Don't let go, expectations and the track

A long time ago I went dog sledding in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. It was very cold so the conditions were fast and we traveled 30 miles in three hours. The dogs howled in delight when we harnessed them for the sleds. We had a lead musher and three sleds of total newbies in teams of two, wide eyed, ready for anything. There were just two rules we were expected to follow (the dogs knew what to do, so really, the bar for the humans was low).

RULE #1- Don't let go! One person was driving the sled from behind and no matter how thick your gloves or what was happening, you were expected to hang on.  
RULE #2- Run uphill to take weight off the sled and help the team. Also, see rule #1 and while sprinting uphill, DO NOT LET GO. 

So basically, you are getting a fun ride, weeee and then you have to break into a sprint while holding your arms extended if you start going uphill. Not the most ideal for cold muscles, but it was good fun. I feel like winter running needs the same rules as dog sledding. It is easy to skip runs when it is dark and dumping rain. Don't let go (of your plan, of your training partners, of your goals!) 
And make sure you are helping your team. Take some weight off for someone and everyone can run a little easier. 

LOW EXPECTATIONS
"High standards, low expectations" Broze medalist in the marathon, Molly Seidel, on her transition to trails and her thoughts in advance of the Black Canyon 100k which she raced last weekend and earned a Golden Ticket into Western States on her first attempt. Her thoughts on her high standards for her racing and training yet expecting nothing. "I will work as long as it takes." - full video here. 

Did you see the TWO wins by Italian Alpine ski racer, Frederica Brignone. Just 10 months prior to the Olympic games on her home soil, she suffered a crash that she estimated would take two years to recover. “And in the end, I wanted to prove to myself that I would be able to come back from something that really felt impossible to do. Sometimes when you want something so badly, it doesn’t happen. But it’s when you stop or when you want something, but not in that almost unhealthy way that it comes. I mean, I was just happy to be here, and I wasn’t trying to win gold." - full article here.

RUNNING NEWS

• No one finished the Barkley Marathons this year. Also, reconciling the racist underpinnings of the Barkley. 
• At the Black Canyon 100k, the women's winner ran 7:41 pace (for SIXTY-TWO MILES) to win, setting a new course record and blowing my mind. Full results. 
• Sometimes it takes 13 years to get your Olympic medal. That stings, especially when almost half of the competitors in your race were found doping. 

NON-RUNNING BUT ALL GOOD FEELS

• The Track is a movie about training for the luge in post-war Bosnia on a crumbling track left behind from the 1984 Sarajevo Winter Olympics. All the feels. 
• Guess this sport. "Some type of a ath-thlon. Is there a finish line?" 
• I present skijoring. 

JOIN ME AND GET STRONG
Join me on Wednesday night for Strength Training for Runners. Live to your screen and always free. Stay home, get strong. 30 minutes and chats about nothing afterwards if you want.