Walked 7 Hours 14 Minutes. 38.1 Miles. Average pace 11:24.  My weight 172.4

Saturday – One hour five minutes 5.6 Miles.

Sunday – Two Hours two minutes Lane 1 on the 400 meter track. 44 Laps 10.9 Miles.

Monday – One hour three minutes 5.6 Miles. 4 sets of 60 Push-ups.

Tuesday – One hour two minutes 5.6 Miles.

Wednesday – Two Hours two minutes 10.4 Miles.

Thursday – Unscheduled day off.

Friday – Day Off.

What a great taper week. Fast this week.  My legs are ready. I could walk a sub five hour marathon right now. Won’t need that kind of speed in New Zealand. Took another unscheduled day off this week. Short week next week for travel. No speed next week. The goal now is rested legs. My race plan is:

Race pace. 13 minutes 25 seconds per mile pace average.  I want to average three minutes twenty seconds per lap lane one on the 400 meter track. Lap splits would be:

1 hour 18 laps
5 hours 90 laps
6 hours 108 laps
10 hours 180 laps
12 hours 216 laps
15 hours 270 laps
18 hours 324 laps
20 hours 360 laps

403 laps total   22:21:40 Finish.  Easy splits to figure in your head. A very nice cushion for any unexpected problems.

What you have to fight during a Centurion race is the temptation to walk faster than your intended pace. Early in the race you will feel good. It will be exciting. The pace will feel so slow compared to training. You will want to push the pace. My advice is, Don’t do it. Save those legs for the end of the race. Nothing I can write here can describe what hours 18 to 22 in a  Centurion race feel like. It is an overall whole body and mind tiredness like you can not imagine. Control your pace early. Save those legs for when you have to have them.

This is a good time to start making a list of every item you NEED and want to take to the race.

Walked 9 Hours 19 Minutes. 47.5 Miles. Average pace 11:47. My weight 173.8

Saturday – One hour six minutes 5.6 Miles.  4 sets of 60 Push-ups.

Sunday – Four Hours three minutes Lane 1 on the 400 meter track 82 Laps 20.3 Miles.

Monday – One hour five minutes 5.6 Miles.

Tuesday – Unscheduled day off.

Wednesday – Two Hours one minute 10.4 Miles.

Thursday – One hour four minutes 5.6 Miles. 4 sets of 60 push-ups.

Friday – Day Off.

I took an unscheduled day off this week. At this point in my race prep it is better to be a little undercooked than overdone. Only two weeks to the New Zealand Centurion. I can’t stop thinking about all the different scenarios that could play out during the race. The only part of the race you have any control over is your training. The weather, surprise problems, the other people, you have no control over. Best to just worry about what you can control. Train hard. Trust that with proper training everything else will fall into place. It is all you can do. Taper continues minus another hour next week.

Walked 10 Hours 19 Minutes, 53.3 Miles. Average pace 11:37. My weight 173.2

Saturday – Four hours one minute 163 Laps  20.9 Miles. Lane two on the indoor track at the University Nevada Las Vegas.

Sunday – One hour three minutes 21 Laps 5.2 Miles on the top deck of the Bellagio parking garage.

Monday – One hour five minutes 5.6 Miles. 4 sets of 4 pull-ups, 15 Minutes of Planks.

Tuesday – One hour five minutes 5.6 Miles. 4 sets of 60 Push-ups.

Wednesday – Two Hours one minute 10.4 Miles.

Thursday – One hour four minutes 5.6 Miles.

Friday – Day Off.

I have very much enjoyed starting my taper this week. Started off with a little change of scenery in Las Vegas. Just because I took a little vacation did not mean I took a break from walking. I have a BIG Goal race coming up, nothing could get me to give back the fitness gains I worked so hard for all summer. Not even the bright lights and Great food of Vegas. A solid taper week. A repeat next week. Well except for the Vegas part.

Walked 13 Hours 22 Minutes. 63.8 Miles. Average pace 12:35. My weight 172.2

Saturday – One hour six minutes 5.6 Miles.  4 sets of 60 Push-ups.

Sunday – Seven Hours Lane 1 on the 400 meter track 126 Laps 31.3 Miles.

Monday – Day off.

Tuesday – One hour seven minutes 5.6 Miles.

Wednesday – One hour six minutes 5.6 Miles. 4 sets of 4 pull-ups, 15 Minutes of Planks.

Thursday – Two Hours one minute 10.4 Miles.

Friday – One hour two minutes 42 Laps 5.3 Miles. Lane two on the indoor 200 meter track at University Nevada Las Vegas.

My humble pie walk Sunday did not work out as planned. The first two hours were perfect and just ahead of my Centurion race pace.  I fought stomach issues for the remainder of the workout. That made me slower and weaker every hour. I gutted it out to seven hours. Pulling the plug right on my intended race pace average 13:25. Still a good workout. Achieved the intent of the walk. Left me humbled. In fact this whole week has been humbling. Very hard to follow up the best week ever with back to back best weeks. No matter how well you train. No matter how well you race. You are still going to need some luck to become a Centurion. We use Training to prepare for the race. As to Illness and weather you are going to need some outside help. You are going to need to get Lucky. Now starts my favorite part of Centurion training. The gradual Taper. Taper is the time we start reducing the mileage. The goal is to maintain the fitness gain I worked so hard for. Arrive at the race with rested legs. After this week I need a good positive taper.