Our Athletes
Maggie Eronimous, Denver
I started training with Zach in late April. I was planning on running the Aspen Backcountry Marathon in early August, and Zach drew me up a training plan. I knew it was a tight schedule to run on about three months’ training, but Zack assured me it was doable.
I started the plan, and even though I knew it was going to be a big push, it didn’t feel like a big push. The plan was focused on time goals, not distance, which let me keep my head out of the numbers and focus on just running. Zack’s plan was accommodating of other activities too (biking, climbing), and I could feel myself growing stronger, bit by bit.
A few months in, I landed myself in urgent care with a badly pulled hip flexor. I’d pushed too hard on a climb while biking, and was having trouble walking. I messaged Zack that I didn’t think I could even run a half, much less the full. Zack assured me six weeks was enough to train for the half, and encouraged me to take it slow and to stop if my hip flared up. The time goals here were even more meaningful and I was able to complete every workout he laid out for me, all the way up to the race.
The race itself started out tough - lots of uphill, at high elevation. But the second I got to the top, Zach’s training kicked in. He’d had me slowly build up my strides again, which had quickly become my favorite part of the workouts. Before I knew it I was flying through old growth aspen groves on swoopy single track, literally whooping for joy. The cherry on top was my finish time. Despite having only six weeks’ training, I’d managed to place in the top ten in my age group. But my favorite part about working through the whole process - injuries and all - is that I’m more stoked about running now than when I started. Zach and the crew really do love running, and it felt like that was at the core of the training plan. I truly can’t recommend GoForever Racing strongly enough!