By Chamberlain Zulauf, Student Reporter
There were a few milestones in this past week. Namely, I turned 23 on Saturday and on Monday was my last-first day of practice. It is a bit weird to work out with kids almost 5 years younger than myself, but the freshies are welcome. It’s wild to feel old at 23. The first week of practice is two-a-day’s which has me legitimately fatigued and ready for bed by nine. The tempos and hill workouts are coming next week so running in the morning then again in the afternoon for a shorter time gets our bodies ready to start really training.
Roanoke’s distance team is bigger than it ever has been. Meaning that we also have the best shot in preseason since I’ve been a Maroon. Starting the season feels something like relief. After a summer-end that was productive but didn’t go exactly as I’d hoped, I’m keen to move on from building my base into serious training.
There are tangible pros in returning to campus as well. The ice tub in the trainer’s room, for one, is something I’ve missed dearly all summer (throwing a bunch of ice in a bathtub did the job these past months but it’s just not the same). Roanoke’s cafeteria is also a life saver. I did enjoy cooking this summer, but again, nothing beats swiping into a buffet after a run.
This Tuesday coach held a two-mile time trial which was… fun!
I ran around 10:20 which is really nowhere near my true ability, but it was inspiring to see how good everyone looked. Like I said—I’m ready to get into serious training and away from miles on miles. Summer mileage is where your season’s endurance comes from whereas in-season training is how athletes build up their speed. My hope is that by our first race early next month I’ll have a good amount of both in my muscles.
Next week will be the 12th and last edition of this series. I’ll be sure to tell you how much your readership has meant to me then.
