Paul Tierney: Running The Wainwrights
It’s not the first time that we’re sharing news from the UK fell running scene and the records that are frequently set on these iconic routes (like the Bob Graham Round) but this time, we’re sharing a video about something even crazier: the record of summiting all the peaks in the famous Lake District.
The fell runner Paul Tierney set out to try and beat the record for the 214 summits (yeah, 214.) The route was 300 miles long, and had more than 100,000 feet of elevation gain…on really gnarly terrain. Beside having epic views, this video shows off all the preparation and logistics that Paul had to deal with–and, the video also gives a look at how important a strong running community is in supporting a runner through efforts like this. It’s an hour long, so it’s great to watch during your workout if you’re stuck indoors on a spinning bike or treadmill!
Best trail runners of the decade
Who doesn’t love rankings? The ITRA (“International Trail Running Association”) has been around for a while now, so they’ve been collecting a lot of results from the last couple of years–so it was a matter of time before they came up with an official ranking of the best trail runners of the decade. Many familiar faces, and many others who you might not have heard of before. What do you think?
You can see the rankings here.
Trail Runners pushing the human body’s limits
Wired UK came out with a nice, long article about how ultra runners are pushing the limits of what was thought to be the limit of human performance just a few years ago. They talk a lot about Tom Evans and how his professional approach is paying off with results, but they also contrast that with the more relaxed approach from athletes like Courtney Dauwalter. Cool to see how very different styles can yield equally awesome results in our sport.
You can read the article here.
WHAT INSPIRED US THIS WEEK
What to watch:
So the famous USA Olympic Trials Marathon weekend is finally here–we’re about to find out who will represent the country in the next Olympics. GU Energy came up with a nice video which tells the story of three GU athletes who will start the race this Saturday. The video show a lot of the processes they’ve gone through to get to this point, and also includes a lot of training tips that may well apply for training for trail races…plus, you might recognize two of the runners from the trail and ultra scene.
What to read:
Like coffee? We love it! There’s always been a lot of talk about the use of caffeine in endurance sport and how it can help us in our performances. We leave you with this piece from Trail Runner Magazine with some simple tips and advice for the use of caffeine in your daily life. And from our side, we encourage you to always have control of the amount of caffeine you’re putting in your body, especially when all the gels and liquids you may be drinking on race day may have caffeine in them, too. Always make sure to hit the right amount for your body!
