As Good As Ever

Anne Lundblad (Swannanoa, NC) lets her legs make her decisions.  After what most would consider a highly successful 2007 campaign, littered with wins and even a National Championship, Anne wasn’t convinced that she hadn’t stepped into her “golden years” and had slipped away from her “prime”.  Although successful by any standards, Anne wanted to run faster and questioned when many of her results were slower than what she had expected or hoped for.  She began to wonder whether it would be the calendar or her strong desire to still dominate the world of ultra running that would ultimately prevail.

At last week’s Mt. Mitchell 40 Mile in Black Mountain, NC, Anne found her answer.  Anne ran a 13 minute PR on a very tough course.  Her time of 5:38:55 was a course record by over 11 minutes. 

Anne proved that hard, consistent training and a burning desire to succeed trump Father Time.

Sounds Like a Good Plan

Saturday, 2/23 found Sean Workowski (Botetourt, VA) at the Mt. Mitchell 40 Mile in Black Mountain, NC. Sean remembered from a past mistake not to go out too aggressively in order to avoid paying the price later after the climbing and rough terrain took its toll. He went out much more conservatively than last year but his preparation and careful consideration of how to pace himself paid off. His time of 6:39:11 was nearly 51 minutes faster than his previous PR set in 2007. Sean reached the finish line happy with his improvement, slightly upset that he still had excess energy left in his legs, and very hungry for his next race.