Running
5 tips to becoming a better sand runner
Ryan Sandes weighs in on how to run 'light' and 'go with the flow' ...
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If to the question ‘what are you doing this weekend?’ You answer: 'I’m running a 1-mile race,' people are going to think it’s quite cool (perhaps a bit of a short distance), but, you know - that you’re a fit, healthy person. But add in 'over massive sand obstacles on the Durban Beachfront’ at the end of your sentence, and the reaction goes in a completely different direction.
Normally, it stands between the ‘Why in the world…?’ And the ‘Are you crazy? That’s the worst thing ever!’
Red Bull Dune Dusters
© Craig Kolesky / Red Bull Content Pool
Well… yes. And no!
The race, with its soft sand and steep sand obstacles, asks effort of muscles you didn’t even know you had, and running in deep sand also means that one step forward is usually accompanied by half a step back. In general, participants will take far longer to run that mile than, say, on the road. Keeping that in mind, it’s very impressive to learn that the top-level runners like Ryan Sandes, started his career running multi-day stage races across deserts. Indeed, they used to call him, ‘The Sandman’ …
Red Bull Quicksand sound like your kind of challenge? We asked the Sandman for his top tips for tackling the sandy challenge. These are his words:
GO WITH THE FLOW
Don’t try and fight the sand. I guess it’s a bit like surfing or swimming, just try to be as relaxed as possible. Then, if you start sliding you’re able to just kind of go with it. Fighting the sand is just a massive waste of energy.
PICK BY YOUR LINE S
Scan three to six metres ahead – as you would on a trail run – and pick your lines. When running on sand there are lots of mini ups and downs and smaller dunes (in between the big ones) to deal with. Scanning ahead also helps you to pick out the harder sand areas. Harder sand is (much!!) better than soft sand.
PUT IT IN ‘GRANNY GEAR’
When climbing the bigger dunes, increase your cadence and shorten your stride. Kind of think about putting your body it into a granny gear, as you would on a mountain bike for climbing a steep hill. Be light on your feet and just flow up the hill, don’t try and force your way up.
Up and down...
© Craig Kolesky / Red Bull Content Pool
FOLLOW
If you can run in someone else’s footsteps in a race like Red Bull Quicksand you’re going to make life a lot easier for yourself. It’s a bit like driving a 4x4 - if there is already a ‘broken-in’ compacted track, stick to that, rather than having to forge the trail yourself. At the same time, if a lot of foot traffic has been through a particularly soft area it is going to be very churned up. Be mindful of that.
THE RIGHT FOOTWEAR
Shoe choice is crucial, if you are used to running in the sand barefoot that is cool, do that. But if you’re not an experienced barefoot runner, then stick to trail shoes. You want to use shoes that aren’t too porous or have wide mesh that lets sand in - the sand gets heavy and ends up just sitting in the front of your shoe which can lead to blisters. You can also opt to run with gators.
Inspired to get your sand flow game on? Check out Red Bull Quicksand on 15 July. Enter now, slots are very limited.
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