Mount Taylor 50K Race Report — A New Mexico Classic
The Mount Taylor 50k is a fixture of New Mexico trail running. The race is capped at 170 runners and typically sells out in the spring, with a sizeable waitlist. I missed the race in previous years as I was too slow to register, but this time I got in quickly. Having run the Philmont Ranch 50 Miler 7 weeks ago, and with Deadman Peaks 50 mile my next major goal, I decided to use Mount Taylor as a tune-up. I took the day-before the race off, but ran 11 miles on the prior two days, with Thursday being a challenging session with hill reps and a 15 minute tempo run. In general, I’ve had much more structure in my training than in previous years. I’ve put in decent miles, getting up to 70-75 miles/week for most of my training blocks, but I’ve also alternated my intensity quite a bit. Some runs have been exceptionally easy (for me, 9-10 minute miles), while others have been quite tough and involved speedwo...