Question:
(1)
has anyone run Charlottesville who can comment on just what they mean
by "rolling" hills, and (2) has anyone tried to generate an elevation
profile for a race they ran. And as long as I am posting, does anyone have any wisdom to share on
whether I could safely race a half-marathon 4 weeks prior to racing the
full?
Answer:I haven't but there's probably people here that can give you an idea.
But I did notice in the marathonguide that someone said there was only
600 ft of elevation change. For perspective, most of our fun trail 3-4
milers have about 400 ft or more elevation change.
Hills are relative to your training. If the 600 ft is accurate, many
people (esp. trail runners) would consider that fairly flat. For road
marathoners, esp. those that might be looking for a flat, presumably
fast, course for a PR or BQ or some other qualifier, they may cuss its
hilliness. Undertrained runners will also complain. I'm guessing, but
the hills in the pictures looked like they might be a few % slope,
probably <5%, although sometimes pictures along the hill, rather than
in profile, are deceiving. Sore quads referred to may have been people
pounding the downhills without adequate downhill specific training.
As far as any places that are absolutely flat (bubble in a level is
centered), I'll bet there's close to none except when switching from up
to down or vice versa. But that's true on most routes, I think.
(2) has anyone tried to generate an elevation
> profile for a race they ran.
(this is my only answer that's fact - everything else is opinion and
suggestion ;) Yes, although more for future races than past so I know
how to train. The accuracy depends on the accuracy of the underlying
USGS DEM (digital elevation model) and your knowledge of route. In
Alaska, where I am, maps and DEM's may be sketchy. Other places, esp.
urban locations, probably have better detail. I can't use maps to
generate profiles of my usual trails because of the short, steep ups and
downs - we just can't locate things accurately enough. (I use Polar
S625x with altimeter to estimate elevation change of my runs now, and it
seems reasonable.) For our races, hills tend to be larger, so the
profiles from maps are probably more useful, but still not be completely
right. I've got one profile now that seems to be much steeper on the
profile than what people are telling me (comparing with trails we've
both run). (I'm hoping the people are right or I may take climbing rope
with me.) But it's the best tool I've got to estimate profiles of some
place I haven't been and will be accurate enough for my purposes of what
kind of hills I need to train on.
If it were *me* looking at 600 ft in a marathon distance, I wouldn't
worry about a profile, unless the 600 ft up or down happens in less than
a couple miles or so and the rest is flat. Depending on your hill
training and love/hate relationship with them, *you* may want a profile.
To be sure, you need to respect the hills and train for them, but it's
not outrageous. Did I mention the oldest marathon in Alaska has almost
4000 ft of elevation change, including a hill near the middle that's
close to 1500 ft, iirc?
If you're really concerned about it, go visit the course yourself.
That's the easiest way to see what it looks like. I think you said it
was a 2-hr drive one way - that's not much to set your mind at ease for
a 26+ mile race, or fine tune your training. Run part of it while you're
there. I know I drove 1.5 hr to preview a 4-mi race course - to keep me
from freaking out, and also realize I wasn't anywhere near ready for the
8 miler at that time (miles 5-7 were spooky terrain for me).
> And as long as I am posting, does anyone have any wisdom to share on
> whether I could safely race a half-marathon 4 weeks prior to racing the
> full?
You probably know your recovery time better than people here,
but you might want to post your running
background and current training - including distances and hills (slope,
height) so others that know what they're talking about can make some
useful suggestions / observations. While your planned runs may provide a
clue, I'm guessing it's better for them to know where you're starting.
FWIW, some people have been known to run over 20 100-mile races in one
year - 1 a female and 1 a guy over 60 yo. Others take a week to recover
from a 5k. I suspect you're in between, like most of us ;) When the
right-coasters read your training summary in the morning, they'll be
able to make comments. Hmm, you're a right-coaster also. Oh, well, maybe
you'll be up before the others ;)
