Beachy Head (eastbourne) Marathon - What Shoes To Wear?

Hi all,

I am new to this - but loving it!

I have lost 6 stone in 5 months speed walking - but still weigh over 20 stone.


What I need to know is, can my faithful brooks road trainers that have got me through the last 2 half marathons do the job for beacy head? or do I REALLY need trail shoes? or do I go the full monty with walking boots? does weather conditions make any difference. I have an extra wide foot, so spending out another £150 on a pair of footwear for a one off event doesn't thrill me. also, I am walking up and down hills to prepare - but they are road paths. Do I have to train off-road?

 

thanks in advance - I appreciate the community support!

Comments

  • WR - this question comes up every year - usually in the event thread (there's one open in Events if you want to join in)

    the answer is always the same - it really depends on the weather leading up to the event.

    in "normal" years - road shoes are fine as the trails will still be hard.  there are only a few sections (in Friston Forest) where it can be a bit muddy but if it's been dry you can cope with these in road shoes.

    but this year, and certainly recently, it's been as wet as hell and a lot of the tracks will be muddy but you'd be surprised how quickly they can dry out with a few days of sun and wind.  the open grassy sections will always be fine, but the forest tracks will not dry out much now. the chalk tracks could be a bit hit and miss.

    I suspect that the next few weeks are still going to see a fair bit of rain which isn't going to help so I think that trail shoes would be the best option.

    you're always best training off-road for this event - it's a tough challenge with 95% of it on trails so being used to running off-road will help a lot.

    if you do go for trail shoe - and I think you should - then get some that that you can still run on hard surfaces in as they will be more cushioned for your weight.  fell shoes or similar with aggressive mud-gripping soles have little cushioning (that cushioning comes from muddy and grassy srufaces) and can be uncomfy on hard surfaces.

    Brooks might do a trail shoe that will have a similar feel to your road shoe - talk to a specialist shop about this and/or check their website

    I live close to the event (and am masrhalling again this year) and I'll try to get out on the mountain bike at the weekend to check the trails out - I'll post a summary in events

     

  • Thx for he advice. Await with interest site report
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