Falling With Style

So, obviously, steeplechase lends itself to falling a lot. You know what also lends itself to falling a lot? Trail running. And yes, falling is going to be my segue from running in circles around a man-made surface to running single-track... need to get ready for the 10K Trail Championships at the end of August!

I jokingly said one day that I was going to work on optimizing my falling form versus my trail running technique because the former was more widely applicable (I believe Ridge Rd. and my face became well acquainted on the second run I ever did with y'all). Plus, everyone who shows up at that race will have probably worked on trail running, but how many of them will have figured out how to eek out the greatest distance per fall?!? So, I Googled techniques for falling... figured I should probably learn how to fall safely before I tried anything really crazy. This article contained some general "safe falling" information. First and foremost, they said NOT to try and break your fall because you'll probably break whatever limb you are using (coach had warned me about this when I started cycling). Secondly, there are 3 ways to fall (on your side, forward, or backwards), and there are techniques for each. The take home message - try and fall on your side, and always keep your chin tucked to reduce neck injuries. Wow, there are a lot of steps, good thing they suggest practicing a few times a day!