I think I’ll run a 23 mile trail (er, forest road) race (The Catsmacker). Sure, I doubt I’ve run more than 10 miles since the Ouachita 50k, but I keep telling myself:
“It’s only 23 miles.”
And, no matter how hard I think about it, I cannot see the absurdity of this statement. I know that it’s almost a marathon, that rocks on the forest roads are hard on the joints, that the hills will be long and hot… I honestly think it’s not going to be that big of a deal. Sure, I’ll be sore, but that’s to be expected.
I’ll run ~7 miles today and probably throw in a couple more before the weekend. I think I’m gonna leave early on Friday and do some MTB riding from Lake Sylvia since my last attempt at doing so resulted in massive amounts of FAIL when I arrived to the campsite only to find it closed until the next weekend.
So yes, I plan on riding a bike for upwards of 4 hours on Friday and following it up with a difficult 23 mile run on Saturday. I’ve been thinking about stuff like this for a while. It goes without saying that the general population of people who don’t exercise on a regular basis are dumbfounded by just the thought of riding a bike a couple of hours or even running more than a few miles. However, I’ve grown increasingly aware of the fact that even some of my active “peers” view some of my outings as extraordinary.
I disagree. I think you’re all capable.
I think that everyone has their own standards of what’s “possible.” As long as you have these standards, you view anyone who surpasses them is doing something “crazy” or “amazing.” You’re also setting limits for yourself when you have such standards because, to you, such things are “impossible.” So I’m writing this to encourage everyone who reads it to open their minds a bit and stop thinking in terms of what is within your perception of “normal” physiological limitations and start exploring just how hard you can push yourself. Go ahead- do some two-a-days. Go for a ride or run that’s twice the distance that you’ve ever gone. Do those things on back to back days. Hell, do them on the same day. My point is, stop limiting yourself to the accepted standards of what’s “possible” or “normal.” You can be better than that.
I agree. Just do it. No one should let their perceived capabilities limit their actual capabilities.
I’ve had so many experiences where I’ve seen people think they can’t do something (me included), only to have them try and succeed. Its precisely how I got into this endurance thing… It started when I was a kid– “Oh man. 20 miles is a long ways to ride on a bike. I wonder if I can do it.” Then a couple weeks later “20 miles wasn’t so bad, how about 50?” … “A century?” “Metric double century!” “A REAL double century!” “12 hour RACE!”… etc etc.
Start small. Go big.
Are you starting to agree with me about “genetic potential” now?
no argument with the thesis.
however I do take issue with the pain and suffering involved.
care for a mai-tai on the patio instead?
@Creaky- I don’t view it as suffering. I view it as character building.
I read your blog regularly but stumbled upon your latest entry while googling “Catsmacker trail run.” I had been thinking of doing the run this weekend and was googling in search of some sort of anecdote that would assure me I could complete at least part of the run. I’ve never run farther than 14 miles at a time, and the terrible weather we’ve been having has kept me off the trails for much of the spring. I’m slow and I’m at least 10 pounds over race weight. But I’m going to figure out how to tape some extra Shot Bloks to my fuel belt, and I’ll be there on Saturday. 23 miles is less than a marathon, and people less fit than I do marathons all the time, right?
That’s great! 14 miles is plenty of distance for a 23 mile run. I’ve done a few 50ks and my longest training runs outside of those is ~16 miles. I’m glad I could be an inspiration!
You RUN 23 miles. Nuts. But, I already knew that.
Beets!
I think you should look into American Zofingen. It’s in October and combines hilly trail running with hilly road biking. Typical Duathlon format of Run/Bike/Run. I was going to do it but decided to run a local marathon instead.