Grant & Stone Wycombe Half-Marathon

Recently decided to dust off my running trainers after a while of eating takeaways, drinking Strongbow and just having a generally decent life! However, decided to do a few halves in the summer, starting with this one so that it gives me an incentive to get fit. 

Hopefully people will come along (I know a few expressed an interest), and we can arrange a pub lunch, beer garden, and it may be a nice sunny day.  Bring the family!

Who is going to join me??! image

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Comments

  • Shall I book a table for two?  Candles?
  • Stevie  GStevie G ✭✭✭✭

    I'm in, but only for the 10k this year!

    After doing Maidenhead 10miler in blazing heat the other day, I'm keeping things 10k and under for the forseeable!

    Still...have done the half 6 times at Wycombe, so if anyone needs an indepth analysis let me know!

    Otherwise, see a few of you on the day!

  • I shall be most likely there.

    image

  • MrsK8MrsK8 ✭✭✭

    Stevie, you can't wimp out & go for the 10k! Maidenhead was awful for me too but I planning on still giving the half ago.

    Coops, stay away from me!

  • runlozrunrunlozrun ✭✭✭
    I may be able to drop in for a shandy afterwards image
  • Stevie  GStevie G ✭✭✭✭

    image K8greene, I can and will.

     i learnt last year that shoe horning in a half marathon when I'm in the middle of  training for a 5k series doesn't do any favours!

    Therefore, the next 3months will be a 5miler, 4 5ks and a 10k.

    Unless you're a very good runner, I think you can expect to lose 5mins from your pb course on this one. Genius mixture of a steep mile long hill in the first 1 1/4miles, potential to be a blazing hot day, and a 100feet incline over the last 6miles  makes it a real doozie of a courseimage

    I came out 5 1/2mins slower than what I'd done just 5months earlier at Wokingham last year...

  • BookyBooky ✭✭✭

    Stevie G . wrote (see)

    Genius mixture of a steep mile long hill in the first 1 1/4miles, potential to be a blazing hot day, and a 100feet incline over the last 6miles  makes it a real doozie of a courseimage

    Well I was considering it until I read that image

    What's the 10K like?

  • Pah, who cares about times!  It'll be a laugh!  Use it (like I am) as a training run in nice weather to beat your pb at a different race.  The elements will only make you stronger for it (if you don't collapse)....
  • Sarah the 10k starts out on the same route as the half so has the mile steep hill after the first 1/4 mile - it is a killer!  It skips a bit of the later climbing but it's not a fast course by any stretch.  I also found it quite congested in places last year.

    I probably won't do it this year, although might keep my options open on the 10k as I'm concentrating on tri this summer and that may also be a weekend I go away.

  • MrsK8MrsK8 ✭✭✭

    Stevie - I came out 20 mins slowerthe my PB at Maidenhead & that was flat image

    Is it too late to change to the 10k? I'll probably take the same amount of time to do that then the others doing the half so at least we'll all be at the pub for the same time image

     Coops10 wrote (see)

     The elements will only make you stronger for it (if you don't collapse)....


    I was pretty tempted at the 2 races I did over Easter & that was only in April, imagine what it's gonna be like mid-July image

  • Stevie  GStevie G ✭✭✭✭

    You can change between races on the day I'm sure.

    Last 3 years have actually been fairly decent weather for July.

    I had a 5year spell from 2002 to 2006 doing the half and at least 3 of those years were absolutely blistering heat, with the other 2 years just warm!

    Did the 10k in 08, and 09, and I remember how the usual nerves before a race weren't there, as I was glad I wasn't doing the half image. Came back to the half last year, and despite my highest ever placing in a half (16th) I knew I should have been a couple of mins quicker, and was disturbed to lose 5 1/2mins from my pb!

    The 10k takes the same route as the half for the first 5k, and then you have a gentle incline but very short couple of hundred metres, then a 3/4mile downhill bit to rampage down.

    In 2009 they completely bungled the 10k finish. I was in a pack competing for 5th place with 2 others, and a key marshall wasn't in place. I went the right way, they went  the wrong way. I went from thinking I'd benefit from this, to being gutted to see a few people who'd been behind me emerging ahead of me with about 200metres to go! I had to kill myself to beat one of them, and come a meagre 9th!

    At least I'd done the full distance though...it'd be worthless if you were one of the people who didn't run the full course. Apparently only me and the actual winner in the top ten did the full course!

    Could have been really bad if the winner hadn't had such a big lead. The results show about 30secs different, but in reality it should have bene 90+

  • Stevie G . wrote (see)

    Still...have done the half 6 times at Wycombe, so if anyone needs an indepth analysis let me know!

    Stevie G, can you give a few thoughts on this. You have run the half a few times and know it is slow, you say by about 5 odd minutes cf Wokingham, but you still run it. Why? I guess it is a local race but there are others round at the same time.

    I have exactly the same issue, if I heaved a stone from my front garden I could almost hit the runners at the end of the first big hill and my wife is constantly saying I should do this half as it is local and organised by a club I have run for in the past. Same day is MK half and that has to be flatter and faster.

  • Stevie  GStevie G ✭✭✭✭

    Simply because it's so close Philip. Wouldn't feel right, being fit and not taking part really. In 2007 I was injured so couldn't take part and that felt quite bad.

    Luckily They do the 10k option now, which I will be taking, as last year I was doing a stack of 5ks, and then shoe horned this half in, which despite being my course record, was 5 1/2mins down on my overall best!

    Having said that, I reckon the really good runners might only lose 2mins on their bests.

    I'm just a bit weak of mind, and when I know that pb chance is slipping away I can let it go a bit image

    I wouldn't bother doing another race on the same day...after all we all know the peril of mid July racing!

    ps Handy Cross ex member then Philip?

  • Stevie G . wrote (see)

    Simply because it's so close Philip. Wouldn't feel right, being fit and not taking part really. In 2007 I was injured so couldn't take part and that felt quite bad.

    Luckily They do the 10k option now, which I will be taking, as last year I was doing a stack of 5ks, and then shoe horned this half in, which despite being my course record, was 5 1/2mins down on my overall best!

    ps Handy Cross ex member then Philip?


    Which 5ks are you doing, I guess the summer series round and abouts?

    I am ex-Handy Cross (and ex many other clubs as well). I wound back my running in my 30's and my eldest started taking track seriously so while I was on a lull I resigned from Handy Cross and served my sentence and joined Wycombe Phoenix. Had a few good years there on the track and country, really enjoyable, but now need more races than a track and cross country seaosn provide so back onto the road. I am thinking about joining another local club as second claim, Striders any good?

  • Stevie  GStevie G ✭✭✭✭

    Lovely little club, and if you've wound back from your top competitive days, may sound just the ticket for you.

    Load of events from 5ks to xcs to road races, so plenty to get involved with. I don't get along too much to the sessions, but do most of the races, so we'd welcome you aboard.

    Yeah usual 5k series...but won't do the 5k on the Rye....ironic really compared to my comments on the wycombe 10k/half image  With so many in such a short time, and the one on the Rye being 2 whole laps of the park, and a lap round the back, it really is mentally hard work, having run on that route so many millions of times!

  • Stevie  GStevie G ✭✭✭✭

    ps having read about your past times on your forum info bit, very impressive, and beyond the decent level you modestly claim!

    Would be interesting to tap your obviously big knowledge on how to run some pretty fast times.

  • Stevie G . wrote (see)

    Would be interesting to tap your obviously big knowledge on how to run some pretty fast times.


    If I knew I woudl help, but it is a mystery to me. I just started running and I was fast, quite literally so. I entered the school cross country in the sxith form and won with practically no running before so went on and di more cross country at school, university and in the army, with soem messign about in the summer. I then joined a club at work and trained at lunchtimes and then got pulled into a running club and started track and road races and it has all gone on from there.

    Have you got a list of the dates of the 5k series, doesn't seem to be much detail on http://www.marlowstriders.co.uk/msdb/?page_id=6179

  • Thinking of doing this for my first HM. Although it looks tuff I think I'd enjoy the challange. I'm also signed up for Basingstoke HM in October which I hear it pretty hilly too.

     Should I give this a shot or go for an easier one? 

  • Trippr, if you are going to do more than one half then this is a good first one. It is a bit tough but not too much and the hills are at the start so not only do  you get a flat finish but any tendency to go too fast at the start is slowed down or at leats becomes a bit of credit touse downhill. Besides which, if you do this then you are almost certain to PB on the next one.

    There is a course map or you can find older runnings people have logged e.g. http://connect.garmin.com/activity/40879195

  • I have made an approximate route using gmap pedometer http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=4528649 which does not go into the private grounds of the Abbey if you want to run round it as a tester.
  • Thanks for the advice Philip. I'm pretty sure i'll give this a go for my first HM.

    So far i've ran a max of 10mile while training at average pace of about 9.20. This was a pretty comfortable pace and could of gone further but did not wnat to over do it.

    I want to improve this dramatically over the coming months and in to next year. I have entered the ballot for both Brighton and London so fingers crossed.

  • Trippr wrote (see)

    Thanks for the advice Philip. I'm pretty sure i'll give this a go for my first HM.

    So far i've ran a max of 10mile while training at average pace of about 9.20. This was a pretty comfortable pace and could of gone further but did not wnat to over do it.

    I want to improve this dramatically over the coming months and in to next year. I have entered the ballot for both Brighton and London so fingers crossed.


    Trippr, there is a world of difference between a full and a half marathon. I don't know much about you, and feel free to ignore this, it is generic, but once you are in reasonable shape a 13 mile run is fairly straight forward. If you are going to do a full marathon then each and every week of your training will involve running this distance or further: indeed in 16 weeks of my training I did 19 runs longer than 13 miles.

    If you are looking at London and Brighton next year then you have plenty of time to build up so take it sensibly and carefully and avoid injury (if it hurts stop and get it checked, don't push trhrough) and get into a mindset where a half is a training run and sometimes you race them but you know you can finish, it is just a case of how fast and not if.

  • Stevie  GStevie G ✭✭✭✭

    Just a note on the wycombe half course, many find the 100feet incline over the last 6miles harder than the actual mile hill at the start image

    Mix in some raw heat in mid July, and this course becomes an absolute stonker.

    Agree with Philip on one thing though, a half is a world apart from a marathon. You can get round a half nicely training up to 9-10miles, but for a marathon you're looking at getting up to 20miles quite often.

    This is the reason I've done 19 halfs and 0 marathons image

  • Thanks again for all your advice.

    I'm very new to running. I started last summer but never run often enough to feel the difference in fitness. In the winter months of last year I joined the gym and started running 3/4 times a week. About 5/6mile max. In march this year I started running back on the road and have not stopped since. Over the past two months I try not to rest more than 2 days a week.

     My PB 5 mile is 38.04 which I managed last week.
    I've also joined a running club and will be going to my 2nd session tonight and I've started some interval, fartlek and hill's into my weekly training. Not just plan ol running.

    I understand that 13 miles should be of no problem once I start my program for a full marathon and also having to go up to 20. That's why I want to get a few HM under my belt and will be looking at entering more in the near future and incorporate them into my marathon training. 

     To be honest I feel I could run 13.1m now already. After my 10m runs I don't feel too tired and my legs feel fine. I really just worry about pulling something and have the time to train slow and well. 

     What would your advice be on getting my longer runs up to a better speed? I'd be happy with around 9min miles for 10/13 and even longer distance. Maybe I'm underestimating myself and could do better then 9m.m? 

     Sorry for the hijack of this thread. image 

  • Trippr, at the moment there are so many unknowns that anything has to be a guess. If I blindly put 5 miles in 38:04 into a pace calculator such as http://www.mcmillanrunning.com/mcmillanrunningcalculator.htm then it says a half in 1:46 at 8:06 and full in 3:44 at 8:33. All these numbers come with caveats, if you were to toe the line for a marathon today you would not finish running so 3:43 will not happen: it means if you train for a marathon and knock off a few 20 milers and then are still running 38:04 for 5 miles then 3:44 may be possible.

    The basic idea with long runs in training is to do them at a slower pace than you plan to race, probably 90 seconds a mile slower. If you take some of the numbers above, then this means running your long runs at about 10 m/m so if you ar egoign at 9:20 now then the pace is fine. This may soudn odd but belive me it works. What you will do is get your body used to running for a longer time. This way, if you run for 22 miles it will take you 220 minutes or 3 hours 40 which is abou thte time you may do the marathon in. (I get a little fuzzy round these times as there is also some cut off and you are not supposed to run slow for more than 3 hours I think so you may have to limit yourself to 18 miles.)

    If you want faster runs, these are the shorter runs and come race day the speed and the endurance all magically come together.

    Note that you want to run a lot if you are marathon training and that is not necessarily running half marathon races: you need to run a lot of these on your own or in a group on Sundays. The races are useful to get an idea of how fast to try the full.

    There are a whole load of forums with focus on specific times such as sub 3, sub 3:15, sub 3:30 etc so if you have an idea of the bracket you are aimign at, pop into one of these forums.

  • MrsK8MrsK8 ✭✭✭
    So Stevie, you definitely doing the 10k?
  • The first hill is one of the hardest I've encountered in a half. Took me until mile 3 to recover properly, from memory. I will probably do MK this year (same day), purely because I fancy a PB. Nice course otherwise though.
  • Hi again guys.

    I was wondering if there were any showers around anywhere I could use after the race? Maybe a local gym or pool? I'll be coming down with my partner and my baby daugther and wanted to spend some time after the race taking a look around etc.

    Cheers

    Rob 

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