You have recently approached the trails. Maybe you have a past/present as a road runner, saw some pictures, a video and couldn’t resist the call of the woods.
In short, you want to become part of the ultrarunning scene, but you don’t know how to get started.
Here are some tips that will come in handy:
1. Garbage does who garbage is
Making garbage in general is stupid. Making it in the woods even more so. If you see trash, even if it is not yours, take it away. As for yourself, try to produce as little as possible. Use a water bottle, always the same one. The world does not need your plastic at all;
2. Facts count not the things you tell
Get respect for what you do. Volunteer, help at races, fix the trails. These things matter more than any other accomplishment you can achieve in your career.
Ask for help and don’t always expect someone else to do things for you;
3. No one cares about your time over some distance
No one will ever ask you “what is your personal” because no one really cares. The same race can change so much from year to year because of weather, and time, pace per kilometer and stopwatch are relative concepts. As long as you don’t print the record in a 100-mile race, it’s important not to crowd people by talking about your times;
4. The less you have the better
He espouses minimalism. You don’t really need all that junk that companies try to sell you. You can run without compression socks, without poles, without a backpack, without trail shoes.
Showing up fully dressed and not being able to run at least 100 km is the equivalent of having a thousand-euro time trial bike with child’s training wheels.
Here is a short list of what you need to approach ultrarunning and running in the woods:
– a pair of shorts
– a shirt (optional)
– A pair of shoes (road or trail does not change)
– a water bottle
everything else you don’t really need. With this set-up many people before you-more than you can imagine-have run 50 km, 100 miles , 300 km and very often harder than you ever will. You can also remove the water bottle from the list of materials I recommend, but dehydration is always something not to be underestimated, especially if you are just starting out.
5. Leave your cell phone, music and other technological devices at home
If you run in the woods, you don’t need to listen to music. Listen to the sounds of the forest, focus on yourself. For hundreds of years people have been running without having their smartphones with them, which means you can manage to do without this addiction, too. You do well to carry it if you use it as a safety device to be used for emergencies. You can also look at it this way, in that case, airplane mode, head down to run. There is nothing more annoying for another person to hear your ringtone ring or the sound of incoming messages when you are in the woods running.
6. Influencer? No thanks
Leave social media at home. No one really cares what route you took and how you were dressed. Selfies make you look stupid, posed photos in which you show off your muscles, boobs or ass just make you look like an idiot. There is no need in this world to show off, let it happen elsewhere, don’t pollute too.
Get respect for what you do, not what you want to make yourself out to be.
Fashion victims and influencers unfortunately also exist in the ultra world, but efforts are being made to curb this rampant problem. Leave these behaviors in the city and accept that you are out of place when you are in nature;
7. Show respect for those who were there before you.
Veterans of ultras are characters to learn from. There are people who have a frightening number of miles on their legs and were running before you knew how to tie your shoes. These people are humble and wise; show respect. Don’t be cool, in general, there is no need.
8. Remember that there is definitely someone stronger than you. Stay humble
Although to someone who does not run or only jogs it may seem like a big undertaking what you are doing, remember that it is not: it is just another sport. Eliminate words like “extreme,” “feat,” or “epic” from your vocabulary. To those who come from the ultra world you turn out to be just a blowhard or someone who doesn’t quite understand what he is doing. You are just a person who likes to run long distances.
9. Ultra’s are made of people, not ironmen or robots
Nor, even worse, of those who “fight” against Nature. Fly low. Smile. If you meet someone, smile and make small talk. At the race thank the volunteers, and if you see someone having a hard time, tell them something to cheer them up. It is not a road marathon, most of the time that minute saved at the refreshments will not affect your performance. Help preserve the human nature of the sport
10. Preserve culture, maintain attitude
I will not explain what this point means; you will understand it when the time is right. Don’t rush, learn from time to time, use both your legs and your brain.