No matter what ultra distance you’re tackling, the long training run is going to be the heart and soul of your preparation. Developing stamina, conditioning the muscles, dialing in eating and drinking, testing out clothe...
Articles by Gary Dudney
The months of training, the punishing long runs, all the people you’ve told that you’re planning on running 100 miles, all the supporters out there helping you, your buddy on your elbow pacing you. You were convinced tha...
The dog days of summer, especially in August, when the heat can go through the roof, will put your eating and drinking practices to the test. Staying properly hydrated is a real challenge when you’re sweating profusely a...
Is it a race or is it a trail run when we toe the line at an ultra event? Or does that seem like a dumb question? An ultra is obviously a race, right? Well, even ultrarunning’s most iconic event, the Western States 100,...
The race promised a trot down idyllic trails winding through the oak and hickory woods of Chain O’ Lakes State Park in North Central Indiana in cool air under an overcast sky. The park is home to a string of charming, pe...
When you run an ultra, you’ve probably noticed a pattern of a descending series of mental and physical plateaus. At the start of the race, you are on a very high plateau indeed, feeling indestructible, bombing up even th...
Think you can’t handle the heat? Actually, you can, but it will take committing to some heat training before your race and then playing it smart on race day. High temperatures are going to slow everyone down, but they’ll...
For your average ultrarunner, the bedrock training technique is the familiar LSD, or Long Slow Distance, workout. You give up one of your precious weekend days to go really long, stay on your feet for hours, dial in the...
It’s January, and old man winter is clawing at the doors and windows. Serious running may not be happening for a while, but now is a great time to make plans and commit to some goals. Are you dreaming of setting a PR...
I’ll admit, the very name of the race – the Pumpkin Holler Hunnerd – and the out-of-the-way setting near Tahlequah, Oaklahoma, had me intrigued. The race was maturing into its fifth year, so I assumed the Tulsa Area Trai...
December’s bad weather and shortened daylight hours conspire to keep us indoors and off the trails. It’s a good time to pursue ultrarunning by other means – by reading about it. Here’s a short list of running books that...
The Hawk Hundred, staged at Clinton State Park in the northeastern corner of Kansas, is likely to confound your notion of what a 100-mile race is like in a state that is supposed to be all flat prairie grassland. Pict...
The name “Eastern States” certainly invites comparison of this 100-mile, summertime, wilderness trail run to California’s classic Western States trail run, though the organizers at Eastern States didn’t play up the conne...
It’s a long-standing tradition in the United States that during November, turkeys get the short end of the stick. However, not long ago, I found out to my horror that, birdbrains or not, turkeys can sometimes get the upp...
Buying just the right running shoes can be tricky. Figuring out when to get rid of them can be difficult as well. Sometimes a running slump and loss of motivation can be cured by getting out of tired and flat shoes. I...
The days, and even weeks, after completing your big all-out target race can be hazardous to your running health. I like to think of a hard race effort as casting a shadow over the days that follow: the longer the race, t...
As hard charging, fiercely driven, superhero ultrarunners, we love to pile up the miles, train until we drop and skimp on rest days. But one of the great ironies about long-distance running is that the resting done betwe...
Unique location, unique wildlife, unique logistics: the Buffalo Run 100 Mile is a wholly singular and satisfying experience. The course tours Antelope Island, the largest island in the Great Salt Lake, and features sweep...
In marathons and shorter distance races, most runners have one goal in mind: speed. Holding a particular pace right at the upper edge of their abilities for the duration of the race is the end-all and be-all. Things like...
One benefit of the ultrarunning boom of the past 10 years is that there are now a plethora of ultras to choose from spread across the calendar and all over the country. You can pick just about anywhere you want to travel...