It’s the final month of 2020. A pandemic has turned the world upside down for most of the year. Finding training motivation has been difficult, and most races have either postponed or cancelled completely. Boston did both. Widespread death and civil unrest have made running feel incredibly insignificant. But within all of the chaos and uncertainty of 2020, I figured out a way to challenge myself — Strava segments.
I normally don’t pay close attention to Strava segments. When I run the same routes enough times, eventually I know where they are and the total distance. And if I run a segment enough times, eventually I click on it to see what the course record pace is. Then I either decide I could try to hit the mark in a workout, or I simply dismiss it as too fast and never look at it again.
As race after race cancelled this year, I started challenging myself on segments. Some that were well within my pace potential. And some that seemed way too fast for me. I began scouring segments on the Strava website and app. For the first time I started paying attention to the grade % of the hills, up and down.
A Covid-19 spike in late fall led to a cancellation of my planned December race, and I immediately hit a motivation valley. Nothing on the upcoming calendar. No reason to run hard. But instead of retreating and slogging through the final month of the year, I decided to set a goal — 12 straight days of earning Strava segment crowns.
Day 1 — I started on Monday, Dec. 14, with a half-mile, uphill segment called “Through the Arbors.” It was my nod to the partridge in a pear tree. In the first few steps, I felt like Ron Burgundy after he jumps down into the bear den. “I’ve made a huge mistake.” I felt sluggish, and running fast uphill didn’t feel natural. I hit halfway and worked on my breathing and focused on turning my feet over quickly. It hurt, but I was well under goal pace. I ran all the way through the intersection at the end of the segment to make sure, then I paused my watch for a few seconds to catch my breath. One down.
Distance .50 miles, grade 4.1%, pace 5:59.
Day 2 — My second segment came after I ran my normal Tuesday morning trail group loop. I searched the area and found a segment (“Half Wilson Finish”) I thought I could take. It was on trail, with a short climb followed by a slightly longer downhill section. I sprinted hard up the hill and tried to maintain effort down the other side. My legs didn’t feel great, and my feet were heavy. Twice I felt like I was going to stumble, but I kept my balance and finished out the decent with several seconds to spare. The best part of this segment was the amazing sunrise view from the trail.
Distance .38, grade -.2%, pace 5:44.
Day 3 — On day three, I decided to go after one of my most coveted segments, “Vistas – Paseos Alleyway.” I can see the finish of this segment from our bedroom window, and I can view almost the entire segment from our rooftop deck. I had already won the crown on this segment twice in the past month, but each time someone went out and took it back within 48 hours. The stretch is slightly downhill and just long enough to make it a challenge. I was off pace halfway through, but I didn’t want to fail my goal. So I willed my legs to pick up the pace and earned my third crown on that segment since November.
Distance .67, grade -.7%, pace 4:42.
Day 4 — I picked “Up Grand Canyon to Lake South” for day four, because I knew my legs would be tired from the hard segment the day before. And I was right. Thankfully this one was short. I did sprint after it, and it was uphill, but I made sure the rest of my run was easy pace.
Distance .22, grade 2%, pace 4:58.
Day 5 — Another segment I scouted out but had never run before, “Desert Shores Breakwater Drive Uphill.” This segment was sneaky. My legs weren’t happy at the start of the run, and when I picked up my pace at the start of the segment there was a brief delay. I simply didn’t want to run hard. The run also started before 5 a.m. I was tired and sore and not in the mood for running fast. But by the halfway point, I was locked in. “It’s just a few minutes,” I told myself. Five successful segments in a row, and my body was starting to accept that I was just going to keep asking it to run faster than normal.
Distance .63, grade 2.2%, pace 5:56.
Day 6 — My halfway point came on a Saturday, my normal long run day. But I didn’t feel great, so I just ran four miles total and took down two segments. “I’d like to report a crime” was first, and it was an all-out uphill sprint. When I first looked at the pace on this segment, I cringed a bit. Not because I thought it was impossible or out of my wheelhouse, but because I knew it wouldn’t be fun. Sprinting uphill never is. This one finishes at a new police station in my neighborhood (which led to the fun name). I was on pace the entire segment, and I ended up performing better than I expected.
Distance .3, grade 2.1%, pace 4:39.
“Redpointe Dr climb” is right next to the first segment, so I decided to try it too. Mostly in case something wonky happened with my pacing on the first segment. This one was much less challenging from a pace standpoint, but it was much steeper, and I tried to run it hard. Since it immediately followed an all-out sprint, it was difficult. Still, it felt good to grab two crowns in one swing.
Distance .3, grade 5.3%, pace 5:47.
Day 7 — I ran four miles before joining up with a group Christmas run and checked off “Thank goodness SOME people don’t run” from my segment list. This one was a short slight downhill sprint, and I didn’t even look at my watch for pacing. I just ran hard and felt good about the effort. This is also the only segment that has already been taken by another runner since (as of Dec. 28). That runner beat my time by 1 second, so now I have another goal to chase.
Distance .3, grade -1.8%, pace 4:34.
Day 8 — This was my first of two straight days where running was a struggle. I didn’t wake up early enough to do my planned run, so I shortened to just four total miles and hit a segment close to my house. This one, “You have the right to remain silent” starts with my first day 6 segment and then u-turns and runs back down the same hill. I paced the uphill portion much more conservatively so I had plenty of juice in my legs to run back down and nab the crown. Even tired, I felt strong and in control the entire segment effort.
Distance .63, grade 0%, pace 4:53.
Day 9 — Rachel went in to work early and got home from work late. So I didn’t run until after 8 p.m. I didn’t want to put my shoes on, and I considered ending my run streak and Strava segment silliness all in one move. Or, more accurately, in failing to move. But I forced myself out the door and into the the dark night air. And I didn’t regret my choice at all. I did an out and back targeting the downhill section of my day 8 segment called “Running from the Po-Po.”
As soon as I hit the starting point, my feet felt like they were gliding. So many of my segment attempts felt like a grind, but this one was smooth and fluid. Running hard felt more natural than it had just a few days earlier. I cruised through the end point and felt a huge rush of adrenaline.
Distance .31, grade -2.2%, pace 4:24.
I felt so good that I decided to attempt another segment, a short hill sprint called “Alta to Desert Foothills” on my way home. I didn’t know the average pace I needed, only that there was a segment there. So I sprinted, ended and uploaded my run, and waited for Strava to tell me how I fared. I got the segment easily. Sometimes no knowing the goal pace makes you run much faster. The lesson: watch data can be helpful, but it can also be a limiter.
Day 10 — My legs were really tired ten days in, so the two uphill segments I took down didn’t feel easy at all. I didn’t help myself much by putting them in the final miles of a 15-mile run. This day was about surviving and advancing. On both sections I was on goal pace but felt like it was slipping away the entire time. Like I was hitting quicksand and watching my feet stop responding. But I finished and didn’t lose my streak.
“Move Your Tail.” Distance .48, grade 1.6%, pace 5:33.
“Twain Uphill Scuffle.” Distance .54, grade 2.1%, pace 5:33.
Day 11 — My finish line was in sight, so I went after a short uphill sprint and a slightly longer, more gradual uphill section. “Cross to Cross Sprint” was first, and I have run that section of road almost once a week. When it came to going after the crown, however, I realized just how steep the hill really is. I thought I was going to be able to cruise, but I had to fight hard to stay ahead of pace. I ended up getting the record by two seconds.
Distance .21, grade 2.4%, pace 4:48.
I attacked the second segment (“Charleston – 215 to Vista Center”) with my sprint struggle in the back of my head. My watch screen stopped showing my pace in the final steps as well, so I was worried I missed the segment. Thankfully the crown popped up when I uploaded.
Distance .3, grade 2%, pace 5:02.
Day 12 — Christmas Day was fun. I reeled off 11 straight days of successful segment hunting and had one left. My legs were tired but no worse than some of my intense marathon training weeks. Most importantly, I found a way to challenge and motivate myself at the end of a difficult year.
I ran twice and took down five total segments to wrap up my last Strava challenge day (one segment I didn’t even know about).
First up were two, mile-long segments in my neighborhood: “Community to Banburry” and “Alta Drive Climb.” A third, “Pavilion to Far Hills,” was hiding inside the stretch up to Banburry Cross, so I was able to earn that segment as well. That segment started with a slight uphill followed by a nice, gentle downhill in the second half. I locked into goal pace and tried to enjoy a beautiful Christmas morning. The Alta climb was on my way home, so I let thoughts of Christmas morning presents and breakfast carry me uphill.
“Community to Banburry.” Distance 1.03, grade -.8%, pace 5:35.
“Pavilion to Far Hills.” Distance .51, grade -1.7%, pace 5:26.
“Alta Dr Climb.” Distance 1.06, grade 3.1%, pace 6:12.
My second run was a small victory lap. I grabbed two segments with my name on them (“Going down on Brent” and “Brent bomber”), and finished with a few Christmas miles with friends at Floyd Lamb Park. Those segments, which I did not create, are on Brent Ln. I discovered them during the final miles of my virtual Boston Marathon back in September. Brent Ln. is a long downhill that is the perfect grade for running fast but not painfully. “Brent bomber” is a 1-mile stretch, and the other is simply the first half of the segment.
I started out a little too fast, then I backed off the pace a little too much. So the first segment was all over the place. Then I found a rhythm and cruised through the final half mile.
“Going down on Brent.” Distance .47, grade -2.5%, pace 5:11.
“Brent bomber.” Distance .98, grade -2.7%, pace 5:05.
My tendency is to shy away from running hard. I have no problem piling on mileage and grinding away through heavy weeks of training. But that might be my way of avoiding the mental and physical stress of short speedwork. I know that’s my weakness, but I still avoid it at all cost.
So running after Strava segments that require sub 5-minute pace is not in my wheelhouse. As I progressed each day, though, I became more and more comfortable pushing into discomfort.
Now I have a springboard into 2021. It’s time to do speedwork consistently. And while I don’t plan on becoming an obsessive Strava segment hunter, I know the power of an occasional CR goal.
I’m going keep challenging myself next year. And when races do happen, I plan on being ready.