Earlier this month, I had the chance to take part in Aravaipa Working’s Cocodona Coaching Run.
The run, which covers the notoriously tough first 37 miles of the Cocodona 250 Mile, is organized by race director Steven Aderholt and permits runners to preview the course with some support station help however with out course markings. All individuals should load the course GPX file onto their watches or telephones and carry a minimal of 4 liters of water to get them by way of the prolonged stretches between water stations.
After a number of miles, I settled right into a small group of runners who had been going about the identical tempo as I used to be and proceeded to take pleasure in a full, sun-splashed day within the stunning Bradshaw Mountains. All day lengthy, I used to be struck by how relaxed and completely satisfied everybody was all through the run. Whereas it was a severe effort on a particularly tough part of path, the dearth of race day strain was palpable and allowed everybody to not solely benefit from the unimaginable surroundings but in addition to share within the fantastic camaraderie these distinctive occasions supply.
The group on the 2024 Aravaipa Working’s Cocodona Coaching Run. All images courtesy of AJW.
Along with the current Cocodona Coaching Run, I’ve been lucky to take part in three different noteworthy organized coaching runs hosted by race organizations over time.
The Virginia Blissful Trails Working Membership hosts a three-event sequence known as the Massanutten Mountain Trails Coaching Academy every spring. These three runs, that are all freed from cost, traverse the whole thing of the Massanutten Mountain Trails 100 Mile course.
Runners obtain a small quantity of support station help and detailed “flip sheets” that assist them keep on target. I had the pleasure of attending a number of of those coaching academy runs after I lived in Virginia, and every time I left with drained legs and new working pals.
For a number of years, the Tahoe Rim Path 100 Mile organizers hosted a 50-kilometer run on the gorgeous trails round Lake Tahoe. Freed from cost and open to anybody who wished to run, the coaching run allowed runners to be on sections of the course which might be solely accessible on race day. Moreover, this coaching run let runners have an early season check of the high-altitude situations they might face on race day.
Lastly, there’s the extremely common Western States 100 Memorial Weekend Coaching Camp. This three-day working extravaganza offers individuals a possibility to cowl the ultimate 70 miles of the enduring Western States 100 course with a 32 miler on the primary day, a 19 miler on the second, and a 20 miler on the third.
This coaching camp supplies transportation every day, totally staffed support stations, and a well-marked course. At $170 to take part in all three runs in 2024, the fee is kind of reasonably priced. The camp can also be open to all, no matter whether or not they’re entered within the race or not.
The low-key vibe of organized coaching runs make them an important alternative to make new working pals … and see the course.
As the game of path working and ultrarunning has grown and occasions have turn out to be increasingly more commercialized, it’s refreshing to see these homegrown organized coaching runs thriving. They supply runners with fantastic alternatives to entry stunning locations, and their low-key environment is an opportunity to decelerate, take within the view, and luxuriate in one another’s firm. I, for one, stay up for taking part in lots of extra within the years to return.
Bottoms up!
AJW’s Beer of the Week
This week’s Beer of the Week comes from the Brookeville Beer Farm in Brookeville, Maryland. Coppice is an English-style Further Particular Bitter (ESB) with sturdy notes of freshly baked bread and a deep malty end. Harking back to the traditional British bitters, Coppice is a novel tackle a timeless traditional.
