it’s the same one, in Flower Mound, north of Fort Worth — I don’t know where nospam is, but I can’t imagine *two* of these oddball events in different cities on the same day.)  <<     I ran it last year.  I think they had to do some weird doubling back to get the proper distance.  I would have been just as happy if they had made it a 12K or something.  It’s an interesting distance to race at. I bet the organizers wanted *something* to set it apart from the plethora of other runs in the area (last weekend, for instance, there were 10 5Ks on Saturday and a few other races on Sunday).  <<     I don’t know why one of these races that are scheduled for the same day as a jillion other races doesn’t try altering the distance slightly – say a four-miler or a five-miler – to separate themselves from the crowd. Mike —

I think 8K, 5 milers and 10 milers are excellent distances as is the 15K (a person favorite of mine).

Response:

No, I do not get it.  I think it is ridiculous.  A metric century makes perfect sense as being 100km.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – How would a "metric" half marathon be 8.1 miles when a marathon in metric terms is 21.1 km?  That is 13.1 miles.  I am confused. In cycling, a century is 100 miles and a metric century is 100 k. In running, they’re saying that a half-Marathon is 13.1 miles so a "metric" half marathon is 13.1 k. Get it? –Harold Buck "I used to rock and roll all night, and party every day. Then it was every other day. . . ."      -Homer J. Simpson

Response:

How would a "metric" half marathon be 8.1 miles when a marathon in metric terms is 21.1 km?  That is 13.1 miles.  I am confused.

In cycling, a century is 100 miles and a metric century is 100 k. In running, they’re saying that a half-Marathon is 13.1 miles so a "metric" half marathon is 13.1 k. Get it? –Harold Buck "I used to rock and roll all night,  and party every day.  Then it was every other day. . . ."       -Homer J. Simpson

Response:

 That’s an interesting term, a metric half marathon that is 8.1 miles.

It’s 13.1K. I have the race flier in front of me. (Assuming it’s the same one, in Flower Mound, north of Fort Worth — I don’t know where nospam is, but I can’t imagine *two* of these oddball events in different cities on the same day.)  <<      I ran it last year.  I think they had to do some weird doubling back to get the proper distance.  I would have been just as happy if they had made it a 12K or something.  It’s an interesting distance to race at. I bet the organizers wanted

*something* to set it apart from the plethora of other runs in the area (last weekend, for instance, there were 10 5Ks on Saturday and a few other races on Sunday).  <<      I don’t know why one of these races that are scheduled for the same day as a jillion other races doesn’t try altering the distance slightly – say a four-miler or a five-miler – to separate themselves from the crowd. Mike —

Response:

Eventually it has to happen:  I agree with Ig on this one.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – << Yep, that’s it.  Sorry, I didn’t know that a "Metric Half-Marathon" was not a common race. What is a "Metric Half-Marathon"? Thanks for explaining! Since a marathon is 26.2 miles, a half-marathon is 13.1 miles (obviously).  Instead of saying miles, however, they substitute KM, but (conveniently for us newbies), don’t convert the distance.  So, it becomes 13.1 KM, or, roughly, 8.1 miles. I’m sure there is an easier explanation, but that’s all I’ve got. This is not directed at you, but I cannot resist. I am a little bit irked by how some race officials use the term "metric" to perform shenanigans and promote innumeracy, and denigrate the metric system by association. A metric marathon is 42,195 meters. Same as 26.2 miles. A metric half marathon is 21,097 meters, same as 13.1 miles. 13,200 meters is not "metric half marathon". What you are describing sounds more properly as "1/3 marathon". — Running Log: http://igor.chudov.com/weightloss/exercise.txt

Response:

Great, just what running needs is more confusing names for race distances.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – That’s an interesting term, a metric half marathon that is 8.1 miles. It’s 13.1K. I have the race flier in front of me. (Assuming it’s the same one, in Flower Mound, north of Fort Worth — I don’t know where nospam is, but I can’t imagine *two* of these oddball events in different cities on the same day.) It’s an interesting distance to race at. I bet the organizers wanted *something* to set it apart from the plethora of other runs in the area (last weekend, for instance, there were 10 5Ks on Saturday and a few other races on Sunday). — Brian P. Baresch Fort Worth, Texas, USA Professional editing and proofreading If you’re going through hell, keep going. –Winston Churchill

Response:

Leafing through rec.running, I read Ignoramus6961’s message of 25 Oct 2004: 8.1 miles is not a very long distance…

It depends on how you cover it. At an easy pace, it’s not very long. However, covering it as fast as you can will make it seem painfully long. Ever run a mile as fast as you can? This is extreme toruture. Phil M. — "What counts in battle is what you do once the pain sets in." -John Short, South African coach.

Response:

I have been running consistently for about 2 months and did a six mile run this morning with no problems (though my shins are a bit sore right now).  During the week I try to run 2-3 times, usually a 2-3 miler each time. In about 4 weeks (Nov. 20) there is a metric half-marathon in my town that I would like to run, which equates to about 8.1 miles.  Is this a reasonable to goal if I increase my distance by a half-mile or so for each run runing the week up to the week of the race?

Sure. I started running in late June or early July and did a half-marathon in early October. I completed the half-marathon in just under 2 hours, and managed without any walking. It actually felt pretty easy. My longest run before the half-marathon was 14K, i.e. two-thirds of the distance, which I did about 1.5 weeks before race day. It was mainly for psychological reasons, since I figured if I could do two-thirds of the distance, I’d manage with the remaning third one way or another on race day. Apart from the 14K run the week before, I did 4 or 5 10K runs in the preceding weeks, otherwise only shorter distances of 3-7 K, about 3-4 times per week. Since you’ve just done a 6 mile run without problems, I reckon you are pretty much prepared for the 8.1 miles already, so I’m not sure you relly need to increase your training dose. Just keeping your current level up for the next 3-4 weeks should be sufficient (if all you want to do is to complete the race). Bjorn

Response:

How would a "metric" half marathon be 8.1 miles when a marathon in metric terms is 21.1 km?  That is 13.1 miles.  I am confused. If the race is 8 miles, I see now reason you could not finish it as long as you take it easy.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -I have been running consistently for about 2 months and did a six mile run this morning with no problems (though my shins are a bit sore right now).  During the week I try to run 2-3 times, usually a 2-3 miler each time. In about 4 weeks (Nov. 20) there is a metric half-marathon in my town that I would like to run, which equates to about 8.1 miles.  Is this a reasonable to goal if I increase my distance by a half-mile or so for each run runing the week up to the week of the race? Thanks.

Response:

That’s an interesting term, a metric half marathon that is 8.1 miles.

It’s 13.1K. I have the race flier in front of me. (Assuming it’s the same one, in Flower Mound, north of Fort Worth — I don’t know where nospam is, but I can’t imagine *two* of these oddball events in different cities on the same day.) It’s an interesting distance to race at. I bet the organizers wanted *something* to set it apart from the plethora of other runs in the area (last weekend, for instance, there were 10 5Ks on Saturday and a few other races on Sunday). — Brian P. Baresch Fort Worth, Texas, USA Professional editing and proofreading If you’re going through hell, keep going. –Winston Churchill

Response:

Yep, that’s it.  Sorry, I didn’t know that a "Metric Half-Marathon" was not a common race. Thanks for all of the advice.  Given my slow pace, trying to win didn’t even enter my mind. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -That’s an interesting term, a metric half marathon that is 8.1 miles. It’s 13.1K. I have the race flier in front of me. (Assuming it’s the same one, in Flower Mound, north of Fort Worth — I don’t know where nospam is, but I can’t imagine *two* of these oddball events in different cities on the same day.) It’s an interesting distance to race at. I bet the organizers wanted *something* to set it apart from the plethora of other runs in the area (last weekend, for instance, there were 10 5Ks on Saturday and a few other races on Sunday).

Response:

<< Yep, that’s it.  Sorry, I didn’t know that a "Metric Half-Marathon" was not a common race. What is a "Metric Half-Marathon"? Thanks for explaining! [By the way, it's not raining, this moment ~ Later, yes, forecasted showers, Stormy weather, all laced With a bunch of heather ~ Oops, forgot my sweater!] _______ Blog, or dog? Who knows. But if you see my lost pup, please ping me! <A HREF="http://journals.aol.com/virginiaz/DreamingofLeonardo"http://journal s.aol.com/virginiaz/DreamingofLeonardo</A

Response:

I have been running consistently for about 2 months and did a six mile run this morning with no problems (though my shins are a bit sore right now).  During the week I try to run 2-3 times, usually a 2-3 miler each time. In about 4 weeks (Nov. 20) there is a metric half-marathon in my town that I would like to run, which equates to about 8.1 miles.  Is this a reasonable to goal if I increase my distance by a half-mile or so for each run runing the week up to the week of the race?

Sure, I’d do it. Sounds like a bold plan for a complete beginner and I would be careful; having a plan of simply finishing on my feet without injury and being happy for the experience. Don’t change your running plan much now. At your level, simply getting out there on a regular basis is making you improve at a relatively fast pace. Your half-mile increase plan sounds okay. The shin pain is common among new runners – avoid hills and rub them with a rolling pin at night. Let us know how it went! I love reading about first races. Don’t get caught up in the excitement and go out at too fast a pace. Pretend it’s one of your training runs for the first half, pick it up a tiny bit at halfway if you feel good, and finish smiling! cheers, — David (in Hamilton ON) www.absolutelyaccurate.com www.allfalldown.org

Response:

<< fast a pace. Pretend it’s one of your training runs for the first half, pick it up a tiny bit at halfway if you feel good, and finish smiling! cheers, — David (in Hamilton ON) Great Counsel! Wise advice ~ An ounce of prevention, Just a once upon A time Tale… _______ Blog, or dog? Who knows. But if you see my lost pup, please ping me! <A HREF="http://journals.aol.com/virginiaz/DreamingofLeonardo"http://journal s.aol.com/virginiaz/DreamingofLeonardo</A

Response:

<< Great Counsel! Wise advice ~ An ounce of prevention, Just a once upon A time Tale… Told twice. _______ Blog, or dog? Who knows. But if you see my lost pup, please ping me! <A HREF="http://journals.aol.com/virginiaz/DreamingofLeonardo"http://journal s.aol.com/virginiaz/DreamingofLeonardo</A

Response:

<< Yep, that’s it.  Sorry, I didn’t know that a "Metric Half-Marathon" was not a common race. What is a "Metric Half-Marathon"? Thanks for explaining!

Since a marathon is 26.2 miles, a half-marathon is 13.1 miles (obviously).  Instead of saying miles, however, they substitute KM, but (conveniently for us newbies), don’t convert the distance.  So, it becomes 13.1 KM, or, roughly, 8.1 miles. I’m sure there is an easier explanation, but that’s all I’ve got.

Response:

I run about 6 miles a day for 6 days a week and sometime 3 miles on my "bad" days.  I’m running a half-marathon this coming saturday.  I think it’s about knowing  what you "can" do.  If you feel your ready, then yea.  No magical equations here.  But don’t hurt yourself by trying to set a PR or go at it the wrong way.  Just relaz and have a good time.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – I have been running consistently for about 2 months and did a six mile run this morning with no problems (though my shins are a bit sore right now).  During the week I try to run 2-3 times, usually a 2-3 miler each time. In about 4 weeks (Nov. 20) there is a metric half-marathon in my town that I would like to run, which equates to about 8.1 miles.  Is this a reasonable to goal if I increase my distance by a half-mile or so for each run runing the week up to the week of the race? Thanks.

Response:

I have been running consistently for about 2 months and did a six mile run this morning with no problems (though my shins are a bit sore right now).  During the week I try to run 2-3 times, usually a 2-3 miler each time. In about 4 weeks (Nov. 20) there is a metric half-marathon in my town that I would like to run, which equates to about 8.1 miles.  Is this a reasonable to goal if I increase my distance by a half-mile or so for each run runing the week up to the week of the race? Thanks.

Response: