Recently in the Trail Running Category
Joe Dudman lists the ten things he least likes to step on while running, including hidden puddle, sweetgum pods, and ginko fruit: “Similar to sweetgum balls, only much, much smellier. There are also two ginko trees on my route, and this time of year they drop their fruit all over the sidewalk. Also round, but softer than sweetgum pods, these things are less dangerous. But they have an extremely unpleasant odor that increases when you step on them.” On OregonLive.com.
Outside magazine suggests some lightweight personal headlamps for running at night. “Your next step is to enter the world of cycling lights. Which might not be a bad idea. NiteRider’s Minewt 200 ($199) throws out 200 lumens, enough to bike with, so certainly enough to run with.”
The Oregonian’s Terry Richards points to the key spots for outdoors nuts in the central Cascades, including the head of the Metolius, the Badlands, and Newberry Crater: “The national volcanic monument near La Pine has two gorgeous mountain lakes with lodges, a giant mound of black obsidian and a classic mountain bike trail around the rim of the caldera.”
“A solution for remaining active and upright this time of year? The Kahtoola MicroSpikes (about 14 ounces, $59). The product’s stainless steel chains and 3/8-inch spikes provide instant traction while the stretchy elastimer rand that secures the hardware in place makes these ‘studded tires for the feet’ easy to use.” Andy Dappen reviews Kahtoola’s MicroSpieks for WenatcheeOutdoors.org.
Ben Passons lists some of the classic books for runners and about running, including Amby Burfoot’s Runner’s World Complete Book of Running, Duel in the Sun: The Story of Alberto Salazar, Dick Beardsley, and America’s Greatest Marathon by John Brant, and The Extra Mile by Pam Reed, the most dominant female ultra-marathoner of all time. “It’s just a good read about a woman trying to balance family, career, and a passion for running.” On GoSanAngelo.com.
We’ve seen a couple of different mashups that use the Google API to measure distance traveled by foot or wheel, but so far the Gmaps Pedometer is the most useful and user-friendly. As the Gmaps Pedometer site says, “This is a little hack that uses Google’s superb mapping application to help record distances traveled during a running or walking workout. Why? As a runner training for a marathon for the first time, I found myself wishing I had an easy way to know the exact distance a certain course is. Looking at Google Maps, and knowing there was a vibrant community of geeks hacking it, I knew there had to be a way.”
The tool has a couple of very cool features: in addition to automatically following road curves and corners, it marks every one mile distance, allows you to save your route to a unique URL, and even calculates your calories burned based on personal weight.
Steve Regenold just reviewed the $40 A.T. Grip Hobnail Kit, which allows runners to screw spikes into their running shoes for extra traction. “The hobnails are made to work on shoes with fairly thick soles and tread lugs. They could screw straight through the sole if you’re not watching. This potential scenario made my favorite trail runners, a thin-sole Inov-8 model, not candidate for the spike add-ons. But with the Ultranords, which are a mid-weight, waterproof trail shoe, the hobnail kit did not disappoint.” From Outside Online.
Snowshoe magazine interviews Dave Dunham, whose long career in running led him to get involved in snowshoe racing in its earliest years. “Snowshoe running/racing definitely enhances other types of running. It is a great workout with none of the pounding associated with road running. I come out of the SS season very fit. It is also a great mental toughness builder. There is nothing quite like running 15+ minutes per mile and being on the verge of collapse to get you ready for mountain racing.”
The strangest story in this LA Times article about endurance athletes who light up involves a smoker who lost a bet in the The Pikes Peak Marathon because he decided stop for a cigarette at the top. "In a recent online poll sponsored by Runner's World magazine, 2% of the 2,500 people who responded said they smoked, unbeknownst to their running friends. About 4% said they smoked but that their running
buddies were in the know."
"Four days and 263 miles into a backcountry race and Kathy Roche-Wallace isn't even halfway to the finish. She's limping on a big toe that is infected and swollen. She has a purple bruise the size of a grapefruit on her left thigh from a spill down a mountainside. Her sweat smells of vinegar and ammonia, a sign her fuel-starved body has started burning muscle." Alexandra Alter writes about the popular 500-mile race through Montana's backcountry. In The Wall Street Journal.
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