Running downhill

Does running downhill affect maximum speed? A team from the Structure and Motion Laboratory at the Royal Veterinary College in the UK have been investigating the relationship between running-speed and slope. The rapidity of thoroughbred racehorses (Equus caballus), greyhounds (Canis familiaris) and human subjects (Homo sapiens) was logged under a number of different uphill and downhill running scenarios.

“We hypothesise that, if speed is limited by power, subjects’ maximum speed will increase on a decline and decrease on an incline.”

Readers can find out if the hypothesis was supported or not by paying US $31.50 and accessing the report  Does running downhill affect maximum speed?, which is published in Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology – Part A: Molecular & Integrative Physiology Volume 153, Issue 2, Supplement 1, Page S132