Cold. Not much wind.
3 x 3 x 3. That's three long repeats, about 600 yards. Three medium, about 400. Three short, about 200.
Steep. Very steep. Keeps climbing.
Concentrate on form. Lift the knees higher. Lean slightly forward. Don't worry about speed at all. Pick up in last 20 yards.
Back down. Again.
Knees higher. Form.
Back down. Again. Lift. Form.
Now the 400s. These are the hardest.
Tired from the long ones. These also long.
Feel like a geek lifting the knees.
Form. Form.
Up and down. Three times.
This is harder than track.
Now the short ones.
Some speed, but Form more important.
Not so short over the last 100 yards.
Where's the damn mailbox.
Shuffle back down. Easy.
Back up. The 2nd. Fast.
Too fast. Fernando in the shadows on the hill. Too fast.
Were you breathing too hard at the finish? Yes? Wrong. Must be in control for this workout. Not sprinting uphill. Form. Lift.
Last one. Done.
Cool down. Already cold.
Run the whole hill again.
Stretch.
Two big glasses of water.
There’s a place named Bear Hill. There are houses (and mailboxes) but if you trained with Coach Braz, you knew Bear Hill as THE HILL WORKOUT, always in the dead cold of winter. Unlike track running, most cross-country and road races feature hills. Good hill runners have an advantage. A great runner who excels on hills is going to win races. A good runner who has trained on hills and runs them well is going to beat the other “good” runners.
