Question:
I'm just trying to find people who
know more about running than I do
at the moment. Thought a running
club might provide some help
Answer:
I'm not in a running club, but I
think you'll find it varies a lot
by club. The groups I'm in are oriented
toward training, group runs on trails
(safety reasons), and sharing knowledge.
At least half the people are married,
and most are women where I am, so
it's definitely not singles club.
I am in a
snowshoe club, which is mostly snowshoe
runners, and 1 walker. The group
is small (about 6-7 people usually)
but ranges from redline ultra runners
to beginning slowpokes like me and
one walker. We chat about snowshoeing
and running at the beginning, then
take off on the same trail at the
same time and each return according
to our skills, endurance, time commitments
- ranging from 1 to 5 hr or so.
I enjoy that group a lot. We learn
from each other. It's a great way
to get
introduced to a new trail since
the more experienced may introduce
the others to it or everybody gets
lost together finding the trail
head. In a new situation, it's nice
to know there's others from your
group around - even if you aren't
near them - esp. in Alaska winter.
We all run
at our own pace, so I'm not too
pressured to keep up with anybody
and can get a workout that's good
for me. But we don't always know
what the trail will be ahead of
time - flat or hills - to be able
to plan training. Once I get close
to races, whether it's snowshoe
or regular, I focus on my own schedule
and don't go on the group runs.
If the snow isn't appropriate for
snowshoes, we just run on the snow
or ground. This is free group and
meets every Sunday from about Dec
to Apr, iirc. There's a cross-training
group that has a large number of
women from the local women's running
team (really a club) that meets
on Sat morning from Oct through
late April, I think.
I participate
in that group for about 10-12 weeks
from Oct until Jan - before we start
getting good snow for snowshoe running.
This costs about $28 for 4 consecutive
weeks, iirc. It's coached by a gymnast
/ mtn runner / martial arts / lifter
and not sure what else he's done
in the past. It's useful training
for some things, although I don't
think he explains some things that
well all the time. But we always
have the option of ping on something
that may be too much stress on an
injury or we can't keep up with
the group. It works well for my
periodization between summer and
snowshoe, but I'm not an indoor
person so can't handle it for too
many months.
The coach
is knowledgeable, but there's also
a lot he doesn't know. There's generally
about 12-18 people most weeks -
redliners to people just trying
to get in a little bit of shape.
We run barefoot on mats so it provides
a unique type of training that's
great for strengthening feet and
ankles. Training includes plyometrics
and form drills and a bunch of other
things - general conditioning and
strength. I've chosen not to join
the women's running team since it's
about $100 for April to August -
in the past because I'm in the field
during summer, and now because I
don't want that level of structure
just yet. I only run 3 days a week,
and I want a summer of freedom before
I take on any regular commitments.
They have coached (coaches are paid)
track and trail nights (Tues, Thurs)
about 1 hr. My training goes best
if I adjust individual workouts
to what I need for building time
/ elevation for upcoming races and
how much recovery I need. I would
lose that flexibility in a summer
group when most of my races would
occur.
