Sub 3h15

The Runner Formerly Known as Lorenzo

I think I'll be there with a combo of a) a sweatshirt with a busted zip that's held together with safety pins and b) a pair of old suit trousers where I've worn through the fabric on the ar*e. Will be changing the name on my number from Lorenzo to Worzel Gummidge

G-Dawg

Got some old clobber to use as well, some of it used for painting etc. The start will look like a zombie film.

DT19

Lorenzo, you've just opened a new world of disposable race kit. I've got full suits that are now much too big for me...

5.5m over lunch with 3m dialling into 6.25mm. Managed 6.24, 6.25 and 6.24 for 6.24 average. Felt nice enough though quads were heavy from a hilly run yesterday then giving spin a good hammering last night. A lot of more wind to contend with today as well compared to what Sunday promises. 

Joolska

Best of luck on Sunday, everyone!  It looks like there will be a livestream given it is hosting the trials for the Europeans and Commonwealths, so I will keep my eyes peeled.

TR

Run well folks.

DT - shows how far you've come that an mp session long run will put you close to sub3.

DT19

Well I've not done it yet, Tr, could go horribly wrong. 

Last year they couldn't get the tracking to work, Jools  so I wouldn't hold out too much hope. 

For those racing, looking at the course from runners on strava last year it looks like the main bit of uphill is over miles 16 and 17. It looks to come out about 26.35m on most GPS. 

There appears to be a nice long block of straight roads around 11m and 20m as well. 

Oo, if you check in, any recollection on hills? 

GerardM

Good luck to everyone racing tomorrow. Look forward to hearing how you all go. 

DT19

Quick check in. I had quite a pleasant morning, sticking to the plan. 3 blocks at mp averaged 6.16, 6.16 and 6.15. It was good fun smashing through the field and not feeling on the edge. Posted a 1.31/1.24 split for 2.55.23. Could have quite easily gone sub 2.55 if I deviated from plan and ran mile 26 at same pace but used it as a cool down mile.

Feel pretty decent now. 

TR

Nice one DT, i saw yours and CCs result, hopefully she is chuffed. Will be interesting to see what Lewis sets you from now to MK.

How did Dawg get on?

CC2 - Speedy Goth

Too tired for a full report so just checking in. 2.54.52. Job’s a good’un. 

OuchOuch

Chapeau, that's a great result DT considering you had the hand brake on and the recovery from your hamstring injury and glad you enjoyed it, you won't run a marathon like that again. 

G-Dawg

Cracking work DT and CC. Great running!
When I saw you, DT it was as if you were rushing home as you'd left the iron on. Well done on the race and the well managed injury recovery.

Not a great day for me. Could only score a 3.06. The ongoing hamstring tendinopathy and recent illness won the day. I felt a bit washed out and had some light-headiness early on but that seemed to settle down, then around 10 miles the hamstring issues kicked in. It felt like someone was gripping them and stopping them from working properly. So frustrating.

From halfway I stopped looking at the watch and just ran in the moment, pushing as much as I dare.

I didn't want to do a spring marathon after London last October but the 2023 GFA window forced the issue, so, I guess it's job done with a solid qualifying time.

Time for a long rest and begin the rehab work the physio has suggested.

Joolska

Fantastic result, Speedy. 

I'm chuckling to myself at people getting baffled each time DT hit a tempo change - but it sounds like a controlled run, well done.  

GD: sorry you had a tougher day.  Post-viral fatigue is a bit of a bummer, and only time can heal it.  At least you have the GFA QT and, as you can say, you can now focus on recovery and rehab.  Under the circumstances, I'd say getting the QT sorted was a great result.

DT19

Cc, congrats, a great run there. 

Gdawg, hard lines, but as you say, a slightly compromised campaign for you, but ultimately you got what you needed. I spotted you in the distance (you don't miss that club vest!) and hoped it wasn't you as I knew that would mean you weren't on for sub 3. I was slightly self conscious in the later stages as I was probably running a minute a mile faster than those around me and was picking up those that had fallen off the sub 3 train. 

Ouch ouch, thanks, I've put myself under pressure now to perform at MK. You never quite know with a mara what would have happened but I almost feel it's a shame I didn't go for bust yesterday though it might have been a very different ending had I gone off at 6.30 pace. 

Tr, pretty normal week this week. 5m recovery today, 10m mlr Tuesday, 10 x 1k Wednesday, 5m Thursday, 10k progressive Friday then another big mixed pace long on Sunday. 

I was convinced I was coming down with a cold since about last Tuesday, all the early symptoms and rising RHR. Anyway, it seems the mara was the final straw and by 8pm last night I was streaming. Feeling really crappy now. Only had a cold 5 weeks ago as well!

Incidentally, my coach Lewis ran yesterday. He's been injured and ended up training last 5 weeks properly but he wanted to pace his wife. Anyway, she had stomach issues at mile 14 and had to stop (still managed 2.46) so he bashed on and posted 2.38 with a big last 10k. Makes you sick! 

The Runner Formerly Known as Lorenzo

Congrats to Speedy - fab performance.

Definitely mission accomplished by DT as well. Great discipline there.

Sorry to hear it didn't go to plan G-Dawg but as you say, that's the GFA all sorted.

Disappointing run yesterday for me as well. Aiming for 3:12ish - set off comfortably and was on track up to about 20 miles but the wheels fell off in the last few miles and ended up with a 3:17.

Felt I was in good shape, so suspect it was nutrition on the day that let me down - will need to revisit my approach to swap gels for flapjacks which worked at the Yorkshire Marathon but not the other side of the Pennines. 

However, my disappointment was more than offset by elder Lorenzito taking another 9 minutes of his marathon time from Yorkshire and clocking a very creditable sub 3:20 in marathon #2 for him

Just about to head over to the Peak District for a week of relaxation now. Onwards and upwards.

TR

Still solid lorenzo

DT - probably similar to a hm in the build up where you dont taper so dont need much recovery. I saw Lewis had run, his wife is decent too.

Dawg - i worried for you from the "looking foward to some time off" posts. You need to work on the lower back etc i have similar issues at the mo. I think mobility will be the name of the game for me after Brighton, s and c can aggravate. However, take the positives, you got your hm pb and achieved a 2023 gfa time.

OO54

Wonderful runs there for DT and Speedy. It's remarkable how much you've both improved in the last couple of years. 
G Dawg I know you still have great runs in you. 3:06 is pretty good all things considered. 
Lorenzo you did remember to take those suit trousers off right 😆 Good effort and congrats again to young Seb- what a talent.
The airport chaos and Covid wave are all making me nervous for Boston travel but your stories are certainly inspiring me during the taper. I finally broke through sub 18 mark at Keswick parkrun at the weekend, after a few close shaves in recent weeks. Also a nice pre race boost.

DT19

Whilst it wasn’t a race I thought I’d do a quick report of the event.

We arrived in Manchester Saturday pm and had a decent look around the imperial war museum, which was free and very interesting. Out for dinner at the Trafford centre then back to our Premier Inn in Sale.

Didn’t sleep great, never do in a hotel unless blind drunk. Quick breakfast then out for my 7.40 taxi. On arriving in reception there’s another guy with a 7.30 taxi that hasn’t arrived and the receptionist is speaking with the company who say there are no taxis in the area and no eta. A lady overhears who is also running and says she is driving to the tram and will give us a lift but needs to grab a quick coffee. Two minutes later the taxi comes, we send it away. What then unfolded reminded me of the scene in Love Actually where Alan Rickman is buying a secret gift and Roan Atkinson is showing no urgency at all. 20 mins later, off we go and can’t get near the tram so car is dumped and we set off to find it. The poor chap I’m with is getting extremely anxious now as it’s his big race and he has his suitcase as well as race bag as he is booked into another hotel in Salford that night. We somehow miss the Brooklands tram stop and are just walking and walking down the A road that forms a big part of the course. After nearly 2 miles we end up at the next tram stop which is only 1 stop from Old Trafford and a tram comes immediately.

Very quick turnaround and bag drop and thankfully nominal toilet queues and I just make it to the pens as they are leading the Red start B through. I pitch myself just ahead of the 3.15 pacer.

I can’t really comment on where we were, the first 8m were spent running away from the Old Trafford area, into town (at which point the earlier starts are coming back the other way and I spot a few guys I know and wonder if they will be catchable later) then back out, passed the start area, around the stadium and back towards the start again, landing nicely on the 8m point where my alarm goes to set off for my first 5m block. Thankfully at this point the road becomes nice and wide and things thin out a bit.

The easy miles have gone faster than the 7.20-7.30 range, but there had been a lot of flat and downhill and it felt very easy. They came in 7.17, 7.15, 7.20, 7.13, 7.14, 6.50 (no idea what happened there), 7.14 and 7.09 and I’m averaging 7.15.

I set off for my first block and it coincided with a decent amount of gentle downhill, running out towards Sale, retracing my steps from a couple of hours earlier as I had noted the 10m marker then. I set off a little fast, it was almost like there was a pent up desire to just get moving so given at 7.15s I was cutting through the pack, suddenly at 6.15s it was much more evident. I brought things back under control and settled very nicely into a rhythm and a pace that didn’t seem that much harder than the 7.15s. At mile 11 I recall Alehouse saying he would be somewhere at that point so I passed the time looking around for him with no success. Before I knew it my watch was beeping to indicate the block was ending. The miles came in at 6.15, 6.19, 6.16, 6.16 and 6.18 for a 6.16 average. Already at 13m my average pace was 6.53mm, albeit I was a good 0.15 out from the mile markers. I clock the halfway marker at 1.30.52.

I dialled it back for a mile, though it was very difficult to just cut the pace, with it coming out at 7.00mm. I took a gel in this mile and was aware the next block included the section around Altrincham which I’d seen was a bit hilly.

Off I went again and as we get towards Altrincham there’s a fly over to get over. At this point I see a clubmate coming out the other way but have no idea how far ahead he is. As we wind into Altrincham there is a climb up into the town centre which does temporarily slow things down but you get some downhill to make up for it, in fact after that point there was in my recollection a lot of gentle downhill. That block came in again at 6.16 with reps of 6.15, 6.20, 6.15, 6.15 and 6.13.

Again, I pull back for a mile, which was really frustrating as I was in a really good smooth rhythm and clipping along fairly effortlessly. Plus this one mile came at what was the top of a long straight downhill slope that lasted the whole mile. I had to remind myself of the deal of day and pull back, though only to 6.56mm, whilst I got a gel on board. At this point it got very dark and blustery and there were a few blasts of rain and a reasonable headwind. I hoped that by the time this mile was over I had changed direction and it hadn’t rained as I was getting quite cold suddenly.

Eventually the mile ends and I can go again. As a side note, mentally I found this way of counting down much easier to deal with. I was working to one block at a time as opposed getting to 26 so only ever looking at 5m or less.

Anyway, I set off again for miles 21-25 and whilst I had now caught faster runners, many were those that were falling off sub 3 trains so still no one running near 6.15. As I go off again I immediately pass two guys who appear somewhat bemused and I hear one say ‘I think I need some of what he is taking’. Gives me a little chuckle as I kind of venture into the unknown. I’ve only done one 20 miler and a selection of 18 milers since last September so wondered if that would get me.

At about 23m I pass a local guy I know who I’d seen coming the other way out of the city then moments later I see a club vest and catch up with it and say a quick hello. At around maybe 24m I spot a bright orange vest and hope it isn’t g’dawg as it means he has fallen off the pace. I’m soon up with him and say a quick hello whilst he then heckles me as move on.

The miles are just flying by this block, to my surprise and the course just seems to be a permanent gentle downhill. I am now starting to feel tired in the legs as I approach the end of this block, but it’s my fastest at 6.15mm average with splits of 6.13, 6.10, 6.20, 6.15 and 6.16.

I decided that at 6.37mm average on my watch, I’ve done more than enough and really ought not to bash on for the last 1.4m so I pull back to what feels like trudging pace, yet somehow came in at 6.48mm, then as I turn to the final straight there’s a lot of crowd and I started just naturally upping things to run the last 0.4 at 6.21mm.

Spent a good bit of time afterwards stretching and getting supplements and electrolytes in me then met up with Lewis etc for a coke before heading home.

As an event I thought it was well organised, no toilet queue problems and plenty of support throughout most of the course. Whilst there’s a minor uphill section it’s more than offset by quite a lot of downhill and even more flatness. Definitely a marathon I’d do again.

 

G-Dawg

The line was, "BLOODY SHOW OFF!"   

You were moving well, mate. Brilliant stuff. I too would do it again. I really liked the athletes' village area in the cricket ground. The waved starts meant no overcrowding and therefore no major toilet queue issues. 

My hamstring issues prevented me from cashing in on the downhill sections whilst the small inclines gave me a world of pain. With injury free legs I'd definitely like to attack that course properly.

My only criticism is the walk from the athletes village to the start. I'd already walked around 2 miles from Media City to the bag drop, which is fine as I knew that would be a nice warm-up, I did that before in Chicago but by the time were at the actual start line I'd already clocked 6500 steps for the day.

Already started my leg rehab. I'm actually quite good at glute bridges!

OO54

Personally I wouldn't go back to Manchester. Nothing bad but nothing special enough to make me want to return vs somewhere new. Nobody mentioned the non alcoholic beer which I thought was a nice touch 🍺

TR

Am i misreading it or has gfa 2023 qualifying period changed?

DT19

Yes ...it was 31st August, now 02 October it seems so you can use the 2022 mara.

I only entered a spring mara to get a gfa time!!!

TR

I bet lots did. It was Aug 7th, wonder when that changed?

DT19

It should have been 02 October from the outset really. I wonder if they looked at the workload involved in validating the gfa times from all sorts of minor races versus having a large proportion submitted from London, which is almost automated, and decided to push it out.

 I'll end up at this rate with 4 gfa times to choose from all being well! 

G-Dawg

I only entered Manchester to get the 2023 GFA. The window was definitely Monday October 4th 2021 to August 7th 2022. Unreal! 

Oh well, I guess October's race is a free hit with the pressure off for the GFA attempt.

Big_G

That’s interesting about the London GFA qualification window change. I feel my 3:06 may be a bit tight, but I guess we’ll see.  

DT19

I think most who wanted a gfa for London 23 would have planned a spring marathon so London being in the mix mat not add many. 1300 runners went sub 3 in Manchester. 

TR

Big G - 3.06 needing to better 3.10? That should be ok, as it puts the sub3 under 40s as needing 2.56.
Lots of that 1300 will be older AG so a good spread accross the gfa spectrum, lots of those will be folks that can only apply for one gfa place anyway, so lots of the london folks running gfa times will be like DT in having more than one qualifying times.....little but late to change thr rules though after folks invested time and money towards a spring gfa time.

Big_G

TR, yeah that’s right. 3:10 was needed. It may be that I’ve not read the page properly/thoroughly in the past but I did notice this as well. Has this 10min reference always been there?

“If you have a GFA qualifying time that is less than 10 minutes under the qualifying time for your age group, we advise you to still enter the 2023 TCS London Marathon ballot” 

DT19

Big g- I've not seen that before. I think there's always been a reference to entering ballot as well but not a time stipulation.