Happy February! We’ve been glued to the Olympics and are particularly entranced by the Nordic Ski competitions. With so much intensity and grit out there, it’s hard to stop watching. It’s got us amped for some bigger training days this spring. The games in Cortina, along with imminent snow in our forecast, also inspired us to get back out for some modest cross-country ski touring of our own, and it’s been so much fun to play around with something challenging. Try something this spring that’s maybe a little outside your comfort zone... a low-key trail race could be just the ticket. Each of these offers a variety of distances for runners of any experience.
March 28 Mudslinger Trail Run Half Marathon Blodgett, OR
April 9 Desert Rats Trail Running Festival Fruita, UT
April 18 Horseshoe Lake Trail Run Los Altos, CA
May 10 Marshall Mountain Revival Trail Runs Missoula, MT
May 30 Echo Valley Trail Run Lake Chelan, WA
Corvallis Half Marathon & 5K
April 11 — Corvallis, OR / 5K, Half Marathon
This scenic, 13.1 mile 'Tour de Corvallis' is mostly flat with two slow gradual climbs, and two gradual descents. The entire course is on paved roads, sidewalk and bike paths. The 5k is one of the flattest around.
Yakima River Canyon Marathon and Half-Marathon
March 28 — Yakima, WA / Half Marathon, Marathon
Check out these point-to-point races on paved state highway through the beautiful Yakima River Canyon. The half marathon is fulling up fast so register today!
Trail running just keeps growing - and drawing faster athletes from road and track. The recent Black Canyon Ultra in Arizona included professional marathoners, Molly Seidel and Des Linden, and saw records broken in both the men’s and women’s fields. Crossing over from road to ultramarathon at a high level does take some training tweaks, with emphasis on improving durability over mixed terrain.
How to Build Fatigue Resistance for Ultras: Lessons from Molly Seidel’s Training
BLACK CANYON ULTRAS: THE RACE THAT DEFINES SPEED IN THE WORLD TRAIL MAJORS SERIES
You don’t have to be a trail runner to add hill training to your routine. If you’re looking to improve your running , a variety of hill intervals is an efficient and safe addition to your hard workouts.
Best Hill Running Workouts
4 Powerful Hill Workouts That Provide Major Benefits
Do you think trail running deserves Olympic recognition? It’s being considered as an addition to the 2032 games, and ”Technically trail running’s inclusion in the Olympics would be a re-introduction for off-road running, given that cross country running was an individual and team medal sport in the three Olympics held from 1912 to 1924.” If it is introduced, it would likely look like a short-format style of racing, akin to the Golden Trail Series events. Meanwhile, you can catch a couple elite trail runners competing this week in the inaugural Olympic Skimo.
How And When Will Trail Running Become An Olympic Sport?
And finally, no one loves a cheesy bean burrito more than me, but would I run the same quarter-mile loop for hours a day, for a month, in hopes of freebies? The January Burrito League is a phenomenon that’s hard to ignore and has a strange draw. Read about the hype and you might just put the challenge on your training calendar next winter.
Burrito League Wraps Up What's Great About Running (and Ditches the Rest)
