Elite athlete speaks at PAC Friday

Runners in last year's race are starting to train for this year's event in September.

PINEDALE – The Pinedale half-marathon is in four short months. A lot can happen in four months, including getting in shape, which is why the half marathon organizers are teaming with Encana and Proactive to bring Chloe Lanthier to town tonight for a presentation at the Pinedale Aquatic Center (PAC).

Lanthier is a world-class athlete in trail running, mountain biking and skiing, anything that involves a mountain in an exotic locale. She’s here to talk about the inspiration, the dedication and perseverance training for a 13.1-mile race takes.

Megan Bruce, a physical therapist at Proactive, was instrumental in getting a speaker of Lanthier’s caliber to Pinedale to kick off the summer training season.

“In past years, we have had people come down to talk training issues, either doctors or trainers,” she said. “Sue [Holz] and I took a course Chloe taught in Jackson, and she was a fabulous teacher. We though she’d be a great speaker.”

Although the full training season hasn’t been finalized yet, Bruce said she hopes to organize some running groups out of Proactive and possibly bring in other guests for speaking or training opportunities.

“If you want to run a half-marathon, you need to start thinking about it. If you want to run the 10K and you’re a new runner, you should also start training now,” Bruce said.

Regardless of distance, training is easier with a group, which can often provide the motivation needed to tip the scale from sitting on the couch to getting out on the streets or in the hills.

“For half-marathon training, you typically have one long run a week, and it helps having other people suffering along with you,” Bruce said.

With 100-kilometer runs though European mountain ranges, Bruce said Lanthier knows a little about suffering through runs and “insane athletic endeavors” and how to overcome that. Much of running is a game of mind-over-matter, and part of Lanthier’s talk is about playing and winning that game.

The 13.1-mile course of any half-marathon has a series of walls runners hit and have to run through. For those with sufficient training, that wall might not come until mile 10. For others, they might have to break through at mile five, eight and 11. Regardless of where it falls, getting through it and past it relies more on the mental spirit than physical ability.

Not all of running, however, is a head game, and a high proportion of runners deal with injuries annually. Lanthier has also worked in the rehabilitation and prehabilitation fields, helping athletes recover from injury and build strength and technique to prevent injury. She has created courses in “functional anatomy, running/gait analysis, sports specific rehabilitation and human performance,” according to her website.

After tonight’s presentation at the PAC, Lanthier will be conducting two days of continuing education for the physical therapists at Proactive. The therapists want to help runners train and keep them healthy.

“Running is such a great activity,” Bruce said. “It’s challenging cardiovascularly; it’s accessible to everyone – all you need a pair of shoes to get started.”

She also noted the number of walkers in the community. Walking is known to be one of the healthiest activities, and Bruce encourages walkers to start training for September’s event, as well.

editor@pinedaleroundup.com



For the complete article see the 05-18-2012 issue.

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