Dear Jim Walmsley....please taper

If Mr. Canaday "typically only struggles...on anything over 50 miles" and the guy runs races over 50 miles, how the hell is he first tier elite?

JW has been reading this thread with a grin.

YMMV wrote:

JW has been reading this thread with a grin.

Everyone loves LetsRun flames.

Let's see if his grin will stand after UTMB...

Ultra roid rage wrote:

Jim W just told me to tell you, and I quote, "BANG BANG, from THE Coconino Cowboy."

And we'd all be lying to say we wouldn't want to see Jim Walmsley put it all together for a legendary performance at UTMB! Dude is super elite and last year at Western was no joke. It's 100 miles though. He is right there, I really believe that, shit we may be one week away from one of the greatest performances ever.. I like many others, want to see it happen, but thus far we can't act like 100 miles is his specialty. He's young though, I wouldn't count him out ever until he proves otherwise.

Hey JW, if you're reading this...When you win, can you cross the finish line giving the double finger gun hand gesture and yell "Bang Bang, Bitches"? This would almost top the "crotch grab and Gobble Gobble Motherf*****s" in letsrun.com lore

I sincerely hope that Jim and Kilian fight in an epic back and forth to the finish with the faster mountain runner coming out on top. It would definitely make for some awesome entertainment. I hope my skepticism is proven wrong regarding the way Jim goes about attacking this race. However I can't help thinking back to all the incredibly talented runners who have had 'that race' where all the huge race efforts and training loads finally culminated in a race where they 'didn't feel right', where they either had to back out or where they limped in to a mediocre finish, and afterward started a cascade of poor health and performance, and then a quick exit from the scene. I know many of you are saying the Jim is young and that when he figures out the 100 mile distance it'll be awesome, but he is human and subject to the same effects that a grueling running schedule can cause as the rest of us, albeit at a much higher level.

By the way you thought you got rid of me but as you can see I'm still here!

Update. Walmsley easy 10 miles today.

You can't bleed a rock. The dude is fried.

Walmsley - DNS

Sage Canaday is absolutely elite..he's had a few mishaps at the 100 but Sage is one of the biggest names in Ultra now and for years to come..his impact on runners of all levels can't be ignored either..He'll take a top 10 overall finish at UTMB if he can dial it in early

consistently cracks under pressure

Walmsley is a solid pressure performer. I'd point to his Grand Canyon Rim to Rim to Rim record run as an example of what he's made of. It's very tough to call your shot and put that much attention onto yourself and them come through on your public promise.

Yes, he's stated that he'd break course records in races (I.e. Western State) and then crashed and burned. Stuff happens.

He's uncoached and young. That combination can lead to taper time self doubt and last minute unnecessarily hard training for the purpose of reinforcing one's confidence in their fitness. The problem is that this can cost guys their best race performances. Hence my original post.

We will have to wait to see if Jim is a genius for doing 90 miles in three days the week before the most competitive trail ultra in history---or if he was an undisciplined kid who ruined his race.

I'm hoping for the former.

The problem with UTMB is that it is not a running race. There's too much walking and everyone is broken by the end.

I wish Walms would never line up at UTMB. It's not his DNA-type race, just like Zach Miller in 2016. He'll lead, crush it, then crater, because the human body can't race the distance and these guys want to race.

I am a 400/800/1500 guy who has never run farther than 30 miles in one go, but I am looking forward to this race more than any matchups at London WCs.

Popcorn eater wrote:

I am a 400/800/1500 guy who has never run farther than 30 miles in one go, but I am looking forward to this race more than any matchups at London WCs.

As an ex middle distance runner I'm excited for it too.

Goucher Needles wrote:

We will have to wait to see if Jim is a genius for doing 90 miles in three days the week before the most competitive trail ultra in history---or if he was an undisciplined kid who ruined his race. I'm hoping for the former.

I competed quite well in many marathons, and usually only tapered for three days. One of my good friends and closest competitors, who only beat me one time though we were extremely close many times, usually tapered for two weeks. I think he was right for him as his training was different than mine, and I feel mine was the right training for me. Part of the reason was that I ran more mileage than him, our hard training was different, and he ran his base training faster, so for those reason he probably needed more time for recovery.

I'm pretty sure Walmsley knows much better than anyone else what works for him and what doesn't.

Is JW the guy who cheated on his military exams and was kicked out?

That's not how it went down. In the Outside Magazize Walmsley video he explains what happened and the crisis the experience caused. He was honorably discharged from the Air Force.