Afford Rent-A-Car Stafford 20

So is anyone signing up for this one? It looks like it could be a great training run for a marathon..

Anyone know just how "undulating" it is? I'm trying to steer clear of hills too near my mara so that I don't bugger my legs up.

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Comments

  • I'd say it's quite hilly really Notsospeedy. Did it last year and noted two hills that were quite long and challenging and one of them features on all 3 laps. Depends what you are used to I spose, and if its any more than 3 weeks away from your mara then the hills are good training. Cant say its the most appealing 20 miler I've ever done, but a great training run.
  • Thanks Caz..

    I hadn't actually noticed it was multiple laps (having a senior moment) until a friend from running club pointed it out. Does kind of put me off.. but may be a useful training run.. as you say.

  • Nats I ran the Stoke half and the hills were blooming hard. How about we all do a 20 mile traing run that weekend and end up at a pub somewhere?

    Are you doing the Christmas Pudding 10miler this Sunday?
  • I may be up for this as it would be a long training run Sunday in preparation for FLM
  • I did this this year, 2:24.xx something, and it was bloody tough, it climbs after 1 mile into each lap, more a tough undulation, then at the 4 mile point, and bleedin big hill that knackeres you...

    ...the two last laps are shorter versions and miss this massive hill, but it is very undulating without this...

    ... personally, I reckon its around 3-4 minutes slower than a flat 20 miler...

    I'm doing Trimpell 20 instead this year as it's a week earlier, so will give my legs longer to recover ;-)


    Pug
  • I'd like to think about doing this but it clashes with Fradly 10K - possibly my only chance to get a really flat 10K pb time
  • It's an average race,the first loop is biggest and toughest,

    But overall, an ok undulating run


    we did this in 3.03

    We had 4 20's in 5 weeks last year

    Bramley 2.58
    Glouc 3.15
    Staffs 3.03
    Ashby 3.08

    This time round it's 5 on the trot

    luveley Jubbly !!
  • DID IT LAST YEAR IN 2.10, PERFECT LONDON WARMUP TO TEST YOUR PACE, IT WAS VERY COLD LAST YEAR MY GELS DRIPPED ON MY LEG AND FROZE
  • Do you get gels/choc/sports drinks in this?
    Mick n Phil, I see you did this one quicker than Ashby, is that becasue it is easier or cos you were tierd when it came to ashby?
  • Mick'n'Phil, how does this course compare to Gloucester?
  • also, what proportion of people took over 3 hours and what time did the last person finish in?
  • I'm doing it this year. Was meant to have done it last year but had to pull out. A 3-lap 20-miler sounds much, much more achieveable than a one-lap loop course as at least on the last lap you know you've covered that distance before so it should seem easier (hopefully).

    Am I reading last years results right? Was it really a tie for first?
  • a 3 lapper also means that if you really have to you can drop out if injured
  • Hi

    Does anyone know how they organise the relay - it mentions teams of 3 with an 8, 6 & 6 stage. Are they run one after the other or in parallel and the times added?

    Thanks

    Neil
  • One after the other. (It's a 3 lap race, with the first lap longer than the other 2).
  • PruePrue ✭✭✭
    I'm in for the this one too.

    Hoping just to take it easy as a training run and not get carried away.
  • done this the last 2 years. As people have said the 1st lap has a tough hill, on lap 2 and 3 you only do part of the hill. Then it is slightly undulating. Its a good test for FLM. The weather has been the biggest challange over the last 2 years. Last year especially..very cold with a bitter wind!!

    I do this in preferance to Ashby 20 as you have more recovery time. Ashby is probably a bit more hilly with lots more runners and more of a higher tempo. I find Stafford more of a low key race.
  • but you get chocolate and a nice sweatshirt at ashby so I think I will do both but take them steadily.
  • I dont like the sound of this one now! Too late already entered, thought be a good warm up for my first marathon - london of course. Bit concerned I keep reading undulating??? Ran 17 miles last two sundays, and another 11 and half tonight, but rather concerned this may be a tough one - also got stafford half two weeks later. Does anyone know how it compares to Potters (Stoke) Half Marathon - because I thought that was very tough but ran that a couple years ago and was only my second half then!
  • triple, I have never run this distance before so am not an expert but dont worry about the hills....
    on sunday I did the very hilly stamford 30km (18.6miles) having never run that distance before but just took it really slowely and walked up the hills in the second half and walked through the water stations. I treated it as a training run, was not trying to beat anyone or get a certain time so there was no pressure. I used it as a time to practice getting my food and fluid intake right and running that distance with others is easier than doing it on your own. you have to do a 20 mile run before FLM so might was well do it with others.
    Do you have a target time for london? If so then I would suggest doing this about 45-90secs per mile slower (as the training schedules suggest). After my experience on sunday I believe that with the right pacing a hilly 20 would be possible provided 18 miles has been run not long before.
    Loads of people said that stamford was really tough and they struggled the last few miles. Because I was plodding I was actually faster in the last few miles due to having fuel left in the tank.
    so triple, dont worry, it doest matter if you walk the hills, loads of people were walking on sun.
    I suspect there will be a reasonable proportion of people using it as training for FLM having never done 20 before so you (and I)will not be alone
  • Potteries ARF

    is much tougher



    Plus It can be humid in June for Potts run !!

    Bramley 20 ... 2.58
    Glouc 20... 3.15 Just a bad run for us ...both flatish

    Moving onto to

    Staffs 20 ...3.03
    Ashby 20 ...3.08

    So, there isn't that much in it as you can see, and my poor legs survived it all


    Sorry about this folkes...

    But if we can survive all this,

    Then surely with some posititve thinking all of you can
  • hellen, thank you so much for your reply - you have given me real inspiration, i checked my miles in car and it was 11 miles last night in 116 mins so am running slightly slower than 10 min mile pace. I ran this continously and have done several half marathons, including stafford, uttoxeter, blackpool and nottingham last year. I run with two other ladies, Jo and Jackie - hence our name TRIPLEJ, we are raising money for local hospice, have pledged to raise £5000, me and Jo turn 40 this year and jackie 50 and as it was my idea and i dragged them into this - I have to do it!
    micknphil As long as i finish stafford20 - sod my time lol, well done both of you you seem to have plenty of good runs under your belt. I got my no through today, as long as i get round in under 4 hours - otherwise the marshalls disappear lol
  • Ah Triple J

    Absolutely

    Sod the time, just finish the race ...

    We are behind you, maybe even literally at some point


    best of luck
  • Good Evening MicknPhil - I am sure you definately will be in front from the start -I am sure the only time I may be infront is in the queque for the toilets before we even start to run lol! So are u doing Stafford20, Stafford Half then onto London like ourselves or adding even more races to the schedule? Ran another 8 and half miles tonight so thats this weeks training up to 361/2 miles so feel quite happy with that!

    Good luck to you both too.
  • fantastic web page by the way - it certainly gives alot of inspiration.
  • tripleJ - sounds like you are doing well with the training if you have done 36.5 miles this week.
    You may find, like me, that for this race you will be near the back, I think I will be doing about 10/mile as I am doing it as a training run so slower than my planned pace (although not sure what that is), I am trying to follow my HR rather than pace so it depends on the hills - last weeks hilly one was 10/mile but my HR was higher than I wanted it to be.
    However, even if we are near the back it doesnt matter cos when we get to london there will be so many people behind us. I found a website which gave some stats for london and I think the person that came halfway did it in about 4 hours.
    For me, and for you, from the sounds of it, London is the main race and this is a stepping stone so dont worry about how few are behind, you dont want to risk going too fast and get injured or kill yourself in the process. You want to finish this race feeling like you could do more. If you finish feeling carp you may then start having confidence issues about how on earth you can do another 6 miles.
    Last week in the 30km race I did I was right near the back, it bothered me for a few mins then I reminded myself about how I needed to go steady, if I went too hard then my training for the next week would all go to pot cos I would be too tierd to do anything. In the last few miles I overtook so many people who were struggling cos they had gone too fast to start with, that was a big confidence boost!
  • Hi Hellen, thanks again for your encouragement, well back to schedule tonight had a weekend away feel more refreshed! I ran 7.5 miles in just under 10min mile pace, a couple of hills included for practice for staffs20. Our fund raising hit half way today £2500 so feel that both the marathon and fundraising of £5000 is now achievable. I am just going to take it steady and think had a bit of panic attack last week! I aim to finish London in 4-30 to 4.45 and as long as i am standing at the end i will be very happy with this time as a first timer!
  • If you can do a hilly 20 6 weeks before london then a flat 26.2 with lots of crowd support and other runners shoulf be doable, or so I keep telling myself.
    sounds like you are doing well with the fundraising, I wouldnt like to have that to worry about as well as the training
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