Heya and welcome back to Five Things Running!

This week I listened to an audiobook while running, because I wanted to know what the story of Steve Profontaine was all about. Steve Prefontaine died 50 years ago and I knew that he was an iconic figure in American running, but not much more. So I listened to The Front Runner: The Life of Steve Prefontaine to find out more. I assume that American runners know so much more about Bill Bowerman, the Oregon Ducks, Nike and Steve Prefontaine, much like us Germans have the saga of Adidas and “The Wonder of Bern” engrained in their collective memory (which was the 1954 soccer world cup, won in Adidas cleats and giving West German society a huge boost in morale). Still, I like those “Stop Pre” t-shirts a lot!

I went running during the hottest day of the year (so far) and it was just wonderful. I like the heat, even though I know that our planet is getting too hot. The temperatures dropped that evening by 10 degrees celsius and the rest of the week was the normal Northern German summer with sun, clouds and rain…

Here’s this week’s Five Things Running!

The Hangover

Three days after the race, when I was finally settled in back at home, I was seven pounds over my normal weight, swollen with retained fluids. My resting heart rate each night had ranged from 20 to 30 bpm above average. My body didn’t understand what had just happened, and it went into overdrive trying to repair itself. The only issue that lingers to today is my right ankle. It looks and feels sprained, swollen and bruised. I don’t remember rolling it or having pain there during the race, but I was so tunneled that maybe I just didn’t even notice. But it’s slowly improving.

Caleb Olsen writes about winning the Western States 100 and its aftermath.

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Western States 2025: Carnage/Rally Charts

This is an amazing compilation of charts showing what a monster of a race the Western States 100 is.

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How the modern NYC running scene got its stripes

Back in 2011, Facebook was the communication platform, so they set about searching for other like-minded run clubs, and they found them. Paris Run Club. NBRO from Copenhagen. Patta from Amsterdam. And the Berlin Braves, of course. Jessie and Charlie connected all the dots, and they all agreed to meet up before the race. The enduring success of Bridge The Gap came from that nightclub culture that helped form Bridgerunners.

This is the story of Jesse Zapo and the Bridgerunners community. While I love running by myself, I think it is so fantastic how people build community around running and create new opportunities for many people by doing so.

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Minimal impact, maximum enjoyment

There’s an inherent tension in running (and most - if not all - outdoor activities) around the idea that everyone would be better off spending more time being active, ideally outside, while also acknowledging that many of the environments in which people are active are fragile and under threat.

This is an important and difficult topic. We should all watch our CO2 footprints, and at the same time we should acknowledge that sometimes it is necessary to travel some place to create new experiences.

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100 Miles With Your Best Friend

It was endless conversation, exceptional views, a surprise appearance from her brother and another good friend at the next aid station as we headed into the dark of night. Just before the aid station at the halfway point, my friend needed our crew to address some of her blisters. She shook in pain as he fixed her feet and later, she admitted she was sure her race was going to be over. She could not imagine covering 50 more miles after being in such excruciating pain. But with a change of shoes and some expertise blister taping, we were off. She had never been awake all night while keeping herself moving along a trail. I had told her in advance this would probably be the hardest part, but when the dawn comes, it’s exhilarating. You get a new energy you wouldn’t think was possible at 3 a.m. when doubts are screaming in your mind. As I watched the sunrise and her hiking toward the horizon with her arms up and a beautiful smile on her face, I couldn’t resist saying, “See, I told you so!”

Creating memories. So important!

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If you missed last week’s edition, you can read it here:

Five Things Running: Issue #120 Jun 30 Read full story

Now, go running!

— Nico

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