From Running Times online…
Transition to Trails
What road elites turned trail champions can teach you about going off-road
By Ian Torrence
As featured in the October 2011 issue of Running Times Magazine
Why don't the top percent, the best of the best, the Ryan Halls and Kara Gouchers, give off-road racing a try? James Howard, a longtime high school and college coach, Olympic trials marathoner and a two-time winner of the Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run, identifies the elite runner's typical progression.
"Most competitive road and track runners have progressed through some type of youth or high school and college running program that offers cross country and track," Howard muses, reflecting many Running Times readers' experience. "Cross country offers the fast racer the experience of running over dirt and grass on wide trails at distances that range from 2 miles to 12K. So, most serious runners will progress to longer flat road racing distances such as the half marathon and marathon but will not transition to longer trail racing because they are more interested in personal records at established distances. When you transition to technical trail, personal records are slower and race-specific. Most serious road racers do not feel the need to race on trails longer than the distances offered in the sport of cross country and do not care about the challenge that technical trail running offers."
Read on here.
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