Why You Should Race When You're Not at Racing Fitness

A few weeks ago I ran only my second race of the year.  It was the Simpson Library Run for Reading, which I've run the previous two years - even winning my age group once.  I know I'm not at the level of fitness I had been at those previous two years, so I tempered my expectations.  The result was my worst 5K since 2009.  But I'm definitely glad I did it.

50 is the New 26.2

For most Americans, the marathon is thought of as the ultimate in endurance.  Of course, most Americans have never run a marathon, many have never run a 5K, so the idea of running 26.2 miles sounds downright impossible.  And since the marathon is the longest running event in the Olympic games, for most it sounds like the limit of human endurance.

But trail and ultra runners know better.  26.2 miles is an arbitrary number, created in the 1908 Olympic games (in London) so that the start could happen at Windsor Castle and the finish would be on the track at White Stadium.  And as the marathon has grown in popularity, with personal best times frequently used in by-lines for running articles, it has become seen less and less as the ultimate in endurance for many runners, with the 50-miler taking it's place.