Paris Marathon 2019

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Comments

  • Nutrition – I notice someone above uses Torq gels which I also have. They have pudding flavours (rhubarb and custard, anyone?) and delicious. If there's fruit on offer I'll probably have a go at that. I did the Berlin marathon years ago and they had a mineral drink that tasted like cold tea and I almost barfed on the spot. So definitely would back up those who say don't try anything new on the day! 
  • Rammpants said:
    Nutrition – I notice someone above uses Torq gels which I also have. They have pudding flavours (rhubarb and custard, anyone?) and delicious. If there's fruit on offer I'll probably have a go at that. I did the Berlin marathon years ago and they had a mineral drink that tasted like cold tea and I almost barfed on the spot. So definitely would back up those who say don't try anything new on the day! 
    Flavour-wise, they're far and away the most adventurous! I use Banoffee.
  • StephA said:
    Interesting post on social media today, suggesting that the route will be different this year and asking people to vote on passing either Place Vendome or the Opera Garnier...
    Just seen that on their FB page, very interesting. Historically, the route has run past the foot of Place Vendome but gone no where near Opera. The latter would entail a major diversion - left rather than straight at Concorde, past la Madeleine, etc. Would need a snip elsewhere to accommodate the mileage. 2 years ago (or was it 3?), the end was changed to incorporate the crazy corporate status symbol that is Foundation Louis Vuitton around Km40, so this wouldn't surprise me. Place Vendome, if included, might be a bit of a problem - the road leading up/ out of it is much narrower than Rue de Rivoli and could cause congestion. It would be nice to see Opera without all the traffic for once. I think I'll vote for that.
  • Thanks all for the nutrition advice.  I tried shot bloks on a 13 mile run on Sunday and they worked well. I just had one every 3 miles (except mile 12 when i didn't need it and only had 1 mile to go). Will continue to try on my long runs as much preferred to gels but need to see how they fair over the longer distances :-)
  • StephAStephA ✭✭✭
    @Dom Norrish I wonder if they could turn left off Rue de Rivoli and do a there and back, up Ave de l’opera-it’s pretty wide so could probably take 2 lanes of runners for an out and back. The opera house would be my preferred choice but most folks on FB seemed to be voting Place Vendome.
  • Long run day for many of us today, I guess?

    How are people doing?

    I have Tokyo on 3rd March so am at the peak of my distance now. Will be on the (wet, windy and cold!) road for 3 hours today. 

    It's odd, but it's something I look forward to, with the rest of the week's runs just being preparation for it. I think getting through 16+ weeks of Winter training is a truer test of endurance and athleticism than the 'celebration lap' we get to do in Paris come April!
  • FRG2FRG2 ✭✭✭
    Me too, Dom. Just back from 17m. At least the weather was kind. Half marathon race next weekend, and then the mileage really ramps up  :#
    Good luck for Tokyo. How do you manage running two marathons close to each other? 
  • FRG2 said:
    How do you manage running two marathons close to each other? 
    At the moment? Badly! I had to stop on 15m this morning and walk back to the car following a tight calf that turned into something worse... Am RICE-ing as I type. 
  • Eggyh73Eggyh73 ✭✭✭
    Dom - I hope that's just a niggle and you recover quickly. Especially with Tokyo so close.
    Running long races close together can be a challenge. In 2013 I ran both Paris and London, which where two weeks apart. I ran well in Paris, but suffered for it in London. In 2015 I ran Paris and then Copenhagen seven weeks later. I ran PB's in both races! Last year I ran Liverpool seven weeks after completing my first ultra. My legs were trashed from the off. I had done way too many miles between them. I would have been much better resting more and going in a bit under-trained.
  • FRG2FRG2 ✭✭✭
    Dom, hope RICE has worked some magic overnight?
  • > @StephA said:
    >
    >
    > Anyone tried uploading their medical cert?

    I've just picked up my medical certificate from my Doctors and have uploaded it. Now showing Pending so hopefully it'll be approved. My Doctors Surgery doesn't have a stamp but I've added all the contact details so fingers crossed it'll be accepted!
  • Uploaded mine the other day. At first the office manager of the surgery did a 'computer says no' response but when I saw my GP she simply checked over my health and signed and stamped it. No cost.
  • Dom, hope your calf is responding well and it's not as serious as you thought it was on Sunday. I did the Country to Capital Ultra a couple of weeks ago, so I haven't done any long runs since, but will be building back up to them next month. And k83nd0n have they approved your medical certificate yet? I need to get mine done soon as my GP usually goes away for a 4 week holiday in February/March and the practise won't let another doctor do it, even though the only times I've actually seen him are to have my medical certificate signed.

    I was also just catching up on the gels discussion. I've been doing a lot of my runs fasted and was thinking of taking just two or three gels with me in Paris, in case I feel a dip (or lose my nerve). Anyone else trying the same thing? But one thing I would recommend is to have some electrolyte during the race, either as tablets you can add to the water bottles they hand out or in your gels if you're taking them. It's been hot both times I've done Paris before and I've seen quite a few people with cramp. 
  • > @Dom Norrish said:
    > StephA said:
    >
    >
    > Interesting post on social media today, suggesting that the route will be different this year and asking people to vote on passing either Place Vendome or the Opera Garnier...
    >
    >
    >
    >
    > Just seen that on their FB page, very interesting. Historically, the route has run past the foot of Place Vendome but gone no where near Opera. The latter would entail a major diversion - left rather than straight at Concorde, past la Madeleine, etc. Would need a snip elsewhere to accommodate the mileage. 2 years ago (or was it 3?), the end was changed to incorporate the crazy corporate status symbol that is Foundation Louis Vuitton around Km40, so this wouldn't surprise me. Place Vendome, if included, might be a bit of a problem - the road leading up/ out of it is much narrower than Rue de Rivoli and could cause congestion. It would be nice to see Opera without all the traffic for once. I think I'll vote for that.

    I think with the continuing gilets jaunes protests on Saturdays they are perhaps worried about the state of the course in central Paris and are considering alternatives because of that.
  • @baldstan my docs did my medical certificate no issue for £10. Interestingly ive never seen or spoken to a doctor at that surgery (I've moved since my last visit to a doctor) but they signed it just from my notes!). Just waiting for it to ne approved on the Paris Marathon website now
  • Carol4Carol4 ✭✭✭
    I uploaded my medical certificate and it had been approved. It took a couple of weeks. 
  • Carol4Carol4 ✭✭✭
    What is everyone’s thoughts on the protests. Will try be over by than or do you think they will just run an alternative course?
  • @baldstan interesting thoughts on gels. I haven't been taking them yet and don't generally feel I need them up to a couple of hours running. But I do want to get used to taking some energy on board because I figure I've got to run more efficiency with something inside me. It's also just getting used to eating on the run just in case I need more vavoom on the day... 

    @Carol4 I don't know French politics well enough to say for sure but although they've been going on for a while, another three months is a long haul. It's hard to see from that point of view that they will not have found resolution by then...?
  • Quote from the Schneider PM guidance pdf:

    ORTHOPEDIC INSOLES
    Prescribed as a preventive measure or to relieve pain, orthopedic insoles are part of the daily routine of many runners. Their mission: to rebalance the movement in order to restore the natural movement. Check with your podiatrist to see if you really need it. Once you get used to it, you rarely go back!

    I have some that were prescribed by a podiatrist but currently don't run with them. Does anybody use them here?
  • baldstan said:
    Dom, hope your calf is responding well and it's not as serious as you thought it was on Sunday. 
    Thanks Stan, FRG & Eggy for asking. Still have some pain walking today (Wed) and am seeing physio on Fri. Suspect I won't be running for a little while...
  • Thanks k83nd0n and Carol4. Sounds like I should get on with getting it signed and get it in if it takes a couple of weeks to get it approved.
    I've also been wondering about the protests. My brother lives just outside Paris and his family have stopped going into the city centre at the weekends as a lot of the shops are shut and boarded up then, and they've been closing all the city centre Metro stations as well because protesters had been disrupting the Metro services. He says the protests have got a bit smaller, but as there's no organised leadership, and no clear demands (some want lower taxes, some want higher government spending, and some just want Macron to resign) it's hard to tell when they'll end. I think we'll just have to keep an eye on what's happening.
  • I doubt the protests will stop before the marathon. The gilets jaunes are putting up candidates in the European elections which are after the marathon. So they will want to keep the protest going so as to show that they are really, really serious. The protests are held on Saturdays and a new development is to hold them on Saturday nights (Les nuits jaunes). So there will be pressure on the organisers to have everything ready by Sunday morning but they’ll probably be able to do it. But that may need some adjustments to the route. 
  • @baldstan I've just had an email telling me my certficate has been accepted so 1 week for docs to sign and 4 days for approval by the marathon so not too bad all in all.

    My doctors do not have a stamp so I was a bit worried it wouldn't be acceoted but I added the contact details, address etc and it was approved no questions asked :-)
  • > @K83nd0n said:
    > @baldstan I've just had an email telling me my certficate has been accepted so 1 week for docs to sign and 4 days for approval by the marathon so not too bad all in all.

    My doctors do not have a stamp so I was a bit worried it wouldn't be acceoted but I added the contact details, address etc and it was approved no questions asked :-)

    I got an email today accepting my certificate too.
  • phronesis said:

    I got an email today accepting my certificate too.
    Where do we send them? I can't find any advice online, just the usual "Bring them to the expo" text. Thinking about it, I think I used to email them maybe back in 2010/11, but not for years... 
  • > @Dom Norrish said:
    > phronesis said:
    >
    >
    >
    >
    > I got an email today accepting my certificate too.
    >
    >
    >
    >
    > Where do we send them? I can't find any advice online, just the usual "Bring them to the expo" text. Thinking about it, I think I used to email them maybe back in 2010/11, but not for years... 


    You go to your timeto personal page. Click on the little green person icon on the upper right side. Click on MENU. Then MY EVENTS. Then you should see an upload documents section on the left. You can upload your certificate there. But it has to be under 1MB to be accepted otherwise you get a message saying there is a problem.
  • Carol4Carol4 ✭✭✭
    Re the protests - even if the marathon organisers work around it for the Marathon on Sunday it would still potentially cause a issue with the breakfast run or is that a different part of Paris 
  • > @Carol4 said:
    > Re the protests - even if the marathon organisers work around it for the Marathon on Sunday it would still potentially cause a issue with the breakfast run or is that a different part of Paris 

    Usually the protests don't start until lunchtime. So the breakfast run should be ok.
  • On a practical note has everyone checked their passport meets requirements that may be in place in event of No Deal? 6 months validity and if you renewed early, anything over 10 years may not count (i.e. was your passport issued less than 9.5 years ago?)
  • > @K83nd0n said:
    > On a practical note has everyone checked their passport meets requirements that may be in place in event of No Deal? 6 months validity and if you renewed early, anything over 10 years may not count (i.e. was your passport issued less than 9.5 years ago?)


    Here is gov uk page on which you check if you are okay. https://www.passport.service.gov.uk/check-a-passport
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