It is officially summer time. School is out, graduated seniors are preparing for the next phase in their life and cross country teams are gearing up for the fall season. Undoubtedly this includes lots of tedious miles on the roads and trails across Utah. Serious athletes might even be skipping outings with friends to log those miles they hope pay dividends for them come the fall season. The monotony of such a regimen can make summer training seem dull and repetitive. This does not have to be the case. There are some fun things that can be done to spice it up. This is the first installment of a three part series which talks about ways to make summer training more fun and enjoyable.
Road races are one way to break up the routine. Whether you treat them as a series of hard workouts or whether you want to test your new gained fitness, Utah offers several high quality road races to take part in. Some of the larger races in Utah during the summer include:
Wasatch Back Ragnar Relay: This is a great team building experience, and a fun non competitive race sure to improve your endurance and yield new friends. The race starts at Utah State's Ralph Maughan track and finishes on the Park City HS track.
Utah Summer Games: Miss the track? Here is one last shot before next winter to run fast around the rubber oval in the beautiful confines of SUU's Eccles Coliseum. Also a great option for sprinters and jumpers.
4th of July: No matter where you travel, or where you live, there are several races across the country to commemorate the 4th of July.
Deseret News 10K: Held in Salt Lake City, this is the largest road race in Utah, a fast downhill 10K, great way to test your summer fitness against a big field
Here are a few things to be aware of with road racing:
Prize Money: An amateur athlete cannot accept more money than the race entry fee, so if you are lucky enough to win a race, make sure you know what you can and cannot accept in the way of prizes. The last thing you want is for your season to get derailed by accepting some money.
Perspective: Races are a good chance to go out there and have fun competing, it is also a good chance to meet some local elite, but what matters most happens in the fall and not in the summer.
Footwear choice: for the stronger and more experienced runner this might not matter, but for many taking into consideration what shoes to wear is important. Wearing racing flats too early and too often invites injury, you might consider racing in your trainers to play it safe.
Have Fun: Isn't this what running is all about? Enjoy the atmosphere, meet a new friend or two, and have a good time running!