Team Geared Up

DUBLIN, IRELAND (Team Geared Up) You know the way people talk about the running boom of the 80’s, well is this the decade of the Ultra Running Boom? Every time I look up a race report it usually starts with the words “Record numbers…..”. Although there are only two annual ultras in Ireland, every year there are more and more runners in each. (They are the Connemara Ultra and the Wicklow Way Ultra).
Last March 5th, a gang of 12 us Wednesday Night Runners sat at our computers, mice at the ready at 10am to enter for the world renowned Marathon des Sables. Four minutes later 3 of us (not including me) had been lucky enough to gain entry for 2009 and not one of the others even got on to the waiting list!

I think the days are gone when ultra runners are considered complete lunatics and it’s generally accepted now as just another form of human endeavour (before my first Ultra I used to almost cry when people said “are you mad?!”). I’ve blogged before about Multidays but another great website is Ultra Running and here’s an interview with the Comrades and World Champion Bruce Fordyce. He has some great advice.

Pick your parents carefully. Genes have a lot to do with your ability to run long races. The one thing to remember is that the body does not wear out if you use it, if you run. Your body wears out if you don’t use it, but run with care. I don’t agree that you only have so many miles in you to run. Train carefully, well, do not overtrain, and be sure to allow enough time for recovery. I run a lot of marathons from January until Comrades in June, but do only one marathon in the fall.

-Aisling-