London Marathon 2015

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Comments

  • I must have been quick off the mark this morning... I got reference 100737. I did MrsFins straight after and in the 3 minutes it went up to over 108000!

    Busy times at the Marathon Towers server room at midnight last night!

  • I did the ballot at 8.30 this morning over breakfast...easy peasy image

  • Stephen RStephen R ✭✭✭

    The shutters have just come down!  Entries closed just after 10am - a new record!

  • Amazing really as it took a bit of research to find out when the entries were actually open!  Bring back the magazine entry form system I say.  This will be my 11th application and I've got in once!

  • WexterWexter ✭✭✭

    Entered at 1.00 a.m never got in before. Only run one marathon in the past though training for another one but no where near a good for age time. I put down my previous marathon result but presume it does not matter and if someone wants to plod the course in 7 hours and raise money for charity they will get a place.

  • I'm in.  Fingers crossed for October.  This is my 8th application and I've not got in once.  Wonder what the record for applications without ever getting in is?

     

     

  • A question....

    I have a GFA time so can enter when the GFA entry opens in June/July, but... If between entering the GFA and the Championship entry closing later in the year I achieve a Championship time, will I be able to transfer to a Championship place?

  • MillsyMillsy ✭✭✭
    I think so Bertie.

    Best bet would be to get your GFA entry in and then go from there.
  • Grendel3Grendel3 ✭✭✭

    I put my best time down as requested - 2:41,  25 years ago tomorrow - had to put an anticipated time down 2 hours slower!!!

  • Trying not to get excited about it...1 in 10 chance. Trying...but it's hard not to get excited. image

  • Ballot entry done at 6am, I know it's probably going to be a no again but for 5 months I have hopeimage. Not sure if it is sensible to start looking at alternatives already or to wait for the ballot results.... Decisions, decisions...

    Does anyone know why it takes so long to annouce the ballot results?

  • Stephen R wrote (see)

    It starts at 100000 every year.  Anyone who's just got in like to give us their number?  As soon as it gets to number 225000 the shutters come down.  Will it be before 11.25am beating last year's record?

    I think I must of been one of the last my ref no is 225490

  • I think I must have just sneaked in, my number was 258093!  Got my confirmation email at 9.57am

  • I have applied for a ballot place, however I have a good for age time. I didnt know that the good for age applications were taken in June/July. I just assumed that applications with the good for ages times are automatically funneled. Any advice on what to do about this? Anyone made this mistake before or know someone who has?

  • MillsyMillsy ✭✭✭
    Frosty, the reason it takes until October is because;

    1. The deadline for GFA entries is July

    2. Club entries have to be in sometime in August.

    3. People who deferred from this year have to confirm (not sure of date)



    Not sure what the charity timeline is but until the organisers know how many "guaranteed" entries they have they do not know how many places are available for Ballot entries.
  • Entered, early doors. My first application, ran once before for charity. Reading some of this I will be very lucky to get in!

  • MinniMinni ✭✭✭

    Rob - apply for through the GFA as this is guaranteed then once you've done that phone them and ask for your ballot place to be removed. Simps.

     

  • Big Bertie - Yes. I did it a few years ago.  Apply for the GFA and if you manage to achieve a Championship time then give VLM a call straight away. Provided they haven't allocated and finalised the numbers (think this happens in January) they'll put you in the champs start.

    Good luck.

  • Millsy1977 wrote (see)
    Frosty, the reason it takes until October is because;
    1. The deadline for GFA entries is July
    2. Club entries have to be in sometime in August.
    3. People who deferred from this year have to confirm (not sure of date)

    Not sure what the charity timeline is but until the organisers know how many "guaranteed" entries they have they do not know how many places are available for Ballot entries.

    Charity deadline places need to be confirmed by 5pm on June 20th
    I entered the ballot at 8.30 without a hitch, just waiting to see if I'm "lucky" odds of 10/1 don't exactly inspire me with confidence but you gotta be in it to win it as they say

  • jazz15c wrote (see)

    Trying not to get excited about it...1 in 10 chance. Trying...but it's hard not to get excited. image

    Was always under the impression it was roughly a 1 in 5 chance?

  • Stephen RStephen R ✭✭✭

    In the past it's been assumed to be 20,000 places for 125,000 ballot applications, so that's about 1 in 6.

    This time it might be different, as this will be the first year that the 5-strikes-and-you're-in system won't be operating.  There are many on this forum, including myself, who had 5 strikes and are pretty peeved at missing out on a guaranteed place for 2015.  But what will happen to the places freed up?  If they put them into the main ballot allocation it could reduce the odds of getting in, maybe down to nearer 1 in 5.  However, they could make a lot more money by increasing the number of Golden/Silver Bond charity places.  I wonder what they'll do?

  • It's always annoyed me that the race is subsidised by the charities, £500 for a Golden Bond place is outrageous. They should up the fee for a ballot place to £100, that's a fairer reflection of the cost

  • Does anybody know how the overseas ballot works and how many startting places that goes in there? Is it a totally separate ballot or are the chances/places similair? I signed up for the overseas ballot around 7 am Swedish time (6 am British time) and was given a reference number written "VMLMO15-142xxx". According to the posts earlier in this thread this number seems to follow the same pattern as all the domestic ones so maybe they´re just in the same mix?

  • News online today says they accepted 130,000 ballot entries last year but actually only had 10,000 places available  Hope the odds are better for 2015!

  • Did you know that the overseas charities who have guaranteed places force their runners to guarantee to raise a 6,000 pound minimum and if you can't raise all of it, you have to pay the balance yourself. On top of that you have to pay 1000 pounds in entry fees as well. makes for a pricey day out when you factor in flights and hotels on top. 

  • The odds always seem 'good', most people I speak to seem to regard 1 in 5 as a certainty.

    If they are offering 15500 places in the ballot, a straight 1 in 8 chance, 25% of people who applied for 10 years would not get one place! Adjust up or down for either 1 in 5 or 1 in 10.

    It is unlikely to be that simple though as you would actually want a spread of times for the runners and a truly random selection from all of the ballot applications could throw up some very perverse results. It is likely that race times of 3:30 - 5:00 hours are very heavily oversubscribed, even considering that this is where the median result turns up on race day. So I'm sure something more sophisticated than a random number generator is used.

    Matt 

  • booktrunkbooktrunk ✭✭✭

    Damn should have put down 6h plus image oh well.... Always next year.

  • Charlie4 wrote (see)

    News online today says they accepted 130,000 ballot entries last year but actually only had 10,000 places available  Hope the odds are better for 2015!

    Where did you read that?

  • DT19DT19 ✭✭✭

    Someone posted that on another thread, it was on bbc south east I think.

    I would imagine a random allocation would turn up that result. The highest proportion of people entering will probably be anticipating a 4-5 hour finish time and consistent with that, the largest proportion of people finish in this time. 

  • booktrunkbooktrunk ✭✭✭

    I actually put 3:55 (will be 4 something in reality) but though it might help, *blush* 

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