Race you back to the cave!

Submitted by Tom Hunt

Before setting out for a training run or race we have to plan when and what to eat or drink. This usually involves looking in the fridge, cupboard, or fruit basket …it was not always this easy. It seems our ancestors were running ultras just to get something for dinner. Things have progressed over the last four and a half million years.  However, some have evolved to a less sophisticated level – spending Saturday afternoon eating crisps on the sofa, watching endless re-‘runs’ of ‘Come Dine with Me’, interrupted only by ad-break reps of mini-100metres (as in mini-marathon) – nine metre dashes to the kitchen and back. There are such unfortunates. Or maybe they are resting up after that long run at sunrise.

To clarify, the following  under the heading of Running is from ‘Wikipedia’

‘Running is a means of terrestrial locomotion allowing humans and other animals to move rapidly on foot. It is simply defined in athletics terms as a gait in which at regular points during the running cycle both feet are off the ground. This is in contrast to walking, where one foot is always in contact with the ground, the legs are kept mostly straight and the centre of gravity vaults over the legs in an inverted pendulum fashion.[1] A characteristic feature of a running body from the viewpoint of spring-mass mechanics, is that changes in kinetic and potential energy within a stride occur simultaneously, with energy storage accomplished by springy tendons and passive muscle elasticity.[2] The term running can refer to any of a variety of speeds ranging from jogging to sprinting.

The ancestors of mankind developed the ability to run for long distances about four and a half million years ago, probably in order to hunt animals. Competitive running grew out of religious festivals in various areas. Records of competitive racing date back to the Tailteann Games in Ireland in 1829 BCE, while the first recorded Olympic Games took place in 776 BCE.’

(BCE = Before the Christian Era)