P + D training for VLM 2013

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  • literatinliteratin ✭✭✭
    15West wrote (see)

     Seems a bit easier for women though...?

     

    Well, this year's race was still 66% men, so it kind of needs to be.

  • We'll all have different opinions on what a GFA should be but I think 3.10 isn't that difficult really. 

    Ive noticed people saying they could have ran close to 3 hours but they decided to go for a safe 3.10, I think statements like that prove its too easy. Have a look at the Facebook page it's embarrassing, people think they have a right to run London every year. 

    I said it yesterday there are great alternative spring marathons, my weekend in Barcelona didn't cost any more than London and the race was fantastic. For someone between 3.04.59 and 3.09.59 why not do an alternative next year get under 3.05 and do London the year after is it really that important? 

  • TenjisoTenjiso ✭✭✭

    Al - if it really was just for you, I would sign the petition.  Assuming you are not going to try again in the next couple of months, give Brighton some consideration for next year. You did start the greatest thread ever, and I will support your knighthood.

    I do feel sorry for anybody that ran a marathon other than the VLM, who achieved the GFA so that they could to run in the VLM for the first time. I suspect that's not too many people though.  I think they could have handled the announcement of changes better, but whenever it happened it would upset some people.

    Lit - GFA time is taking me years of hard work and dedication image.  However, I only want to achieve it to say I've achieved GFA, rather than specifically to get into the VLM - if that makes sense.  It's just a target to keep me going.

  • Al, I wasn't having a go at you because I know you aimed for a shit or bust sub 3 and I think that's what racing is all about. 

    I agree it is harsh to change it at such short notice, I would be very dissapointed if I had never ran in London before and they moved the goalpost at the last minute after I thought I'd qualified with a GFA time.

  • 15West15West ✭✭✭

    Quite fancy Barcelona marathon - you rate it Mark?

    Someone tell me whether to enter Chester or not.

  • I agree that VLM should of announced the changes prior to this years marathon. But I'm with Mark in that the hysteria is a bit embarrassing. I really don't understand people saying things like 'Oh I just cruised around to a 3.09 instead of trying as I thought I would be safe'. Its a race FFS and if they purposely just jogged it to get an arbitrary GFA number then they deserve to miss out. I thought the whole point of a race was to run your best on the day.

    That said, I do feel sorry for the genuine guys and gals who were close to the new target and tried their guts out getting out it. Maybe if VLM had announced the new times in advance then those people may have been able to squeeze a little extra out on the day. I have a mate in that position and am pretty sure he would of made the 3.05 if he knew his entry depended upon it. A bit of forewarning would of been nice given the training people put in.

  • FUCKING DO CHESTER 15. Craig and I are.

  • I'm sure there won't be an official statement from VLM organisers as to the basis for their decision but I am guessing that they will have analysed the results from the 2013 race to have a look at the effect.  Without changing the numbers of runners overall they will have needed to squeeze some runners out while letting others in, so the relaxation at the higher ages will mean a squeeze at the lower ages.

  • TenjisoTenjiso ✭✭✭

    If they really wanted to make GFA fairer, it would be based on age gradings that are used from race results. Then let's see what times people would really have to achieve.  But it isn't based on fairness.

  • I bet 15 will wear his VLM finishers vest if he does Chesterimage

  • 15 I thought the course at Barcelona was as good as London and the start and finish area were probably better. 

    I don't think the crowds at London will be beaten anywhere though even Barcelona is well supported. 

    Its a great city, lots to see and do. We went to watch Barcelona the weekend of the race and I was sat in a swimming pool with a drink half an hour after the race!

  • Poor poor decision by VLM to announce it yesterday, I'd have been gutted had I scraped a 3:49 in (and would have had I not been getting pissed during the race), and thought "get in, GFAqualifying time" and then have it ripped from my bosum yesterday, like tearing away my newborn child. image  Bastardsl  In all seriousness, they should give 6 months notice. 

  • FUCKING DO CHESTER 15. Craig and I are. 

  • literatinliteratin ✭✭✭

    Yeah, it's the timing that I think is unfair - especially as they announced it the day of the ballot so people affected might have missed out on entering that too. I've less sympathy with the people who didn't really try their hardest, but do feel sorry for the ones who were seriously going for sub-3, realised they weren't going to make it, and then eased off a bit and came in at 3:06.

    Ten - didn't mean some people aren't working hard! But I think the arguments based on 'hard work' don't work because some will have to work hard to achieve the times and others won't quite so much, and that'll always be the case whatever the times are. And some people will work really really hard and never manage it.

  • literatinliteratin ✭✭✭
    JF50 wrote (see)

    I bet 15 will wear his VLM finishers vest if he does Chesterimage

    Ouch! Giant cotton t-shirt = bleeding nipples. image

  • TenjisoTenjiso ✭✭✭
    literatin wrote (see)

    And some people will work really really hard and never manage it.

    Noooo - don't say that! image

  • literatinliteratin ✭✭✭

    Present company excepted, Ten. image

  • literatinliteratin ✭✭✭

    Anyway, spare a thought for those of us ladies who were feeling properly smug about having achieved a blokes' GFA time, only for the rug of hubris to be pulled out from under our feet.

  • TenjisoTenjiso ✭✭✭
    HeOw wrote (see)

    they should give 6 months notice. 

    Just after Abingdon and the other Autumn marathons. No cause for complaint then.

    image

  • 15 W - as HeoW says (more politely) you should definitely enter Chester. I have no marathon plans for this weekend.  I probably wouldn't have done one last weekend if it hadn't been on my doorstep and there was no cost to get there as covered by my travel pass.

    As for my legs they are feeling marvellous. I would say my DOMS is a day less than last week (i.e. yesterday they felt like they did last Tuesday and today they feel almost back to normal).  I think I may be able to start the 5th mesocycle tomorrow, although I may leave it till Thursday.

    I've always quite fancied the Disney marathon/goofy challenge but thought that I wouldn't be able to do the combined effort. Now I'm not so sure ...

    I agree with the general sentiments on here re GFA and I definitely agree with Ten.  I've spent 3 years trying to go sub 4 and never succeeded and then 2 come along at once! image I think I will be able to try to go sub 3:45 next year so GFA will be achievable for me but I can understand how Ten feels as I would never be likely to get down to the mens cut offs.  Like Ten I totally bust a gut training for this.  I've entered the ballot but I am not particularly bothered if I don't get in, I'll just find an alternative.

     

  • TenjisoTenjiso ✭✭✭

    Hehe Lit.  Don't forget all the people who have for years been basking in the glow of having achieved a GFA - only to now find out it was just a dream. Their radio and TV appearances will now dry up.  Not so much has beens as never really were erm.. beens.  Next year they should have some kind of ceremonial stripping of medals or something. On the other hand it's party time for some who thought they had missed out, but now were GFA after all! At last they can come out of the shadows and take their rightful place in society and be respected by their peers. Hurrah.

    Swings and roundabouts.

  • TenjisoTenjiso ✭✭✭

    Fiona - you bust a gut twice in eight days! Now that is inspiring!

  • mark1981 wrote (see). 

    Its a great city, lots to see and do. We went to watch Barcelona the weekend of the race and I was sat in a swimming pool with a drink half an hour after the race!

    That sounds like my idea of a race weekend image

  • chickstachicksta ✭✭✭
    mark1981 wrote (see)

    15 I thought the course at Barcelona was as good as London and the start and finish area were probably better. 

    I don't think the crowds at London will be beaten anywhere though even Barcelona is well supported. 

    Its a great city, lots to see and do. We went to watch Barcelona the weekend of the race and I was sat in a swimming pool with a drink half an hour after the race!


    I like your style Mark image.

    Fiona: amazing powers of recovery image


    First proper run (with Garmin) this morning. Only 5 miles but legs are definitely fine now. HR still high for pace but I'm used to that. Takes about 3-4 weeks until that goes back to normal.

  • Barcelona was excellent last year. I'd definitely recommend it. Only downside was it got quite hot for the second half. Think it was around 21 degrees on the day. Great city though and really good course. To me it felt slightly flatter than London.

    I'm thinking of signing up for Amsterdam. Any one on here done that one?

  • Am I allowed to say I am happy with the GFAs. image

    Being at the top end of the original age grouping for men and needing to get 3.15 it felt a mile (in real terms actually 2 miles!) away so I thought that if I could keep close to 3.30 right up to 60 years, it would give me a fighting chance next year. Now they have added 15 minutes to it it should provide me with the opportunity to get a GFA

  • TenjisoTenjiso ✭✭✭
    chickadeee wrote (see)
    HR still high for pace but I'm used to that. Takes about 3-4 weeks until that goes back to normal.

    That's just answered a question I had on the tip of my tongue. Thanks! 

  • TenjisoTenjiso ✭✭✭
    JF50 wrote (see)

    Am I allowed to say I am happy with the GFAs. image

    I dare you to start a thread and say that image 

  • OK a race report.

    I must say I was feeling really rather nervous for this one as I had no idea how my body would respond. However, I had no expectations which was quite nice.

    OH offered to drive me to the start which meant we didn't have to leave quite so early so set off at about 7:40 as had to collect my race number.  Parking at the Stadium of Light was easier that expected and meant that I could sit in the warm car for a while. Ambled round the outside of the stadium to collect number and hit by a gale force wind (or so it seemed).  As I went to the race info all the metal fencing to keep the spectators off the course blew over. Not a good start. It was also freezing especially with the wind chill factor. Got number and back to the car to sort it out.  Thankfully I had decided to wear my thermal tights and baselayer that I've trained in all winter as I knew it wasn't supposed to be a scorcher.

    Both of us then braved the elements to put my bag in the storage area as my OH wasn't going to wait for me, I was making my own way home. Dumped that, not very secure I must say; despite the race info saying it would be for runners only everyone was packed in there to try to stay out of the wind as the baggage areas were just in the bottom of the stand.  Went to the loo -absolutely no queue what so ever which was amazing. image

    Then had to hang about for a bit trying to keep warm before going to the race pens.  This is where I have my only complaint. The race info said that all runners were to go to a specific car park for the start 20 mins before.  Except there were cars in said car park and none of the marshals seemed to think we were going there - hopeless. So back to the start line where they were putting up rough times on the fence at 9:20 and in we all crowded.  I decided to place myself somewhere in front of half way between sub 3:30 and sub 4:30 thinking that most people would overestimate and also the HM runners were starting in the same place. (as it happens this was a good choice).

    Everyone was frozen waiting for the off and I wore my bin bag for the first couple of miles with my hands tucked inside to keep them warm.  The first few miles were largely downhill and I had set off a bit fast at 8:50 per mile, but decided to go with it as I fully expected to have to walk anyway and thought this would give me a bit of a cushion.  The first half was mostly flat and largely sheltered from the wind so wasn't too bad and there was a lot of crowd support on this bit.

    I was using the same gel plan as last week so took water from the first station at 4 ish miles. The water was in pouch things which I have never used before so it took me a while to figure out how to open the damn thing. I think I eventually did it correctly at about 23 miles!

    The first half continued like this with all sub 9 minute miles and some as fast as 8:35 especially if they were mainly downhill. I had started to feel my quads at about 10K and was worried that I'd be walking soon but wanted to push on to at least halfway.  Through 13 miles and back past the stadium where the HM left us and the numbers dwindled dramatically.   Brief thoughts of why didn't I just enter the half ... but pushed on, noticed I did 13.1 miles in 1:54:xx which was rather faster than London, but still feeling OK.  By now I was mostly running on my own as the runners spread out and I didn't see many women.  I was still comfortable at the sub 9 m/m and was passing people all the time.  In miles 13-16 I apparently did a sub 8 m/m according to my Garmin, but I'm not sure I believe it.  This was an undulating bit around Sunderland University with a lot of up and down and rough paths along the dock area but still I

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