I haven't written anything in a while, mainly because I had a minor setback and "fell off the wagon". I missed two weeks of training with either a stress reaction or some sort of ligament damage in my right foot. We're still not completely sure what it was. Regardless, I'm about 8 weeks back from the "injury" and have been building back my mileage steadily as we are just recently beginning to ramp up our workouts and get fast again. We've had some quality K's at sub 3:00 pace, some pure speed workouts (running 40 meters to 75 meters at 400 PR pace), and lastly, experimenting with "Derby Hill". My workouts have been going very well and I didn't lose much from the time off. I am in much better shape than last year at this point, still. 

Derby Hill strikes fear into the hearts of all Invaders. The only way I can describe it is harder than any race I have ever run. 

Derby Hill itself is Indianapolis' Soap Box Derby Racing Hill. It is 400 meters long and has a strong net incline. The first 100 meters is flat; The second 100 is slightly uphill (unnoticeable); The third is when you start to feel the incline; Finally, the fourth 100 meters is pure lactic acid and bad form. It seems nearly straight up hill during the last 50. Below are pictures I found of Derby Hill. The first is looking down from the top. The second is the Invaders beginning a rep up the hill.

Depending on what distance you specialize on the track, you will do a set number of reps at "Best Effort" pace. Plenty of rest is given so you are able to get back down the hill (slowly) and recover. 

For example, pure 800 runners do 3x400 with 6 minutes rest. 400/800 types do 2x400, while 1500 guys do 4x400 with 5 min rest. A complete table of the workout is available here: http://www.runnerspace.com/gprofile.php?mgroup_id=124&title_id=115&do=title&pg=1&folder_id=113&page_id=1021.

To put the toughness in perspective, most of our guys run between 46 to 48 seconds for 400 meters on a flat track during a race. If you are able to complete this workout averaging 60 seconds, you are setting in pretty good company. Also on the link above are our team records for the workout. To the best of my knowledge, we have been doing the hill semi-annually for at least 4 years. 

We do the workout "all out" 2-3 times during each "pre-season" (November and March). It's amazing how much faster times in March are compared to November just after indoor season. We also do "prep" derby hill workouts quite a few times before the actual Challenge. These usually consist of 200's to 300's, sometimes excluding the last 100 meters. 

Derby Hill is located at 29th street and White River Parkway. If anyone reading this feels the urge to test themselves out, good luck. It may not look that tough but it is deceptively challenging. We will be doing one of our last Derby Hill tune-ups later this morning. Can't say I'm looking forward to it!

We will go indoors in about 10 days or so. Our first few indoor workouts are easy, usually 150's, just acclimating our legs to the tight turns for the first times. It's hard to hold back the excitement the first few times we go in there because the season is beginning to seem real.