Long or Short?

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Long or short - that has been the question I've been throwing around in my head for the last year and a half. There is an allure to the longer races - the intensive preparation and mental focus required to succeed. Skimp on one aspect of the training and preparation and you risk the entire race. The longer the race, the greater the rewards for the effort outside of just running. At the same time, there is a simplicity to the shorter races that is so appealing. No fancy prep, no need for crews - just show up with a number and run as hard as you can! The entire weekend isn't focused on the one race and the months before aren't dedicated to hours of training with minimal social life.

Last year, I thought I had a great plan for 2018. Take a break from Vapor Trail 125 and focus on running again. The Crested Butte 105k sounded like a great event and a hard challenge and I figured that would be my primary 2018 event. But then my eye flared up back in March and I really backed down my running. I had to sacrifice something to keep my eye happy(ish) and the running was the choice. 2017 was always going to be a cycling heavy year and trying to run huge miles while focusing on the bike wasn't smart anyway. In the process, I discovered the pleasure of running short. I could go do a hard five miles and have the rest of the day to get things done - not have another 25 miles left still to run!

I also dropped down to the shortest distance in all the races I could. I've run more 5ks this year then in the prior five years. The pain in a 5k is real - it might be short, but it's hard. For someone who always opted for the longer if not longest race distance, doing the 5k has been a bit of a challenge. And more fun then I remembered. Sure, the warm up and cold down distance is more then the actual race and I actually have to do a focused warm up, but the race itself is 20 minutes of dig as hard as you can and then dig a little deeper. So different then the usual measured pace of the ultras

A window to the future or a glimpse back into the past? Who is to say?
Which brings me back full circle - and leads me wondering what the plan for 2018 is. I'm not sure I want to put myself through the training for and racing a 100k at this point. I'm enjoying the shorter races too much. I don't want to stick with just road running though - I love my trails and want to get back at them. But maybe instead of focusing on length, 2018 needs to be a year of quality. Pick the shorter races and put the emphasis on speed. I don't need to prove anything by going long - but perhaps the mental shakeup will be what I need.

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