VolRun2022 — Mid-Training Update
VolRun 2022 approaches!
Back in January I posted about an idea for a run, and began training in earnest.
Now, as I write from Niigata, Japan on March 5th, 2022, I'm just a couple months — less than a couple months, actually — away from my big day.
The run is called the "VolRun" (Voluntaryist Run) and will take me over 110 miles from Niigata City to Nagano City, and then hopefully a little bit further out. Along the way, I plan on distributing some pamphlets explaining the basics of the Voluntaryist philosophy in Japanese.
You can follow me on my training journey here. Like the other runs I've been doing over the past two years, it will be a solo, self-supported endeavor, maybe with a bit of crew assistance from my family or a friend.
As for my pre-takeoff checklist, I've ticked off a few boxes already:
Picked up new shoes (Brooks Ghost 14s)
Ordered new running pack
Began preliminary mapping/marking checkpoints
Bought gels and nutrition to cover me for the start (will buy more along the way)
Things I've yet to do/prepare:
Specific list of stops/re-fuel points (roadside stations, convenience stores, parks)
Prepare dropbox for geo-caching mid-route (worked well for me last time)
Print off Voluntaryist pamphlets
Back-to-back long runs before taperdown
Book hotel/lodging
So yeah!
As I say, the aim is to do over 110 miles, and go further down from Nagano's Zenkoji temple (my last main stop/checkpoint) all the way down to a finish in Chikuma City at Chorakuji temple, near the famous terraced rice fields there.
Aside from the Voluntaryist theme, I'll be stopping off to view cherry blossoms (love sakura season!) and to visit Buddhist landmarks/temples and/or Shinto shrines. Not stopping off too long, though, as I wanna make good time and this is a race against myself and not just a leisure journey!
That's the update for now, and I'll likely post one more before I take off in late April/early May. Thanks for stopping by!
(Images are of Chikumagawa Fureai Park, next to the Chikuma River in Nagano prefecture, right along my course. Cover image credit here.)
-GWS
