We’re back in Stewart Park for the workout tonight. We meet at the bocce pits near the big pavilion starting at 6:15 PM, with warmups starting at 6:25 PM.
Remember that everyone needs to sign the waiver once for 2026, and if you’re coming regularly, be an FLRC member (there’s a free option).
We’re returning to Single File Surges, a classic cross-country team workout common in high school programs. In a couple of groups, depending on how many people we have and the range of paces, we’ll do three or four loops of the roughly 1-mile circuit around Stewart Park, running on the Waterfront Trail’s paved surface or the grass next to it as desired.
After we regroup from the 10-minute warmup jog, each group will spread out into a single file with a few feet between each person, running at a comfortable, easy pace. The order of runners doesn’t matter. After everyone is in position, the person at the back of the line surges to the front, passing everyone in front of them on the left and then tucking into the head of the line after passing the last person. As soon as they’re in front, they yell “Go!,” the new person at the back surges to the front, and so on. The surge pace should be quick—somewhere in the R pace to I pace range (1 mile to 5K race pace)—because each surge will be short and the intervening pace will be easy.
To make it more fun, someone will come up with a silly question (favorite pizza topping, where did you attend high school, iPhone or Android, whatever) that each person will answer when they start their pickup. Once everyone has answered, someone can suggest the next question. The group I was in did that last time (in the pouring rain) and it made the miles tick away much faster.
See you tonight!
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
