Dreams -of FLM!

[Deleted User]

Hey there, Its not Feb 11th. 10 more Sundays to go until the big one.

I had a dream about three days ago that at the start of the FLM, I was going great guns. Around 9 min miles. Then after two miles, I stopped to re-tie my shoelace. Took about 5 minutes doing it!

Then I got back on the pace (and better) and was heading for around 3:45 hrs at around the 14 miles mark and then hit the wall. At around 20 I got a second wind and really pushed myself despite having legs that weighed a ton.

Never did find out If I crossed the finish line or what time I got.

Any one else care to share their FLM dreams on here?

Nosh

Welsh Alex

Sure it wasn't a premonition. Sounds like many of my FLM's.

You usually finish but it is not pretty ;-)

[Deleted User]

Yeah, about 10 years ago at the first drinks station ( 3 miles),someone threw a virtually full bottle of water on the road which i tripped on & sprained my ankle.I had trouble walking let alone run.Four months of training down the drain.The only problem being it was'nt a dream it actually did happen to me, it's just a living nightmare every time i pass that drinks station.

[Deleted User]

My 1st time last year and my training hadn't gone well due to injury.

I dreamt many times that it wouldn't hurt and the fact that I had done 1 x 18 miler in training meant the last 8 was just like 2 loops of the block where I live and it couldn't be that difficult !!!

5 hrs 26 mins says how hard it was, and the pain for the following fortnight was incredible.

Dreaming of sub 4.45 this time around and a more sensible pace as opposed to getting caught up in the occasion very early on asuffering big time around the Docklands !!

[Deleted User]

Dreamt about it twice, and both times the mind is willing but the body totally uncooperative,and it's as if I'm running through thick treacle, and however hard I try I can't run faster! Does anyone have any good dreams about it or are they all nightmares??

K9

Haven't started dreaming this year, but last year dreamed it had been moved to the alps, and I had to finish in a taxi.

[Deleted User]

I've dreamed at various times that FLM started in a building not unlike the Arc de Triomph and there was a table of gels at the entrance, I've turned up at the start wearing high-heeled shoes, and I've lost my number and had to get a replacement from the Aston Villa ticket-office.

I often have cheese sarnies for supper ;o)

[Deleted User]

Velociraptor!!!

Now THAT is a dream! No wonder you remembered it!

I forgot to say in my dream the other day, I noticed mid race Ididnt have a running ship so even if I did finish the race in my dream, I wouldnt have recorded an official time

I love dreams.

straitjacket

I had a dream about 2 weeks ago that I attende the start of the race, which for some reason was in Oxford St, only to be told that I hadn't registered. I had half an hour to get over to the other side of London and get back. In the dream I tried to go by Tube where I was pushed aside at the ticket office, got on the wrong train. Had to get a bus, had to walk.When I got to the place of registration it was shut.There was a computer there where you could type in your race number and mine had a "Did not start" next to it
I went home and my wife came in.She asked me how I got home, and told me Barry was still waiting at the finnish line to get my Photograph.

How queer!

[Deleted User]

Not started FLM dreams yet but often before races I dream that I'm running and the route goes totally crazy. Generally it's through people's houses (where I keep having to say "sorry" for disturbing them, up and down stairs and once I ended up in a hedge maze and couldn't quite see the runner in front to help me find my way out. What does it all mean?!!! Looking forward to seeing what April will throw up....

[Deleted User]

Just bringing this up to the top again to see if anyone else has had any marathon dreams....

[Deleted User]

Two nights in a row I dreamt of the marathon. In the first, the route was strangely rural and I set off determined just to go with the flow and not look at my watch to check times. Before I knew it, I had crossed the line in 3 hrs 56 (if only it were that simple!) The next night I dreamt that the training runs were so easy that I accidentally ran the full marathon distance in one LSR. That one starngely had a route that was mostly through a large warehouse (Docklands?) I reckon I'm deluding myself big time.

[Deleted User]

Ooo I'm glad I'm not the only one having anxiety dreams about the FLM. I had my first nightmare the other night. This is my first marathon so no idea what to expect and keep reading about the pens, so in my dream I'm standing in front of one of the pens but the race gun has gone and everyone is running out, I'm asking everyone what their time will be so I know when to jump into the pen and run back out, I get in the pen and need the loo so run off thinking I have loads of time. Anwyay when I'm done, every single runner has crossed the start line and I'm about 15/20 minutes behind them (how long did it take me to go to the loo!) and then i panic, I'm not prepared, I have no gels tucked in my pockets, I know i'm going to run on empty. I see my brother and give him some money to go to a shop to get me some, i'm panicking and he looks so calm. Then to top it all I cna't run, you know those dreams where you just aren't moving, so i'm clawing at the floor, on all fours trying to get myself to move.

Horrible.

gatorade (all the pies)

Seems so common that - trying to run during a dream and it feels like your running in toffee... what's that all about?!

Had my first marathon dream of the season a couple weeks ago. Started running fine, doing quite well, saw a Starbucks and decided to nip in for a Grande Cappuccino and have a chat with some mates, somehow forgot I was running the marathon then suddenly remembered and started running again, finished in 3:01. And the stupidest thing about it all was I was gutted with the time!

[Deleted User]

Am so glad this thread got started! I keep literally running in my sleep, legs flailing like an idiot :-)

Dreamed I was in the marathon but stopped off at someone's house to see them on the way. Got back into the race but was stuck behind giant red London buses, which I couldn't get past, plus a load of horses. Then needed the loo and, like Laura, took about 20 minutes. When I woke I couldn't tell whether I'd actually got to the end of the race or not.

So it's not just me then?!

PhilPub

Had my first proper vivid and weird dream about FLM over the weekend.

I was anxiously waiting around at the start, couldn't remember whether I'd managed to change starting pens as planned, then sneaked into a pen which then turned into an open-topped bus, which then turned into a railway carriage which scooted us through a very long tunnel to the start line. Everyone else in the pen was a very skinny bloke with a beard. (Possibly a gaggle of vintage Mike Grattons, but no names were mentioned as far as I can remember...) When we finally got to the start it was in a pretty Austrian ski resort - all very well, nice and picturesque and all that, but a long way to the finish in London and it was blimmin' freezing cold and snowing. I felt slightly under-dressed.

[Deleted User]

Most bizarre..my first FLM dream and don't know if I'm even gonna do it...(injured)
Anyway here it is if anyone is interested...
At the start I joined a pacer, she was really annoied as she didn't want anyone to actually run with her. Anyway we set off and I found out that she was a 5 minute mile pacer not a 15 minute one!! Second shock was just as we were about to start my sister turned up (totally disorganised) and asked me to wait for her...this annoied the "pacer" even more....(and me as she has a tendancy to do that in real life!!)
Anyway we set off and started running through all these really dark, wet, rubbish filled alleys and I didn't have my soxs on and ended up with huge blisters!! Anyway the pacer abandoned me and my sister - and as I ran past some crowds I asked them if I was last and they said "yes", when I asked them again as I saw other people running behind me, they said yes you are definately last - the people behind you are kids in a fun run!!! (It doesn't stop there!) At a point I and my sister appeared to be carrying loads of "stuff" (spare shoes/socks/coats etc) and I was getting so tired I asked her if I could throw them away, she said no and got us to stop in a really posh hotel to get a trolley to carry the stuff around...(and theres more)...whilst we stopped at the hotel I decided to go to the loo...there was a queue and when I eventually got to a cubicle I couln't get the door to shut and much to my disgust consequently ended up doing a "paula"..... We left the hotel, I with dirty shorts and pulling a great big porters trolley behind me....
How about that????!!!!!

[Deleted User]

me tooo, i had my first one over the weekend.. it was wierd! started off by going to the loo and wasted loads of time...then it was on a kind of dirt track that kept going in and out of water so it was horrible and i kept having to pull myself along with a rope!...saw loads of people i knew all flying past me, then my sister and she was on rollerblades!!! i asked why she was wearing them and she said you were allowed, i just felt so jealous!!!! don't know if i finished or what my time was! just really want to rollerblade it now though!!

Kirsty B

LOL at people's dreams! Last year I had a pre-FLM dream, very vivid as I still remember it well! At each mile marker there was a huge locked gate and to get through it I had to complete some kind of Crystal Maze type challenge. The really annoying thing was that everyone else was allowed to run straight past!
BTW the ones about spending 20 minutes in the loo aren't that unrealistic, the queues are pretty long...

[Deleted User]

yep
i lost 30 minutes in loo qs last year

this is a great thread though

[Deleted User]

Cool bananas!

Great to see there are loads of dreamers.

I had another one two nights ago:

I was competing in a kind of multi event thing for a kind of sports day. My event: Long jump (me?!?) High jump (!!! I'm a shortie!) and marathon (which was on a 250metre running track!

The long jump I won (!!! ) but the run up was through a house and wasnt in a straight line. i managed to jump out of the pit.

The Marathon. Again, I stopped to sort my laces out. I started well late, caught eeryone up and past them. stopped for about 20 minutes to change my laces (not to do them up! to change them!). Then had a bite of some other team mates burger before setting off again. I needed to be in the top 8 for our team to win. I was easily going to do it.......when.......(Can anyone guess what I stopped for...?)

oy oy oy! what a laugh!

Hope everyone is well

keep the dreams a comin'

Nosh

[Deleted User]

Any more for any more?.....

Olive Oyl

I had a dream the other night that I got lost I was searching for Tower Bridge and running towards St Pauls instead.I kept looking for the blue line but the road was covered knee deep in bottles.Then when I worked out where I was going I couldn't run.I kept trying to make my legs move then I woke up.

[Deleted User]

I've had LOADS of dreams!! So glad I've seen this thread, it's great to know I'm not the only one.

The recurring nightmare I've had (at least 4 times now) is ridiculous... I dream that I get lost on the way! I lose everyone else in front (yeah, right) and am running through backstreets not knowing which way to go, and looking out for small 'marathon this way' signs the size of street signs... and I always end up in a field, woods, or alleyways, really upset that I've got lost!

Had a funny new one the other night though. There was a half-way 'break' where everyone just got together and chatted on some steps. When it was time to start running again, I ran for about a minute and then realised I'd taken my trainers off and forgot to put them back on again. Went back to the rest area and they were nowhere to be seen so I was all in a panic trying to decide whether I should try to run the second half of the marathon in just my socks or whether that would be dangerous!

I hope these dreams are not any sort of omen, that's all I can say!

(Olive Oyl - definitely glad to know it's not just me that has these 'getting lost' dreams.... I always laugh at myself when I wake up.)

[Deleted User]

I've had two anxiety dreams about it now! I can't remember the second but in the first I forgot to charge my Garmin and my iPod and had to run without them and couldn't tell how fast I was going. So I came through the halfway point way too fast!

My other dream was something about forgetting gels. My dreams tend to be quite realistic aka boring.

I don't know why I dream about forgetting stuff, I have a pre-race ritual and forgetting stuff is probably the last thing that would ever happen!

Little Deb

I dreamt I got to the expo only to realise I didn't have the registration form type thingie with my race number on it.

Woke up, went back to sleep, then dreamt I was in the runners pen and couldn't find an RW pacer for love nor money.

Off to bed shortly, wonder if I'll dream about it any more?!

[Deleted User]

Don't know whats worse, the "realistice" type dreams or these stupid wacky one I keep having....I've had a couple of weeks off the dream thing...then WOW last night....
Queing through peoples houses (hallways) to get to start, wearing a big black furry hat and ski jacket...biggest tradegy at the start was I realised I didn't have my magical red laces!!! also went over "timing mat" and then had to queue again to eat a jacket potato b4 starting to run...at finish had to queue again (in someones house) to get finishers "congratulations" card (no medal), which some old woman was plucking from a big card rack and writing out individually as people went through....phew thought I'd been swimming when I woke up!!!

Olive Oyl

My most recent dream -- my children had climbed to the top of Big Ben so that they could get a better view of the race.I climbed up to get them down and I get stuck at the top hanging on to the clock face.My husband then has to climb up to get me or I can't finish .Talk about anxiety issues .

[Deleted User]

well i had a sort of nightmare come true at last years FLM. For various reasons i was late. I was last one out of the portaloos!, rushed up to start, but could only get in pen doing about 12 min miles, instead of intended 9 to 9 and a half min miles. Then at 3 miles, realised i was well short of 4 hr pace, so tried to catch up, then right shoe lace came undone, took ages to get to a space to do it up, then timing chip started falling of and i had to find a kind st john ambulance chap with a safety pin to attach it, then tried again to catch up and at 20 miles was completely shot, but somehow kept going and came in at 4h 16mins.

Wouldn't have missed it for anything though. Had to defer this year due to ongoing achilees niggle, but will have another go at 4 hours in 2008 FLM!!

Little Deb

I've done two marathons previously (Stratty & Abingdon) but for the first time I'm really nervous cos of the amount of people I've got to run with. Scared of running in a crowd, how on earth am I gonna get going?! Haven't dreamt about it for a few nights now - I'm sure another wacky dream will come along!

[Deleted User]

Lil' liz'

don't worry, it's a great feeling of team spirit, bit of dodging/weaving needed for first few miles, but o.k.
As long as you are in the right pen for your speed, i'm sure you will be fine. Good luck.