Do the celebs line up ahead of us hard working mortals? And general question for everyone who's gone off the green start before - how congested is it at the beginning and does merging with the blue start cause any problems?
I think the celebs set off just away from us which is good as some of them are slow so won't get in our way.As for the merger it's a great part of the race and nothing to worry about.There's a bit of banter between both groups and we run alongside each other for a while before we merge seemlessly.
I'm enjoying the rest this week.I've a slight sore throat but it only gets worse when i think of the race so i'm thinking it's more psycological.
Katie Price(ran) it in 7hrs 11 mins last time out.It annoys me that she gets a place yet plenty of good runners miss out.
Not congested at all and last year they were really strict on pen numbers and yanking out anyone in a costume likely to slow up others. Did 3 miles tonight rather faster than planned - can't imagine how I will do another 23, although should manage the 0.2
RS 7 - that sounds like a grim night with the stag/hen etc - you'll come back strong next time! Sounds as if the Asics Super 6 had a tough time in Paris with the heat (apart from an amazing 2:49 from Pete!). Looks like it's warming up again for the VLM - hope it'll be manageable: frustrating, the things we can't control...
Two marathons in a week Andy?!? I've done two in four weeks and that was hard enough, good luck for Sunday
There's still time Daren, I did have dreadful cold the week before Barcelona and got on just fine on the day! Make the most of the rest, plenty of fluids and hot drinks, load up on fruit and veg, take a bottle on antibacterial handwash to use whenever you can, keep washing your hands, more vitamin C, lots of sleep.... maybe a few whiskeys.... you'll be fine!
Sounds like a well organised run HH! Wonder what they change your time to? Could you think of anything worse than finishing 3:30:05 and later finding out the course was 26.6 miles?
Thanks for the link Wobbled, it's always nice to see who are celebrities this year and see how few I recognise. Not many, although my old habit from years ago of reading celebrity magazines has remember Calum Best! He was always a bit of a ladies man so watch out at that Green Start girls.... love the bit that says 'Calum has also launched his own fragrance' Who have you met? Congestion - I was in Green pen D last year, over the start in less than a minute, merge about a mile in with Blue (cue lots of booing from both sides) - still not too busy, merge with red after a few more miles (cue more booing) - busy but you can still run, it was a bit squished in around Cutty Sark but they've taken that bit out this year. I'd say GNR is worse at the beginning. And my first 5 or 6 miles last year were in the region of 7:40, so I can't have been that held back!
Is the Emmerdale bloke the one who always does VLM and GNR?
The 0.2 part is awesome at London don't you think O4S? Knackered legs, the endless run up Birdcage Walk, cheering crowds, hobbling runners, then that lovely '365 yards to go' sign as you turn into The Mall... All the Union Jacks hung from the flagpoles, more crowds, cameras, cheering, the finishing clock up ahead ticking away, the man on the tannoy, more cheering, then crossing that finish line (is this where you vomit on Daren's shoes?)
Marathon haircut accomplished tonight, I now have a list of things to pack. 4 miles done last night, 0 miles covered tonight, only 8 left to run before Sunday!
First time i did London i was gutted when i got to the end i was enjoying it that much.I turned that final corner to the finish and the bloke on the mike said raise your hands to cross the line so i did.The trouble was i'd still a long way to run and had to put them back down well before the line.
Carrot: I love that finish stretch! I'm going to try and clear the finish mat before throwing up on Daren's shoes - wouldn't like to prevent someone's chip from recording! I have made out my list and just remembered to add alarm clock. Haircut Thursday so will probably look like a convict on the day. The temperature today was perfect so really disappointed to see it is set to rise - 16 degrees is a bit too much for me. Still I have now got to the point that I just want to enjoy it and never mind the time, anything under 4 hours and I am determined to be positive, so will start a bit slower than usual and hopefully not blow up as soon!!
When are you at the Expo? We are going around lunchtime / early afternoon Friday. Mr O4S's first expo as I usually go up on Wednesday on a cheap bus ticket and collect both numbers. We then typically stayed at the Travelodge on the M4 services [£29 if booked well in advance] and drove in to Notting Hill area on Sunday morning. This year we are making a weekend of it, but must try not to do too much on Saturday.
Just back from the hospital. I am now a proud father and would like to welcome Dylan James Kerrigan (7lbs 11oz) to the world.
The marathon has been the focus of my life for the past couple of years including last year's stress fracture and deferral. Don't wish to get all sentimental but it all faded away when I looked down at that new little life.
That doesn't mean I'm not determined! If I ever needed motivation I have it now. And any pain I will no doubt feel on sunday feel can't come close to what I witnessed from my wife over the past 48 hours.
I am immensely proud of them both and hope to make them as proud of me on Sunday.
Congratulations DK - at least you weren't running the marathon when he was born, it might not have gone down well. When I was born [1950] fathers were not usually at the birth so my Dad got up early on 4th December and walked up to the public phone box to call the hospital - however he first called a recorded message to find out the score in the Test match in Australia. That wouldn't have been so bad except he made the mistake of telling my mother and was never allowed to forget it.
Congratulations DK.You can now run free from worry of missing the birth.There's many things in life we think are important and then when you see your child come into the world your views change.
I'm off to the Expo Saturday afternoon after i've checked nthe hote.I'm stopping near Buck house so it's just a little jog from the finish,although i may do a loop.
I may get a 2.40 wrist band to wear on the tube gonig to the start and put the real one on later.That way i can hold the rail with a smug look on my face.
I'm getting my haircut tonight. Any of you that have met me will know that this is a big deal, will take ages to get just right and will cost a fortune at a very expensive hairdressers.
Hot off the press - from tonight's Evening Standard:
"Katie Price has pulled out of this year's London Marathon but said she will double the value of any donations her fans have made. The glamour model, formerly known as Jordan, was meant to be running Sunday's race for charity but said she had to pull out on medical advice."
There - we can all sleep easy now that mystery has been cleared up.
Expo done and dusted. Now just wondering whether to drink the complementary can of London Pride (the "official" beer of the VLM) before the race. Carbo loading?
DK -top man! Congratulations. I enjoyed your birth report.
Freemers- thanks for clearing it up, I wouldn't have enjoyed VLM not knowing. Medical grounds? I wonder if there were two medical grounds? Ahem. Nice gesture though to double the donations, not many celebs would do that.
Expo on Friday around 1pm-2pm for me O4S, once we've dumped bags at the hotel then tubed and DLRed our way to Excel.
Name has been successfully ironed onto my vest in the correct order, doesn't look too bad for a DIY job if I do say so myself!
Today's feelings about Sunday are 75% nervous, 25% excited. The doubts are nagging away in my head but I'm trying to ignore them.... still need to plan a tube journey for getting there on Sunday.
Hope the haircut went well tonight Spoons and they didn't take too much off
I might bump into you at the Expo Carrot without even realising - but if you see a lost 65 [buts looks younger damn him] year old bloke wandering round as if he has escaped from a home for the terminally bewildered, that will be Mr O4S. Stray dogs and elderly ladies tend to take pity on him - I doubt any of you would
A cautionary tale copied from the other 3.30 thread as I am too tired to re-type.
Mr O4S did the ironing tonight, including his name letters on the newly arrived Macmillan shirt. I have no idea what he did, but it was nearly as bad as my attempt 2 years ago [all the vowels ended up ironed to the backing paper then]. He managed to iron the back and front of the shirt together [no I have no idea!!] and we had to peel them apart, leaving an intersting vertical hole beside the 'H' and no colour on the running shoe on the back of the shirt. A new ironing board cover has suddenly become a necessity.
Thanks for all your support and advice everyone and very encouraging to hear John and Carrot that you've both had viruses before marathons and ended up running well on the day.
I'm still not 100pc but feeling a lot, lot better than a few days ago. Managed to ski most of yesterday - went over to Deux Alpes where they've actually still got lots of snow! - and don't feel any worse for it today. Going to take it easy today though, just going to pop out for an hour or two, then I think that'll be my skiing done for the week. Been trying to sleep as much as possible, lots of fluid, vitamin C tablets, etc, and starting to carb load too so ate as much bread and cereal as humanly possible for breakfast this morning so fingers crossed I'm going to be ok.
Freemers, I'm probably not going to try to run til I get back to England on Saturday, then I'll probably just pop out for a mile or so to check how I'm feeling and that my legs still work!
Glad to hear you're feeling better Daren! Enjoy the remainder of your holiday
Might see you there O4S, if not definitely there then the green start, blonde ponytail, Help for Heroes vest and black shorts, no 29862, most likely to be found queuing for the portaloos.
Final run done tonight! Four measly miles plus 6 x strides. Made the mistake of asking myself "How do I feel?" and the answer was " a bit lethargic and crappy!" Just the taper taking I'm sure...
"Medical advice"? As in: "you're lazy and you haven't done any training you daft cow"? So with Jordan and Sammy Wanjiru both out I reckon I've got a good chance of winning this race.....
Small, blond, old, black shorts and green Macmillan shirt. Number 29,850 - wish I thought I could be anywhere near 12 places away from you.
Spent the afternoon getting new orthotics - assessment, computer designed and made in the workshop while I waited. They are about one quarter the weight of my existing 'hard' orthotics and feel incredibly comfortable - but have been told under no circumstances to wear them on Sunday. I know that is the sensible advice, but I'm sure the extra cushioning and less weight could make all the difference. Mr O4S has now confiscated them so I won't be tempted.
Went out for final three mile run and had to come back after 1 mile as my foot was so sore. I hadn't repadded the ball of my foot after the orthotic assessment and even running on grass it was unbearable - so an extra box of padding has been added to my bag.
Did my last run too tonight, a group run of about 6.5 miles, I enjoyed trotting round at the back and walked up all the hills.
Wondering now if a 3:30 is really on the cards, I'm certailny faster over 5 miles and half mara than this time last year, and my long runs are all in the bank, but overall mileage is a bit down and I've missed a lot of evenng club runs due to work.
I see a few doubts springing up now.The smile is because i've had the same thoughts.It seems ages ago since my last long run and i'm sure my legs have forgotten what to do.I hate this bit.I've rested all week but still feel tired.I'll be glad when i'm on the train Saturday and then i'll relax and actually look forward to it all.
Good luck everyone! Hope there'll be some cracking times on Sunday. All the training is done, all that's left is to run the god-damned marathon. Go for it!
Comments
Do the celebs line up ahead of us hard working mortals? And general question for everyone who's gone off the green start before - how congested is it at the beginning and does merging with the blue start cause any problems?
I think the celebs set off just away from us which is good as some of them are slow so won't get in our way.As for the merger it's a great part of the race and nothing to worry about.There's a bit of banter between both groups and we run alongside each other for a while before we merge seemlessly.
I'm enjoying the rest this week.I've a slight sore throat but it only gets worse when i think of the race so i'm thinking it's more psycological.
Katie Price(ran) it in 7hrs 11 mins last time out.It annoys me that she gets a place yet plenty of good runners miss out.
Cheers folks, that sounds quite manageable.
O4S your confidence for that 0.2 made me laugh.
Two marathons in a week Andy?!? I've done two in four weeks and that was hard enough, good luck for Sunday
There's still time Daren, I did have dreadful cold the week before Barcelona and got on just fine on the day! Make the most of the rest, plenty of fluids and hot drinks, load up on fruit and veg, take a bottle on antibacterial handwash to use whenever you can, keep washing your hands, more vitamin C, lots of sleep.... maybe a few whiskeys.... you'll be fine!
Sounds like a well organised run HH! Wonder what they change your time to? Could you think of anything worse than finishing 3:30:05 and later finding out the course was 26.6 miles?
Thanks for the link Wobbled, it's always nice to see who are celebrities this year and see how few I recognise. Not many, although my old habit from years ago of reading celebrity magazines has remember Calum Best! He was always a bit of a ladies man so watch out at that Green Start girls.... love the bit that says 'Calum has also launched his own fragrance' Who have you met? Congestion - I was in Green pen D last year, over the start in less than a minute, merge about a mile in with Blue (cue lots of booing from both sides) - still not too busy, merge with red after a few more miles (cue more booing) - busy but you can still run, it was a bit squished in around Cutty Sark but they've taken that bit out this year. I'd say GNR is worse at the beginning. And my first 5 or 6 miles last year were in the region of 7:40, so I can't have been that held back!
Is the Emmerdale bloke the one who always does VLM and GNR?
The 0.2 part is awesome at London don't you think O4S? Knackered legs, the endless run up Birdcage Walk, cheering crowds, hobbling runners, then that lovely '365 yards to go' sign as you turn into The Mall... All the Union Jacks hung from the flagpoles, more crowds, cameras, cheering, the finishing clock up ahead ticking away, the man on the tannoy, more cheering, then crossing that finish line (is this where you vomit on Daren's shoes?)
Marathon haircut accomplished tonight, I now have a list of things to pack. 4 miles done last night, 0 miles covered tonight, only 8 left to run before Sunday!
First time i did London i was gutted when i got to the end i was enjoying it that much.I turned that final corner to the finish and the bloke on the mike said raise your hands to cross the line so i did.The trouble was i'd still a long way to run and had to put them back down well before the line.
Carrot: I love that finish stretch! I'm going to try and clear the finish mat before throwing up on Daren's shoes - wouldn't like to prevent someone's chip from recording! I have made out my list and just remembered to add alarm clock. Haircut Thursday so will probably look like a convict on the day. The temperature today was perfect so really disappointed to see it is set to rise - 16 degrees is a bit too much for me. Still I have now got to the point that I just want to enjoy it and never mind the time, anything under 4 hours and I am determined to be positive, so will start a bit slower than usual and hopefully not blow up as soon!!
When are you at the Expo? We are going around lunchtime / early afternoon Friday. Mr O4S's first expo as I usually go up on Wednesday on a cheap bus ticket and collect both numbers. We then typically stayed at the Travelodge on the M4 services [£29 if booked well in advance] and drove in to Notting Hill area on Sunday morning. This year we are making a weekend of it, but must try not to do too much on Saturday.
The marathon has been the focus of my life for the past couple of years including last year's stress fracture and deferral. Don't wish to get all sentimental but it all faded away when I looked down at that new little life.
That doesn't mean I'm not determined! If I ever needed motivation I have it now. And any pain I will no doubt feel on sunday feel can't come close to what I witnessed from my wife over the past 48 hours.
I am immensely proud of them both and hope to make them as proud of me on Sunday.
I love the fact us ladies are all getting haircuts. Mine is booked for Saturday morning!
Off to the Expo later today.
Brilliant DK, great news.
Brilliant DK - congratulations. Also brought a lump to my throat when I read your news. Awesome timing.
Is your wife running on Sunday as well?
Congratulations DK.You can now run free from worry of missing the birth.There's many things in life we think are important and then when you see your child come into the world your views change.
I'm off to the Expo Saturday afternoon after i've checked nthe hote.I'm stopping near Buck house so it's just a little jog from the finish,although i may do a loop.
I may get a 2.40 wrist band to wear on the tube gonig to the start and put the real one on later.That way i can hold the rail with a smug look on my face.
Not long now is it?
"Katie Price has pulled out of this year's London Marathon but said she will double the value of any donations her fans have made. The glamour model, formerly known as Jordan, was meant to be running Sunday's race for charity but said she had to pull out on medical advice."
There - we can all sleep easy now that mystery has been cleared up.
Expo done and dusted. Now just wondering whether to drink the complementary can of London Pride (the "official" beer of the VLM) before the race. Carbo loading?
Freemers- thanks for clearing it up, I wouldn't have enjoyed VLM not knowing. Medical grounds? I wonder if there were two medical grounds? Ahem. Nice gesture though to double the donations, not many celebs would do that.
I'll guess the doc said you've done no training so you shouldn't run.
I can tell by your pic spoons that you pamper your hair.
Expo on Friday around 1pm-2pm for me O4S, once we've dumped bags at the hotel then tubed and DLRed our way to Excel.
Name has been successfully ironed onto my vest in the correct order, doesn't look too bad for a DIY job if I do say so myself!
Today's feelings about Sunday are 75% nervous, 25% excited. The doubts are nagging away in my head but I'm trying to ignore them.... still need to plan a tube journey for getting there on Sunday.
Hope the haircut went well tonight Spoons and they didn't take too much off
I might bump into you at the Expo Carrot without even realising - but if you see a lost 65 [buts looks younger damn him] year old bloke wandering round as if he has escaped from a home for the terminally bewildered, that will be Mr O4S. Stray dogs and elderly ladies tend to take pity on him - I doubt any of you would
A cautionary tale copied from the other 3.30 thread as I am too tired to re-type.
Mr O4S did the ironing tonight, including his name letters on the newly arrived Macmillan shirt. I have no idea what he did, but it was nearly as bad as my attempt 2 years ago [all the vowels ended up ironed to the backing paper then]. He managed to iron the back and front of the shirt together [no I have no idea!!] and we had to peel them apart, leaving an intersting vertical hole beside the 'H' and no colour on the running shoe on the back of the shirt. A new ironing board cover has suddenly become a necessity.
As in: "you're lazy and you haven't done any training you daft cow"?
So with Jordan and Sammy Wanjiru both out I reckon I've got a good chance of winning this race.....
Hi again everyone,
First of all, congratulations David! Great news!
Thanks for all your support and advice everyone and very encouraging to hear John and Carrot that you've both had viruses before marathons and ended up running well on the day.
I'm still not 100pc but feeling a lot, lot better than a few days ago. Managed to ski most of yesterday - went over to Deux Alpes where they've actually still got lots of snow! - and don't feel any worse for it today. Going to take it easy today though, just going to pop out for an hour or two, then I think that'll be my skiing done for the week. Been trying to sleep as much as possible, lots of fluid, vitamin C tablets, etc, and starting to carb load too so ate as much bread and cereal as humanly possible for breakfast this morning so fingers crossed I'm going to be ok.
Freemers, I'm probably not going to try to run til I get back to England on Saturday, then I'll probably just pop out for a mile or so to check how I'm feeling and that my legs still work!
Glad to hear you're feeling better Daren! Enjoy the remainder of your holiday
Might see you there O4S, if not definitely there then the green start, blonde ponytail, Help for Heroes vest and black shorts, no 29862, most likely to be found queuing for the portaloos.
Final run done tonight! Four measly miles plus 6 x strides. Made the mistake of asking myself "How do I feel?" and the answer was " a bit lethargic and crappy!" Just the taper taking I'm sure...
Small, blond, old, black shorts and green Macmillan shirt. Number 29,850 - wish I thought I could be anywhere near 12 places away from you.
Spent the afternoon getting new orthotics - assessment, computer designed and made in the workshop while I waited. They are about one quarter the weight of my existing 'hard' orthotics and feel incredibly comfortable - but have been told under no circumstances to wear them on Sunday. I know that is the sensible advice, but I'm sure the extra cushioning and less weight could make all the difference. Mr O4S has now confiscated them so I won't be tempted.
Went out for final three mile run and had to come back after 1 mile as my foot was so sore. I hadn't repadded the ball of my foot after the orthotic assessment and even running on grass it was unbearable - so an extra box of padding has been added to my bag.
Did my last run too tonight, a group run of about 6.5 miles, I enjoyed trotting round at the back and walked up all the hills.
Wondering now if a 3:30 is really on the cards, I'm certailny faster over 5 miles and half mara than this time last year, and my long runs are all in the bank, but overall mileage is a bit down and I've missed a lot of evenng club runs due to work.
I see a few doubts springing up now.The smile is because i've had the same thoughts.It seems ages ago since my last long run and i'm sure my legs have forgotten what to do.I hate this bit.I've rested all week but still feel tired.I'll be glad when i'm on the train Saturday and then i'll relax and actually look forward to it all.