Why is this necessary? The US U20 xc champ - who is 15 - is going to race the pros this weekend and she's going to run with the leaders.
“My coaches think that it is not a smart choice to race the entire race as an all-out effort, so we have decided that I will get out with the leaders for two miles and then take it from there,” Zariel Macchia said. “Most of my training is based on feel and they have picked spots for me to take some recovery stretches and then run on feel with efforts that keep a good pace, but do not push me to my limits.”
Her dad justified it as follows.
“We wanted to give her an opportunity to run with a fast group as she has fewer competitors that can push her pace or help her hold a solid pace for an extended period of time,” said Pete Macchia, Zariel’s father.
How about running with the boys team at practice? That's a lot easier and less stressful.