Toluu

A Trail Runner's Blog

Scott Dunlap's blog of trail running, ultrarunning, and triathlon racing in the Western United States. Scott enjoys the physical, emotional, and spiritual journey of outdoor events and chance to meet cool people. This blog contains interviews, research, original fiction, new product ideas, and all things trail running.

Zombie Runner Grand Opening!November 24

Look out, wallets - the Zombie Runner store in Palo Alto, CA, is officially open! I stopped by the grand opening on Saturday to check out the wares, have a cup of Don Lundell's amazing coffee, and let Sophie wreak havoc on the new store.

It makes so much sense to have a trail running store. Want to see which headlight gives off the right beam? Want to try out the latest Inov-8, La Sportiva, New Balance, etc., before buying them? Want to taste the latest flavors of gel and mix before committing to a case? So much of this stuff is hands on! Plus hear you can get the sage advice of the trail running staff.

In classic Zombie form, Don and Gillian (and team!) have made their store into a great hang out. As a former theater, the space is large and inviting. There's a nice sitting area with the latest trail running magazines, a full wall of DVD's to peruse, and more. We even got a full demonstration of the new DryMax socks. The real hidden secret to the store, however, is that Don Lundell makes the best coffee/cappucino you will ever taste. He has his own posse of local, micro-batch

Great Escape at the Stinson Beach 50kNovember 20

Last Saturday, I had the pleasure of joining 450 trail runners for the Stinson Beach 12k/20k/30k/50k in Stinson Beach, CA. This hilly course put on by Pacific Coast Trail Runs tours through some of the most beautiful and challenging trails in the Bay Area, sharing terrain with races like The Dipsea, Miwok 100k, and the Headlands 50k. The weather was a California Dream (75 degrees and cloud-free), and we would all finish with new sun-baked smile lines tattooed into our faces. In short, an epic afternoon of escape.

“Escape” was exactly what I was looking for this weekend. A temporary reprieve from the global economic crisis that has swept up my life with dizzying speed and flung it across the sky like a Class 5 tornado. Every five minutes I have another reminder of how impactful it is. Friends are losing jobs. Foreclosures abound. Parents are watching retirement savings disappear by the day. A

Life-Adjusted Race TimesOctober 24

Have you ever watched an athlete crush a course record and then be even more impressed when you find out that they have three kids, a new job, and recently moved? Or how about the other extreme - witnessing a new course record set by a 28-year-old with no social life, a part-time job, and nothing but time to train? Well of course they can haul ass with all that time to train. But how do you compare these breakthrough performances? I think we need a calculation for life-adjusted race times.

The World Association of Veteran Athletes has Age-Graded Tables, a set of "age factors" and "age standards" that, when multiplied by a time or distance, allow athletes of any age and event to compare their performances with that of any other athlete (go here for a calculator). Perhaps we could have the same for adjusting for major life events. But where to start?

I've seen a life stress test floating around (such as this one) to help determine susceptibility to stress-related illnesses. Perhaps we could use similar elements with a starting sc

Does Listening to Music Give a 15% Performance Gain?October 12

UK-based sports pyschologist Costas Karageorghis says that listening to music while running may not only improve their outlook on exercise, but even improve endurance levels by more than 15 percent. He is about to publish his findings in the US Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology, detailing how he found that when listening to tracks from Madonna to the Red Hot Chili Peppers, most runners found the exercise more pleasurable than usual, even those on the verge of collapsing on the treadmill. In general, they ran further and for longer.

"Think of music as a legal drug," Karageorghis explains, "It reduces the perception of effort by blocking fatigue-related messages to the brain. It elevates positive aspects of mood, like vigour and excitement, and reduces negative aspects, like depression, and this creates the right sporting mindset."

Writer/runner Claire Soares has a good article about meeting the author, and even running in one of his races. Check it out

What’s Next? – An Interview with Erik Skaden and Graham CooperSeptember 26

When the forest fires canceled the 2008 Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run, it was a tough break for many. It was especially difficult for runners like perennial top finisher Erik Skaden and 2006 winner Graham Cooper, who were running faster than ever this year and eager for the showdown. Would this have been Skaden’s year after finishing 2nd in 2007? Would Cooper get the kind of hot day that leaves him all alone in the front? Or would they both have to work together just to not get smoked by the rookies and road runners?

(Erik Skaden and Graham Cooper)

Both managed to quickly refocus their goal races to take advantage of their Beijing-level fitness, with Skaden co-winning the 2008 Tahoe Rim Trail 100 to claim his first USATF 100-mile National Championship, and Cooper smoking the 2008 Ironman Canada course in 9:39 to qualify for