I suppose it’s a little bit funny that I’m so excited for this event after reading my “Urban or Suburban” post, but I am. The Lidingöloppet’s main race on Saturday is a 30km cross-country run on the picturesque island of Lidingö, a Northern suburb of Stockholm, Sweden. I lived here back in 2001 and I’ve missed it ever since I moved.

Lidingö has an area about 25% the size of Manhattan, but with only 30,000 inhabitants, leaving a lot of room for outdoor recreation. You’ll also find Sweden’s best sports training facility here, Bonsön, nestled on the island’s North side in the midst of Lidingö’s vast network of well-maintained trails. Many of these trails see race activity year-round; X-country skiing, running and triathlon.

I’ve been looking forward to this event for a number of reasons, mostly because I missed out on the majority of my intended races, thankfully due to the birth of my daughter now 4,5 months old and beaming with beauty. I’ve since worked out my time budget with my wife to allow 12-15 hours a week to train.

Lidingöloppet is a tough course which only gets tougher as you go. The first 20km are relatively easy, but it’s the ups and downs of the final 10km which puts strain on everyone’s threshold of pain. The killer for me comes around 25km with an uphill section that leaves you tempted to use your hands to help climb it.

No excuses for this race: I’ve done all the training I could fit in; Injury-free and feeling strong; Weight is… OK, I’m as lean as ever but all the extra hill work has added muscle all over. The added strength is much needed but I can feel that extra weight sapping efficiency from my stride on long distances.

Participants who finish the 30km race under 2:15 (4:30/km) receive a silver medal honor. Realistically, this is just out of reach for me as I predict a time closer to 2:30 (5:00/km). If the course was flat and the temperature fell to 14C, I could hit 2:07 for right now. However, Lidingöloppet will be crowded, forecasted at 20C and saturated with late leg-destroying climbs. Bottom line, I’ll be happy to remain under 5:00/km for the end tally.

My start number is 41257, in group 6 of 11 at 13:00. Lidingöloppet’s 30km race is Saturday, the 26th.

Lidingöloppet race profile image

In other news, this weekend is also the last of a two-week Stockholm Beer and Whisky festival. I’ll stick to melon post-race, my favorite recovery food.

Once more, I want to thank Andrei and the guys over at UMapper for recognizing my Nokia contest entry for their Map of the Week. They gave me the same honor a few weeks ago for one of my routine Sports Tracker workouts.

UMapper can be used by anyone for logging and embedding custom maps just about anywhere. I started using their service to embed maps of each of my workouts when I began this blog, and I like that I can choose from many different map providers, each with multiple viewing options. I also like that I can add graphics, information and media to my maps and see those changes reflected anywhere I have embedded a particular map.

All UMapper features are quite user-friendly, especially for WordPress bloggers via UMapper’s available plug-in.

-David Hroncheck

One of the advantages of using Word Press for blogging is their easy to use library of third-party plug-ins.  It’s right in line with my focus on flexibility and personalization, offering something for everybody. For my needs, the most useful plug in I’m using comes from UMapper.

All the maps of my workouts, filed under the tab “My Training”, were embedded using the UMapper plug in. I get to choose between a variety of map providers when creating a new map, then I upload the KML data file exported from my Nokia Sports Tracker application. If needed, I can manually add more details and markers, resize, align and insert my completed map anywhere on my blog. It’s very easy to use.

Yesterday I was notified by UMapper that my use of their product was recognized for their “Map of the Week” feature. Here’s what they had to say:

“From time to time we see some very interesting usages of UMapper. David Hroncheck from Running Digital uses innovative tracking technology for his endurance running training. This week’s featured map shows visualization of one of those exhausting runs!”-UMapper Feb 1, 2009

So, thanks to UMapper for showcasing my use of their product!

-David Hroncheck