Western is a very desolate race–I went 55 miles before I saw my crew. Rocky is a very supportive race, and it’s good to allow that part of its truth to bless you. It is really lovely to know you can’t be lost (ask somebody who’s been lost after mile 80 how fun that is), to have gear/crew/etc. every few miles. More fruitful is to APPRECIATE the beauty of it. A track mile is 4 loops, Rocky is 5, no point crying about either. But in truth it’s a failure to accept the event on its own terms. – Some people gripe that it’s not linear, or not an out and back, or whatever….they gripe about the loops. Far faster–and simply more enjoyable–were the times I ran/walked from the get go. The worst were the times I tried to run too much, then “death marched” the last 40. I have run lots at Rocky, pacing and racing. Have a walk plan to which you adhere from THE BEGINNING. – Unless you are a total stud, you can only run about 70 anyway, so make a plan. All of these can be authored from the comfort of a nice chair while drinking a beer. For Rocky, you will need to manage all the non-running pieces: clothing (it can get very cold) food, fluids, crew vs drop bags, pacing, etc. – The longer the race, the more the non-running elements matter. There’s more to a 100 than just running.Rocky will require NO MORE physical training than you will do for Bandera. Then, celebrate by doing very little the next couple of weeks–I mean VERY little (stretching, yoga, maybe a little light jogging) and rest up. Just train for Bandera, get to Bandera, do your 60 miles–but not so hard that you cannot recover in 3 weeks. So, mentally, you never need to train for Rocky. Rocky is a freebie IF you don’t kill yourself at Bandera.
– If you are running Bandera 100 km and Rocky Raccoon 100, you only need to train for Bandera, not Rocky. Matt Crownover has raced the Rocky course three times (sub 24 hour finish) and has paced other runners a number of times. And there is plenty to do in the park while waiting for their crazy parents to run by. – It has an awesome 1 mile kids race that most children really enjoy. But you need to come up with a plan because it is the rare runner who can run the entire 100 mile course.īonus Comment: Bring the kiddos. I like a 8 minute run 2 minute walk plan, but you can mix it up with what you are comfortable with. In fact, because the terrain is mostly runnable you need to come up with a run/walk ratio to use the entire race. There are some small hills, but nothing steep. – You don’t need to train specifically for hills while training for Rocky. – You do not need trail shoes at Rocky - road shoes work great - probably even better than trail shoes. I feel so strongly about it, that if I only had a pacer for 20 miles I’d have them run the 4th loop with me instead of the final loop. The final loop (miles 80 to 100) is also difficult, but there is something uniquely challenging about that 4th loop.
ROCKY RACOON 100 UPDATES PATCH
I strongly recommend you have a pacer here to get you through this tough patch of the race. (my translation) – Mentally the 4th loop (miles 60 to 80) is a challenge. For example, I was in last place for the first 4 miles of the race and was still able to finish under 24 hours. Do not worry at all about your position in the race. If you want to be able to run at the end, you have to have a very, very slow first 20 mile loop. – I can’t stress this enough. The terrain will not slow you down at Rocky, so pacing yourself is the hardest thing to do in this entire race.
ROCKY RACOON 100 UPDATES HOW TO
You may even want to practice tripping yourself in training and learning how to fall! It is a rare runner who does not fall at least one time on this course (I fell at least four times). The footing is excellent except for pine tree roots that reach out and grab you from time to time. – This course is the opposite of Bandera.
Joe’s Rocky race page has lots of great information worth checking out. Joe Prusaitis of Tejas Trails includes the Rocky Raccoon trail run in his smorgasbord of trail running adventures so you know it will be a high quality event. 100 miles is still 100 miles and there is no way to shortcut that (unless you drop).įor those new to this trail race and distance (myself included), I wanted to pick the minds of those that have experience with finishing this physical, mental, and spiritual challenge so that we may have that extra bit of insight be able to do the same. This event is one of the flatter 100s but that doesn’t mean it is easy. The Rocky Raccoon 100 mile trail run takes place down at Huntville State park in early February, northeast of Houston Texas.