Two important notes:
- After the workout, we’ll enjoy a potluck at the Small Pavilion, so come prepared to eat with friends! If you’re new, don’t be shy.
- This is the final Summer Speed workout at Stewart Park; next Tuesday, we’ll move to the Cornell Arboretum for XC workouts.
We’re going to finish up Summer Speed with our 800m equalizer workout. We’ll be running 5 or 6 reps of an 800m loop around the fields and paths at Stewart Park—see the map below—with everyone aiming for I pace (not all out!). Everyone will start together for the first rep, and I’ll record finishing times and calculate the offsets between each runner (with help from @laurenmilano and Theo). Then, for the second and subsequent reps, we’ll do a staggered start from slow to fast, forcing the faster people to run in pursuit of the slower people. If the offsets work out properly, everyone should come in together at roughly the same time.
For instance, if Makoto runs a 4:30 800m and Alexander a 3:00 800m on the first one, Makoto gets a 90-second head start over Alexander on the subsequent ones, with others slotting in somewhere in between. I may adjust the offsets as people get tired or to account for someone sandbagging early on. 
Recoveries will be 3 minutes of walking or jogging around the field. The faster people will get more rest, but I’m also expecting them to be incapable of not pushing the pace faster because they are starting so far behind. Part of the goal of this workout is to teach you how to race from a different spot in the pack, with slower people seeing what it’s like to lead and faster people being forced to play catch-up.
Resources
- Administration: You must be an FLRC member and sign the waiver!
- Location: Stewart Park in downtown Ithaca, which has lots of free parking
- Warmup: Jay Johnson’s Lunge Matrix and Leg Swings, then 10 minutes of jogging
- Cooldown: 10 minutes of jogging, then Jay Johnson’s Strength and Mobility
- FLRC Calendar: Subscribe to FLRC Races and Other Club Events