The Right Way to Run a Loop
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If you are running on a track there is a right direction to run and a wrong one. It’s simple, there are lines, even arrows to direct you but what is the “right way” to do the 6 mile loop you run near your house or the route you and your running group to take together? There are many ways to name loops, which usually has no specification of direction. In High School Cross Country we used to name the loops we would run after a person, road name, point of interest, and even an extraordinary event that happened on the run. One guy jumped on, up, and over the back of a slow moving car in a park. He got a loop named after him. We had everything from the Waffle House loop, Spalla loop, and the MidBroadwell loop. I never accomplished anything out of the ordinary on a run to have a loop named after me. That was a High School goal that I actually wanted to accomplish! Grades are cool, but a loop named after you for years to come, now that’s accomplishment!
So every time we decided to run a loop “backwards” there were questions. It seems that everyone had a different opinion on what running it “backwards” meant. One line of thought is that clockwise is running a loop “normal” and counterclockwise was “backward.” I look to the track to refute this theory. The “normal” way to run on a track is counterclockwise so this doesn’t work. Another theory is the “normal” direction of a loop is the direction that it is predominantly run. Although humans have very good internal calculators, this way to designate the direction of a loop is flawed because each individual has different experiences running loops in a certain direction, making this designation not universal. Lastly, a way to designate direction is by the first time the loop was ever run. The first direction anyone in the group runs the loop is the “normal” way; therefore, running it the opposite direction would be “backwards.” This way makes the most sense to me and I have used it in my loop designations ever since. Are there any other ways to designate loop direction that I missed?
I think I may ellicit the USATF in making an universal designation of direction for running loops. I gotta accomplish something; I never got a loop named after me for the Cross-country team! Honor Roll, scholarship awards, admission to a top 25 ranked University, sure that’s nice and I am proud of it, but many others have been able to do that. I want a loop named after me!
Tags: running routes, track, USATF