Jul 11, 2000

The lengths some runners go to satisfy their mileage needs. Ultrarunner Dana Roueche keeps up his 100-mile weeks by slipping out to run at hours when most of the world sleeps. Roueche, a veteran of all the major 100-mile trail races, wrote about his training to George Beinhorn, who relayed it to me:

"I go to bed at 10, get up at four and run until seven before going to work. On Fridays I get up at one and run long until seven."

Roueche works normal business hours. Then he weight-trains with his wife in the evening, their children often joining them at the health club.

"The time remaining at night and on weekends is spent together as a family," said Dana. "My commute to and from work is only two miles, which allows me to eat lunch at home with my family during the summer and school breaks."

Few of us would try to match his early wakeup call or his high mileage. But most of us could look up to him as a model for balancing running, family and job.

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