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Fancy achieving a world record at the London Marathon ?
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I saw this and thought of you all
No idea if it's them?
Can't remember much about the caterpiller - they were 2 abreast and walking at mile 17 - walking very slowly I might add.
If that's what you want to do then fine, it's not running a marathon though is it.
I passed them at the toilets near mile 6. They were trying to exit the toilet area but it was very busy and nobody was of a mind to move aside for them. The front of it edged its way out just in front of me and as I went past some of the middle segments were bitching about the amount of toilet stops and surely everyone could go at the same time
7 hrs 40............thats a long time to be chained to a bunch of strangers...........
7hrs 40 isn't running. I've walked faster Ironman marathons than that. Not chained to anyone though - obviously - although if anyone does want to tow me round a lake in Germany I'd be up for it.
I got a Gold Bond entry through a charity associated through my employer. I'd missed out on the ballot but desperately wanted to run. I ran through the ballot 10 years ago as a wet behind the ears 19 year old. I scraped round in 5hrs 21minutes. The furthest in training back then was 9miles, I thought that natural youth would see me through... stupid. Hated every single stride as I was run-walking for the last 11 miles.
Anyways, on to this year. I'd been running a bit towards the end of the last year, but stepped things up on January 1st. I joined my local running club, met some great people, read all that I could, learned about different runs and their merits, entered some organised races in Feb and March and felt prepared to RUN the RACE. Not 'DO' 'THE' Marathon. Massive difference think.
I stated a time of 4hrs when I applied with the charity in the middle of last year.
I ended up in Pen 6 at the Red start.
I had a time in my head of 3hrs 45minutes, though I'd told people that 'Sub 4' was the goal. I actually felt that I could run under 3:45 if the weather was kind.
I ran 3hrs 49mins.
I'm a bit dissappointed.
I fought traffic along the whole route to about mile 20+ maybe (Things genuinely do remain a blur). I felt the heat killed me, but the people with 4hr wristbands on and charity vests, walking, from so early on, 7 miles in some cases. The numbers getting quite silly at 14miles+...
Why? Why does that happen? I ran left and right so much, I bumped into people that would grab a drink from a station then stop and walk to drink it, right in the flow of traffic, people were walking 2 and 3 abreast in lower docklands. I don't get it.
I also fail to see what point I'm making... Maybe it's that Charity places are all well and good, fancy dress has a place if it raises lots of money, but why is it not still a running RACE?
Imagine if you could could only start in Pens 1 and 2 (or 3 if needed) if you could meet a certain Half Marathon time qualifying standard. People actually running as per their starting position.
I know I'm a Marathon virgin (I figure 2001 was just silly and doesn't count) but it cant be that hard to keep people happy. Why couldn't all runners with a proven time, 3 months in advance of the expo, go off from the Blue start 15 minutes before the Red? Problem solved.
It really could work for everyone. Prattish people in a conga line can dance around like clowns for 7 hours behind me, hell, I'll watch them from the pub, but it does need to be a running race first and foremost.
In 4 short months I went from entrant to racer. I raced the clock, I beat it, and I'll do so again. I loved the crowds, the noise, the whole atmosphere. I loved my training runs - 20 miles at GALE Valley was brilliant - but London, our Capital City, with nothing but happiness and excitement in the air, people just positive for once... we really need to cherish that and not just accept it as just 'something', it's pretty amazing people...
I dont know how to close, but I'll give one example of how the crowd works for all those saying that the crowd is only there for the fancy dressed folks...
If two runners (non athletes) in vests and singlets, race for the line, people cheer. They cheer both runners to squeeze every single last drop from their bodies and applaud as they cross the line as the clock just ticks short of 3hrs.
If two fund raisers race for the line, one dressed as a womble, the other as a chicken, people smile, they laugh, then clap.
Those are not the same thing, don't ever think otherwise.
Cheers for anyone that stuck with all of that.
Well apparently it was a record. Only 47 of them though.
Marathon records
At the bottom is a whole list of records set on the day, most of them of dubious worth, but a few good ones. Fastest married couple: 5h 37m 36s - combined time. Fastest marathon carrying 60 lb pack, etc.
Brilliant post Lee, and well done for Sunday for a great time, even though not quite what you'd hoped for.
This thread has engrossed me for the past hour or so.... another +1 to what Parkrunfan, and others, have already said.
I noticed the GWR lady at the finish on Sunday (there may have been several GWR people, I dont know) and she seemed to be processing world record claimants like a McDonalds employee dishing out cheeseburgers and milkshakes.......then again, is there really that much difference?
(Except in Philpub's case of course, which was a fine example of athletic endeavour at the extreme of human capability.
)
Phil - is it just something that I've imagined or does the level of scrutiny, and hence number of hoops to jump through, increase the more worthy the record?
As an example, Mutai's WR? yesterday wont count even though the running world will all unofficially class him as the fastest marathon runner ever.
But, you could have a world record for most consecutive weeks in which a marathon has been run and they probably wouldnt care as long as 26.2 miles have been run at some point in the week - which means that basically all of us could claim a run of 10 years+.
I was being serious about yours being a genuine world record - it would take quite some organisation to get a good enough group together, fitting in with each of their training schedules, to have a crack at it - you may be a world record holder for some time.
Ah, unfortunately the record went the next year, smashed by a group of crack triathletes I believe. Looking up the record just now I see there is one for a team of people running on a treadmill wearing high heels. FFS! Is there a miimum level of silliness and specific obscurity required to start these things off? What's to stop me inviting someone from Guinness round to witness me setting the world record for number of press-ups in a minute whilst wearing yellow socks and humming the national anthem?
I'm serious!
Little I read online gives me as much pleasure to think that these morons were bickering amongst themselves about the timing of their toilet breaks.
"Ah for fucks sake, the guy at the front wants a shit now - why didn't he go a mile back when Doris near the back had to empty her colostomy bag?"
If you had the time of inclination you could work out a system where every finisher could have broken a world record of some sort. It's fuckin' moronic.
Ah well, my comment still stands that it would take quite some doing to beat it.........
I dont know - they stopped all the eating records due to the fact it was encouraging unhealthy practices (It did take something like 15 years to come to the conc;usion that eating a light aircraft might not quite fit in with NHS dietary guidelines though
) but I dont think there are any limits on depth of silliness.
Maybe you should test them out. And while you've got the there you may as well do the red sock version as well and become a multiple world record holder.
Lee - best stream of consciousness I've seen for a while. So true, and so honest.
Oh please is it not obvious that Fred Flintstone and Superman are in different categories because Fred does not wear any pants and superman wears his over his stride, hence why their in different world record categories....some people
Obviusly some distinction between cartoon and comic strips
I saw the catepillar walking on the BBC coverage
(spinning in grave record currently held by Aaaron P Rickenbacker of Ohio)
I know superman started as a comic strip but there has been a cartoon too. Can't say I'm loosing sleep over it, just seems a bit random.
I used to be good at doing a Rubik's cube, could do it in just over a minor consistently, doing 100 along the route seems pretty easy to beat.
Did the people in the caterpillar (looked more like people tied together by bits of string, seemed rather feeble compared to the caterpillar from previous years) detach from each other to go into the loos?
More seriously, spending 7hrs 40mins to complete a marathon, if you are not disabled in any way, ie at a pace of 3.4 miles an hour is an insult to the event and everyone who trains seriously for it.
Edited to include the phrase "not disabled in any way"