Comrades 2019

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  • Southern snail...if you decide to do Goodwood can you let me know...we could park our can near you the night before and drive down together
  • Just realised  that I'm already booked that weekend in North wales...still need to find a n autumn marathon
  • 1owrez1owrez ✭✭✭
    Chester's nice seren :)
  • I'm thinking of doing the thames meander in November. Close by and gives me more time to train. Let me know if you're down this way.

    Im not sure how my toe is going to feel running. It still throbs every day :#
    Will try running in a week and see.
  • 1owrez1owrez ✭✭✭

    I think Marty posted his Garmin trace of The Meander last year, there was just one blip from the flatness where he had to hurdle a rowing boat being carried across the path. November onwards will be my qualification space. I will of course look for some drama inducing method to torture myself with prior to dressing up as Uma Thurman from Kill Bill and acing it somewhere localish :)

    Matthew 18:9 - And if your toe causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with nine toes than to have ten toes and be thrown into the fire of hell.

  • marty74marty74 ✭✭✭
    Thats very true lowrez. The Thames Meander was lovely and is run by Dave Ross (UK comrades ambassador) so there are plenty of comrades runners there. Nice race, flat, couple of roads to cross so good for qualifying.

    And lowrez, i'm sure if we put all your posts into a diary like Adrian Mole, it would be a top seller :)
  • DannirrDannirr ✭✭✭
    Hi all.  Ever the optimist, I'll be there next year.  And back at the Hilton.
  • Mac3Mac3 ✭✭✭

    Picking up on Lowrez's theme, here's something from Corinthians, 9:24 (a solid bronze medal).  I'm not sure about losing a toe though!

    The Need for Self-Discipline

    24Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. 25Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. 27No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

  • 1owrez1owrez ✭✭✭

    Wow Mac - that is incredible writing - to think that was first put on a page hundreds of years before Comrades was thought of!

    Thanks Marty :) I haven't made a start on this year's Comrades write-up yet! Can I distract you with this one that @McHilly found:

    http://www.thisishowwerun.com/2018/06/20/comrades-marathon-2018/

    Dannirr - how is the recovery coming? Where are you going to qualify for 2019? Good to hear from you; my Hilton related superstition is massively boosted by your presence :) 

  • 1owrez said:

    Matthew 18:9 - And if your toe causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with nine toes than to have ten toes and be thrown into the fire of hell.

    But I don't think he was referring to a big toe!!

    That was great reading Jackie's report above. I made my daughter read that yesterday. Gives a great insight into Comrades that I don't think my family totally appreciate.

    Mac3
    said:

     27No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.


    Bit massochistic for me  :s


  • 1owrez1owrez ✭✭✭

    SS 18:9 is actually about eyes - I remembered it from a black and white film of HG Wells' The Man with X-Ray Eyes. So, are your shoes big enough? Did you cut the nails dead short and then file them to absolute smooth perfection so nothing would catch, and did you coat them with blistershield, even with that some of my toes still do this so I have experimented with gel toe covers to protect them, still not sure if they work that well.

    I did Glorious Gargrave Marathon today in 5h30m, had planned to jog it, but felt really good and did the first half in 2:20. It was a damned hot day out there though and I ultimately crashed and my pace went out the window, also did a facsimile of my Comrades post race dizziness but with no Terry I sorted it out myself - potatoes, sausage bap with tomato sauce, crisps, water melon, galia melon, grapes, cake and water. Then on the way home to stop me falling asleep at the wheel I stopped at Costa and had a bacon bap and two iced Americanos; love that iced coffee!

    Yeah Jackie done good :)

  • Lowrez & Becca, That’s a very valid point you both make and something to definitely bear in mind. Thanks!
  • marty74marty74 ✭✭✭
    Blimey lowrez, running so far so soon? I just about managed a very slow hours run today. Top work on that food though :)

    And agreed, that blog is a fantastic read. Really sums up the race nicely.
  • 1owrez1owrez ✭✭✭

    Got to keep putting some miles in my legs for C2C Marty - my audacity is boundless - off the terrible base I have I really shouldn't get a result on that. I am reflecting that 5:30 is what I did to get to half way at Comrades and I could easily run on; shows what a difference a measured approach makes - I couldn't have run on today because of the daft early burn I did; mind you it was startlingly hot out there and the support points were more than 3 miles apart. It was on the Leeds-Liverpool canal, mostly trail, some of it horribly rutted with tree roots and jagged rock sticking up, bloody tough for a namby pamby road runner like me -  ground I knew though as I had run it before a couple of years ago - doesn't make it any easier to traverse though.

    I have continued on the food since getting home and just opened the goody bag bottle of beer after cooling it for a good few hours :)

    Well done on your hour of effort :)

  • Lowrez,  what an incredible challenge that C2C looks.   Amazing!  All the best


  • 1owrez1owrez ✭✭✭

    Incredible indeed! Thanks JAR :)

  • hahaha...I can't wait for this released as a blockbuster in the local Cinema!

    I've just registered for Goodwood on 16th September.  Quite soon,  so I certainly won't PB but nice to get qualifying out of the way.    Fairly cheap race at £30 - don't often find those.
  • I wrote this up for my running club website. Like Eric Morecombe I think I got most of the highlights in, just not necessarily in the right order! But hey, it was a long way! http://knowleanddorridgerunningclub.org.uk/comrades-marthon-long-form-journalism-from-a-long-form-race-by-max-pulitzer-mladenovic/ 
  • 1owrez1owrez ✭✭✭

    Max, that was a wonderful read (I am in work holding back the tears) - you should get your Pulitzer too this year :) Pleasure to have stood next to you in that start pen - what an epic first run - can't wait to see what you do for a back to back encore - but lets keep savouring this one :) brilliant writing.   

  • Great read, loved it Max! 
  • jkissanejkissane ✭✭✭
    Just booked a room in the Blue Waters hotel on North Beach just in case I can't resist the urge to head back for the up run next year :smile:  Would be my first time staying in Durban itself so that would mean an opportunity to attend that huge parkrun & maybe catch up with some of you fine people!

    Can cancel it without charge so couldn't see the harm in booking now & actually making my mind up in Sept.

  • Thanks lowrez/JAR!, it was great to see you in the pen too lowrez! next year isn't nailed on yet, I've more or less convinced my better half that she'd love a trip to Durban, but have now discovered we've got a holiday in the Lake District booked that week! Am still trying to muster up the courage to broach the subject of moving/cancelling that one  :#  If I can navigate round that, then I'm torn between an all out assault on 8 hrs (with a ridiculously tough training schedule) or a less rigorous approach with 'marathon training' levels and the aim of clocking in sub-11 for a bronze. I'm leaning very heavily towards the latter  :)
  • Matt..Matt.. ✭✭✭
    Max - Awesome first time run. you have to go back to back and see what you can do on the up.

    I'm in the summer slump, still not run since Comrades. Hotel is booked for next year, just need to navigate renewing my work visa so i'm allowed back into the US after the race.
  • jar, if you can travel down into Kent there's Betteshanger Marathon on Sunday 28 October (an SVN event) - I'll probably be running it. Looking ahead, SVN has a marathon at Dymchurch on New Year's Day, and another marathon at Betteshanger on Saturday 16 February, plus one on Tuesday 26 Feb - Marathon Day Marathon. (For those who don't know, SVN events are small, low-key events, usually on lapped or out-and-back courses. Very friendly, with amazing bling and chocolate-filled goodie bags - including a vegan option).
  • Bike ItBike It ✭✭✭
    Just remember that the Up Run is completely different to the Down Run.  Each has it's own challenges and characteristics.  The Up Run is characterised by around 1000m of ascent to Botha's Hill Village which is at about 38km run.  This is an average gradient of more than 2%, with some notable climbs - particularly the 3km of Fields Hill.

    Once you are over that you still face the 11km from Botha's Hill Village to the far side of Inchanga.  It is very hard running.  At least to me it feels a little tougher than on the Down Run as Inchanga in this direction is challenging.

    If you have previously run the Down and this is your first Up, you thought the first 37km of the Down Run was fairly flat.  On the Up Run what were a small gradients have grown to a huge hills.  Particularly the slow ascent out of Ethembeni School, through Harrision 'Flats' is a difficult 5km.  Then you still need to run a long distance, ascending many small rises, before your can tackle the 2 gatekeeper's to the finish. Little Pollys is a challenge in itself and Big Pollys beats most into a walk.  Then you still have 8km to go from the top of Pollys and if you are chasing a time or medal cutoff even the slowest pace is difficult with many legs at their limit.

    Sound great doesn't it?  I'm already working hard to get back on the road.  I hope to see you all at the finish.  First we have to get to the start.....
  • Mac3Mac3 ✭✭✭
    Bike It - you put the fear of God into everyone with that description!, but rightly so.  It's strange how your brain tries to smooth out those ascents but driving the route again is a strong reminder of what lies ahead.

    Max - a great read, full of the emotions of the day.  Hope you can manage the planning for your back-to-back. 

    JAR - I'm entering a warm-down or is that warm-up Marathon on 21 July in Diever, North Holland (Midzomeravondmarathon) for the princely sum of EUR 12.  It will be a tiny field of about 80 mostly off-road through woods.  Was just thinking that if Lowrez read that as "Diva" he would have already booked the flights, and ordered the outfit :-)  

    JK - hope to see you next year! I like Uhmlanga as a base but I found being in Durban this time closer to the action and convenient for meet-ups.
  • Thanks Debra - I'll check the SVN races out - don't know why they don't come up in my usual searches but that date in October looks good if I don't decide to run the Thames Meander with a friend whose planning his marathon debut.  Also I don't recall if you said Betteshanger has hilly bits?   Chocolate could be the deal-maker. 

    Max - also looking for a solid training block that sets me up for 8hrs but that's only so I have a reasonable enough chance of a sub-9  :)

    Mac3 - that's amazing value - are there any drinks tables included in that?

    Bike-It - you're stirring up emotions here with that! talk  I have to say though I've only run up once in 2015 and there were a few lasting memories....1.by Hillcrest I could really feel the fatigue hitting hard from having run uphill for hours; 2. the gap between 42km to go and 41km seemed to be wrong it was closer to 5km; and 3. the Harrison Flats section up to Cato Ridge was a very dark patch at which time I was thinking about quitting the race the whole time.  I respect the up more than I do the down. 
    Good luck getting fit for 2019 BI -  hope to see you there!


  • Big_GBig_G ✭✭✭
    Posting on this thread for the first time, but I've been lurking on this and the 2018 thread - in no way confirming I'm doing Comrades yet though ;)   

    Just a quick one about marathons is that the 100MC site is a good source of information for events, and there are lots around in the Autumn.  This list is kept up to date regularly, with new events being added fairly frequently.
    https://www.100marathonclub.org.uk/events/

    A bit about me is that I'm currently on a "journey" of sorts in terms of getting a few marathons under my belt (long term aim is to get into the 100MC, but at 39 events I've a long way to go, and as we know anything can happen!).  As well as marathons, I've also done two ultras this year - Dartmoor Discovery (34 hilly miles) and a Running Miles event near Reading (33 flat miles, in the mud).  I was at a wedding earlier this year in Italy, and the groom was South African so he had a few mates/family there, and a couple of them have done Comrades as well as Two Oceans.  Obviously I'm a massive fan of Steve Way and have been looking on in awe of him for a few years so him, combined with the wedding, is what has made me very interested in Comrades.  Well, I've always been interested in it, but now I find myself at least considering a cunning plan to get out there.  Not sure if it'll be next year though, but hopefully one year.
  • Welcome Big_G,   thanks for the link to the 100MC race list.  That has appeared on one of the older Comrades threads but it's a very timely reminder,  much appreciated!

    I also think Steve Way is an inspirational guy and for years I wondered if he'd even heard of Comrades so I'm pleased that he's now taking part and doing very well. 

    If you're thinking about joining us in 2019 it's fair to warn you that entries went relatively quickly last year - normally 's not much of a risk but I do wonder about those who missed out last year and the fact that so many novices from 2018 will want a B2B medal
  • Mac3Mac3 ✭✭✭
    Big_G - welcome.  All I can say is make it happen!  You've a solid base under your belt and already completed a few ultras.  As for cunning plan, it's a great place to go for a holiday afterwards if you need to convince a partner!  Read Max's post (link above) which gives a perfect account of the race.  Sir Steve's post Comrades interview on the Marathon Talk podcast was excellent.  He said he will be back until he doesn't have a gold medal to collect!

    JAR - it's a 4 lap looper where you can choose to do 10/20/30/marathon, and the drinks are after each loop.  I did a Winter race here last December which had some undulations (surprising for the Netherlands) but wet and muddy.  Conditions underfoot should be a lot better in July.  Other interesting aspect is it's a 5pm start. You have to keep your wits about you as it's easy to miss a direction arrow particularly on the later loops where the field thins out.  I had to back track a bit last year. 


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