Why the Coyote never catches the Road Runner...
I was out running the other morning, focusing on my running form. Specifically working on cadence. Thinking about all the processes involved and ticking them off like a pre-flight checklist.
I was running with a midfoot strike
I was taking a shorter stride
I made sure my foot was landing under my body
I had that slight forward lean from the ankles
With my running form working for me I felt myself speed up and suddenly my legs were a blur, I was off - just like the Road Runner! Meep Meep!
Ok, so maybe they weren’t that much of a blur but it got me thinking. Why doesn't the Coyote catch the Road Runner? I had to investigate so I sat and watched the cartoons pausing to screenshot and analyse their running form.
The Road Runner’s running form is pretty good. He has a midfoot strike, his foot lands under his centre of mass, he has a forward lean using gravity and you can’t deny his cadence is well over 180 spm. He’s got power in those glutes propelling him forwards. He’s also well fuelled with carbs and protein because the Coyote feeds him oats and grain every episode.
Poor old Wile on the other hand, heel strikes and over strides. Because of this, he has a backward lean fighting against gravity. His cadence will be slower because his foot lands so far out in front of his centre of mass, it takes time for it to move forward and be ready to push off. He is woefully under-fuelled as he refuses to eat anything but the Road Runner so has lost muscle strength and is unable to catch his dinner on his own.
My conclusion is that the Coyote never catches the Road Runner because of poor running form and under-fuelling. Something to learn from, I feel.