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Comrades 2015
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Oh good - we can have a mini Comrades meet up at Thames Meander !
Sounds like a cunning plan to me. I won't be going flat out but will be aiming for a sub 3:20 qualifying time. I might even attempt to do my first ever marathon negative split!
RR, B7 - hope your injuries have cleared up by then.
To answer your earlier question, I have stayed at City Lodge twice. It is not as high class as the Hilton but cheaper, well located and I have no complaints. I am at the Hilton next year as there was a good deal. There are quite a few other places where folks have stayed. There were offers on flights the lady time I looked. Emirates is two quite long flights but goes to Durban direct from Dubai, otherwise it is a very long flight to Joburg and a short flight to Durbs. There is plenty to do if you are able to stay longer than just for Comrades.
B7 - whoops. Misread your post. Thanks for the advice on accommodation - just need to see how much time I can get off work / domestic duties to make the most of being over there. I got the Lonely Planet guide to Africa out over the weekend and the difficult task is clearly going to be choosing which one of the many places to visit.
Not that I would need to know
Hiya Fido,
A mate of mine from back home said to check agoda.com as they have some offers at the moment - Checked myself and seems room with breakfast is about £97pn
http://www.agoda.com/en-gb/hilton-durban-hotel/hotel/durban-za.html?
Any reason why the hilton? I always get the terrors when people mention staying in Durban itself.
zuluboy the Hilton is a good location - opposite the Expo and it is where the tour buses go from. The international reception on Thursday evening is also there.
Zuluboy, the Hilton is also where a lot of the international runners meet up in the morning of the race to walk together to the start... and loads of international runners stay there.
I'll probably go for City Lodge. The one unnerving thing I found with the Hilton (when I stayed years ago) and Bluewater where I stayed this year was that I was on the upper floors needing to use the lift. I was so paranoid that I might get stuck in the lift (power cut, mechanical failure...) that I seriously contemplated using the stairs on the morning of the race... City Lodge is low rise and has no lifts!
Thanks Slow Duck. I had not thought of that and now you've planted it in my head!
As the fizz ultrasounded my left leg this evening I enquired about Comrades. "...mmm...worth a punt..."
That said, any recs for insurance covering injury or illness (own) and death or severe illness (family)?
haha okay cool. I thought that about the expo centre. Makes sense.
I'm just looking out for you guys making sure you get the best out of your trip. Going all that way to S.A and end up staying in Durban. A few miles (15 min drive) down the road you have this. Some amazing hotels, cheaper and not as much craziness as in Durban.
Slow Duck. I like your way of thinking. I bet you took the lift after the race?
I dont think Umhlanaga is a good choice before the race. It's just too far making the need to drive, park etc, etc. After the race however, it is superb
True Dammirr. I was thinking if there were enough runners, you could get the hotel mini-bus to just shuttle you to the start and pick you up..
Yes, as Fido says, I usually get very nervous before the start...
ZB - I stayed up in Umhlanga for my first few runs as my friend (who introduced me to Comrades lived up there) - it was great. But I now tend to stay in Durban as I come on my own (twice was enough for Mrs SD) and it's a great opportunity to catch up with old friends and make new ones. There's the Ambassador's drinks on Thursday evening, bus tour on Friday morning, parkrun on Saturday morning, race on Sunday and hanging out at various Durban beach locations on Monday.
That's the area a work mate of mine recommended, and he is from Durban. Well, I am staying in the Hilton, don't want to be by myself.
I think people who don't do the event perhaps don't understand the logistics and frame of mind we are in. We want to be close, not walk too much, hang out with like minded people. Pretty much any of the Durban hotels fill those criteria, with the Hilton and City Lodge being the closest.
Ahh okay cool. sounds like a good vibe Dannirr - Hopefully try to catch up with some of you guys when over there.
I definitely want to spend a few hours in umhlanaga on the Tuesday or wed after the race....
Just finished booking everything so thought I would say hello - first timer - realised I lied on my entry form saying I'd qualified at a marthon in May
But I have a post Aug.1 comming up in a couple of weeks. Is it right that the swiftness of your qualifying marathon governs how far back from the start line you'll be punted? I have had a lazy summer full of puddings and beer so am well short of my best form. Was going to trot around the next run, but now thinking I should push it a bit to edge closer to the start? Anyone know what the break points are? I should manage under 4:30 OK, but is it worth trying any harder?
By the way - I had a shufty at that agoda thingy and their headline prices are short of tax; you end up with a bit of a shock at the final basket; so I bailed and booked direct off the Hilton site. Not sure I got the best deal but I couldn't rustle up anything cheaper using my best (but probably less than average) Internet trawling. Mind at rest now though - just have to get a bit of training in
lowrez- starting pens are at 20 min intervals but there is an anomaly between sub-4 and not sub-4. Sub-4 is in pen D, over 4 is in pen F as pen E is reserved for Green number club runners. There is also an extra pen (CC) between pen D and C (sub-3:40) but these charity runners are usually very few in number...
You can usually ask to have your seeding upgraded up to 4 May - the requirement to get your club chairperson to sign off your qualifying details is a new one for this year - not too sure if it will apply to international runners.
http://www.comrades.com/international/international-race-information/2-race-info/320-qualifying-information
4:20 gives you a seeding in section F
4:00 gives you a seeding in section D
How much difference it makes to our experience I don't know. I run a marathon in October and hope for a sub 4, but I won't be disappointed if I only manage a 4:19. When I entered the race I entered as an event, only recently got time ambitions for it.
Lowrez, the boundaries on the Comrades grid are sub 3.00, sub 3.20 sub 3.40 sub 4.00 and....can't remember after that but the green numbers I believe don't have to qualify and make up a large block just behind the sub 4.00 group, so arguably it's worth qualifying sub 4.00 but.
I noticed this morning that there's a pretty good exchange rate on the Rand at the moment folks.
....although sadly for South Africans, a good exchange rate for us can mean serious inflation and erosion of earning power for them...a really tough country to live in for many people.
Aiming to knock off sub 3.20 again for pen B, over the line in less than 1 minute this year (in the company of a Speedy Duck).
Good luck all
What does it 'really' mean?
How does it compare to London? Are you just stuck if you are too far back? What is too far back? I am sure you can start too far forward.
Thanks all! Sub4 - got to say no chance - I am easing both hamstrings back into obedience after a daft mid-summer challenge at a 10k (I beat the necessary competition but my hams revolted at the sudden up burst). May was a 3:52 and my pb is 3:47; was attempting to head towards 3:30 for this next one but I fell off the wagon pretty badly after the 10k. So, its all a bit of an unknown, as will Comrades be for me...would hate to miss the 12hr mark by the few minutes between pens (but would like to think I could come in a while before 12 anyway and so should not fret about the starting pen position). At this stage I think I just need to be sensible and qualify without aggravating anything; then if I'm feeling good later in the year maybe try and improve.
JB - Yes - I got a great deal on some ZARs - this next marathon will be Cape Town so I have just purchased a few - complete coincidence that its a SA run - I am in the UK - been collecting continents - this will be my 6th,
SD - I am not a club runner so don't have anyone to sign it off? Will my mum do?
What do I know but..
If you start towards the front in any race, you have to be disciplined about running your own race and not being dragged along by people who will pay a price later.
If you start at the back and miss out on the medal you want by less than the time it took you to cross the start line, you may kick yourself.
A dilemma to put Schrodinger's cat to shame!
I think I can rationalise it by the presence of those green people - they must all expect to finish? So that spot can't be a bad place? So qualifying inside a 4:20 and fighting your way to the front of that pen would put you in a reasonable place too?
The above probably comes from me realising the best can do at this stage is a sub 4:20 so I need to convince myself thats "great"
This is indeed a great event - I have never examined a starting grid in so much detail so far out from thr gun!
Does the bus back go anywhere near Florida Road... (Not necessarily expecting an answer...).
Any recs for self catering places near the Expo/Marine Drive area (with nearby supermarkets?). Hilton convenient location but inconvenient re food, WiFi - normal hostel is lovely but the thought of an en suite after the run...! ...
The pens are not as important on the Up run as the roads in Durban at the start is wide and goes more or less straight onto the motorway - so the starting field is reasonably compact and it will probably only be a few minutes even when starting from H - different story for the Down where the roads are narrower and the field is stretched out further...
Remember you can submit a better time to get your seeding upgraded for until 4 May...
lowrez- I suspect that the signing off is only going to be enforced for SA based runners (who have to be a member of a running club to take part in Comrades).