Discussion: USA vs Canada (or Canada vs USA :)
in: Orienteering; General
Dec 4, 2000 7:12 PM
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Here is to heat some discussion from BAOC net :)
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One of the top finishers in M21A, who also placed relatively high compared to his typical result, was Mike Fellows of Canada. At another event during the following week, Mike leapt over me (I was leaning down to punch a control on a different course) while running slightly downhill, along a sidehill, during a night-O' event, on similarly rocky terrain, covered with several inches of fall leaves, moving at full race pace. I could barely manage a jog along that same hillside, even with taped ankles!
What is Mike's secret? Mike wears no tape and no
brace. He goes the ankle strength route. Big time. He does 1 hour of strength training for his ankles, 3-4 times a week. He built his own little bungee/strap home gym in a closet, just for his ankles. That's his only O' exercise in addition to running.
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Wyatt
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In addition to Wyatt I would like to add that Mike is one of the best runners in the Canadian Team. At his best times he could do 10K under 32 minutes! While being at USA team training at East cost, he ran 1.2K, 5 controls sample course in 4:55 beating nearest USA contender by 20 seconds. That is 4 min/K! Not to mention that it was usual East cost terrain: rocky and hilly. Not a word why Canadians always better than best USA orienteers. Train hard, run fast, read maps, be wise (including care about your ankles). Looks like building strong ankles via exercises is the best strategy... From my experience I can tell that taping does not help if the one run hard and already have slightly twisted ankle. However, it does help to prevent somewhat more extensive damage. Something is always better than nothing.
Good luck to everyone,
Sergey
What is the secret that Canadians have and USA orienteers don't?
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One of the top finishers in M21A, who also placed relatively high compared to his typical result, was Mike Fellows of Canada. At another event during the following week, Mike leapt over me (I was leaning down to punch a control on a different course) while running slightly downhill, along a sidehill, during a night-O' event, on similarly rocky terrain, covered with several inches of fall leaves, moving at full race pace. I could barely manage a jog along that same hillside, even with taped ankles!
What is Mike's secret? Mike wears no tape and no
brace. He goes the ankle strength route. Big time. He does 1 hour of strength training for his ankles, 3-4 times a week. He built his own little bungee/strap home gym in a closet, just for his ankles. That's his only O' exercise in addition to running.
***
Wyatt
---------------------------------------
In addition to Wyatt I would like to add that Mike is one of the best runners in the Canadian Team. At his best times he could do 10K under 32 minutes! While being at USA team training at East cost, he ran 1.2K, 5 controls sample course in 4:55 beating nearest USA contender by 20 seconds. That is 4 min/K! Not to mention that it was usual East cost terrain: rocky and hilly. Not a word why Canadians always better than best USA orienteers. Train hard, run fast, read maps, be wise (including care about your ankles). Looks like building strong ankles via exercises is the best strategy... From my experience I can tell that taping does not help if the one run hard and already have slightly twisted ankle. However, it does help to prevent somewhat more extensive damage. Something is always better than nothing.
Good luck to everyone,
Sergey
What is the secret that Canadians have and USA orienteers don't?
Dec 5, 2000 9:47 PM
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12-14 hours, 50-60 miles of roads and trails, 20% speed work, 3-4 hours map work - all in one week! Another way - lots of dedication to the sport
Dec 7, 2000 2:05 PM
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Joe:
I know it sounds like a lot, but if you want to be YOUR best you must make the commitment and dedication. There are no secrets here. We all know what needs to be done, it just does not fit in with our family and work schedules. So what can you do? Make a decision what it is you want to achieve in the sport (a goal) and be happy with that. Get in as much training as your lifestyle allows and make it quality time spent doing the things that make you a better athlete.
Just have fun.
Just have fun.
This discussion thread is closed.