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From track workouts to technical mountain trails, Flannery Davis Love defies conventional categorization. The current record holder on Colorado's iconic Long's Peak joins the Steep Stuff Podcast to share her unique approach to the upcoming Sunapee Scramble US Mountain Running Championship.

Flannery takes us inside her training methodology that seamlessly blends road marathoning with mountain athleticism. Rather than abandoning speed for the trails, she recently completed a "mini speed roadblock" including her first-ever track 5K at Stanford before transitioning to more specific trail workouts. This hybrid approach has her discovering that road speed translates remarkably well to downhill trail sections, while she continues working on what she considers her weakness – pushing the pace during uphill hiking sections.

The conversation dives deep into race strategy for Sunapee's challenging two-loop course. Drawing on her experience from Cirque Series races like Snowbird, Flannery reveals her plan to use the first loop as a controlled threshold effort before truly racing the second loop. "I do better later in races... it just takes me a while to really warm up and get into something," she explains, offering valuable tactical insights for listeners approaching similar race formats.

When asked what making Team USA would mean, Flannery shares a surprisingly poignant childhood connection: "I was that kid growing up where you'd ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up and I'd say I want to play for Team USA. But I wasn't talking about running, I was talking about soccer." Her journey from soccer dreams to elite mountain running showcases how athletic aspirations evolve in unexpected and beautiful ways.

Join host James Lauriello for this candid conversation about balancing multiple racing disciplines, adapting to East Coast humidity, and the ambitious calendar ahead that includes Broken Arrow and potentially the Berlin Marathon. Whether you're crossing over between road and trail or simply fascinated by high-performance mountain athletes, Flannery's practical wisdom and refreshing honesty offer something for every runner to take to the mountains.

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