This is embarrassingly overdue.
The first running book I read was sometime in the early 80 I guess. It Jim Fixx’s book “The Complete Book of Running.” I read it, and the follow up sequel book. I got both of these hard cover books from the local library back then. For what it is worth, I still have these books, and a couple others from that time period. It is rather interesting to go back and flip through the pages occasionally and see how much has changed, but really how much is EXACTLY the same.
Since then, with perhaps the exception of “Once A Runner,” or the sequel to that "Again to Carthage,” (which are actually running books but instead are one of these “this is a fictional account that rings true in all of us” of Quenton Cassidy’s life as a college miler and then later in life marathoner), I have been less than quick to pick up a training/intro to running book. I do have a copy of Sandrock’s “Running With the Legends” but even that is a bit different because you are reading about what guys like DeCastella did specifically. Or Aouita (who was THE BADASS distance runner of the late 80s).
See, I have read running books. And they are actually exactly what you expect them to be. They talk about running, getting started, building a program, and various considerations of diet, shoes, weather, etc. They usually have a conversation or two with some famous runner, maybe something about some particular race, and the obligatory training programs.
I tend to gravitate to these books to give them a quick once over while at the library or a book store. Maybe because I am less than “coachable” I usually don’t whip out the plastic to add them to the library. Same is true of running magazines in a way. I do seem to be more interested in the specific accounting of a runner or a race than the “this is running” book. Periodically, I will flip through Noakes “Lore of Running” but again I find I am drawn mostly to the chapters that cover the greats of the past more than the training programs recommended.
Some time ago however, I buzzed about wanting to read Bryon Powell’s book, “Relentless Forward Progress.” However, being the cheapskate that I am, I balked at actually buying the book. But this was a book about ULTRA distances. I pretty much had played the gambit of running races from the half mile to the marathon. But an ultra (until recently) was a bit of unknown distance to me. I wondered if there were some hidden nuggets of wisdom in this book. I had appreciated what Bryon had done for the sport, elevating its coverage on his site at Irunfar.
There was that, but also, clearly the very fact that a book was being written about ultras and being marketed as the intro to ultras reflected that – well, the sport was enjoying a bit of a boom. Marathons don’t seem to be the end all for folks anymore. There appears to be this flocking to the ultra world more and more as the way to prove your mettle (side note on that, I don’t remain convinced that ultras are any harder than marathons or even the mile for that matter … they are both running, but they can both induce a lot of suffering …the 800 is suffering in the one night stand gone bad sort of way, while an ultra is this grind you down affair like a miscalculated marriage).
Anyway, a friend offered me his copy of the book to read but then Bryon himself sent me a copy. Given my travel, it has taken me a bit to read it, but I have and here is the skinny.
… it is incredibly easy to read. I usually hit the rack, grab a book and … boom … am out within 10 minutes, or about 3 pages. In my first “sitting” with this book, however I had ripped through the first 50 pages.
… as you’d expect, this is running and so, well at some point, it is running. But Powell has a built a nice pocket introductory compendium for the person looking to have one location to consider expanding their running from marathon distances to the 50k, 50 mile, 100k or 100 mile. It hits the basics but also has some great side bars from some of the top of the sport like Mackey, Roes, Wardian, Chase, Moehl and Torrence (and others). I particularly enjoyed the back and forth on whether to do speedwork or not between Roes (no) and Torrence (yes).
… I guess I did not realize it until I saw it one place … there are quite a bit of differences with ultras that when added together are significant when compared to marathon and lesser races. Poles (or not), eating (during the race), going to the bathroom, managing aide stations, hydration packs or water bottles, walking versus running, falling (inevitable), drop bags, a crew … seeing this in one place, one book made me realize that while all of these are relatively simple topics, the world of ultras can seem pretty daunting to the runner considering it. There are a lot of additional logistics. Once you have done it, it seems pretty basic. But until then it is this crazy world of guys in compression socks running from buffet station to buffet station in the woods screaming things like “I’M A TIMMY.” So, this book serves as a great reference to the newbie.
… and so yes, it includes training plans. I won’t lie, I did not even look at these for more than 10 seconds. I am sure there is some value in them. That said, my (as Sean calls it) grumpy old man instincts kick in when I see the “do the ultra on 70 miles a week plans.” Yes, I know you can do this. And yes, I know some folks are incredibly successful with that. And yes, I know that if it is 70 a week in the mountains, that is probably more like 100 on the roads. And yes, I realize I don’t run much more than that (my counter argument to that is the length of time I have been running has built a base of consistency that I can draw on). I think essentially though, my take on these running plans are in most cases… “run more.” That said for the guy or gal looking for a something to start with, this is a good place. Bryon even admits that these are “starter” plans because it is impossible to draw up a plan in a book that will work for everyone.
… ultimately, one of things I appreciate about the ultras community (and this might be something that is lost in the lesser distance community) is the willingness to share and appreciate the journey of the participants. Bryon’s efforts here reflect a willingness to bring more people into the sport to share in that experience. Pretty cool.
Clearly, Bryon is a contributing factor in the sport of ultras. By contributing, I mean he is shaping how the sport is seen and appreciated. His name is as familiar as any of the champion in this sport not because of his wins to the finish line with his feet but because of of his winning media contributions via keyboard in terms of this text, his website of resources, and his coverage of races (plus he seems to be giving something away every other week). I actually heard a podcast the other day where a first time ultra runner was asked what research they did to prepare for their event. The person named Bryon’s “Irunfar” site explicitly as the site as where to get this information.
On my scorecard, that means I hope I can thank him for sharing this book with me by getting the opportunity to buy him a beer (or three) when our paths cross. That might mean I need to do a few more ultras.
