[shemp]

el d.,

I think opinion is split because the mile (and 800) are such peculiar distances. On the one hand it is endurance on the other hand it is less than 7:00 minutes. And you are relatively comfortable at 9 min/mile-- but you need to sustain a much higher effort.

I agree with Static Shock that the most important thing is that you put your body through (and beyond) the pace you will race at-- and I have no idea how much high intensity work is appropriate for you. Given that you are only going to be doing it for 3 weeks-- I can see him being correct about doing a lot. I think it is a bit risky -- and this is definitely a short term thing-- you can't keep training like that even in the unlikely event you liked the results.

I also like the "lsd" runs more for recovery than building an aerobic base-- I think the race is too close to make much progress on that score.

My approach would be just to give yourself a glimpse of your own potential. You can probably suck it up and run a 1:45 quarter even when you feel fatigued, just as you can do one around 1:30 when you are completely fresh. Now those two in the middle, they are gonna take some guts.