no official result

I've run VLM yesterday, and my watch showed 3.30.02 as my result. However it is not showing in the results, but my name is there. I called the Marathon Office and they will look at the video and give me a gun result. It is very important for my GFA entry that I should have it.

The reason that I am posting is that I checked other people's times and there are LOTS of people without an official result. You can see, if you don't put any specific name in and search, there are at least a couple of people on each page. The woman at the marathon office said it is because I didn't register my chip, which I did. Also, she said I was the only one calling regarding this, which I am very surprised as lots of people are listed without a time.

«1

Comments

  • WilkieWilkie ✭✭✭

    I think the list also includes people who had a place, but didn't actually run.

    Certainly, someone I know didn't run is listed, with no result.

  • Oh, I see. That makes more sense. Probably that's why the marathon office didn't have all those people calling and demanding a chip time.

    It is still a bit dissapointing, though. I will have a gun time but no break down of my pace. Never mind, better than no result.

  • I don't know if your run can ever be verified without chip readings to proove you crossed all the points including start and finish. The was a lady once who turned up in first place after getting off the New York subway. I'm not saying that is your case but who knows?
  • Weird. Your chip must have worked at the expo ? Don't the program it to your race number and scan it to make sure it works ?

    Hope you get it sorted.
  • Sussex Runner - the lady at the marathon office took my details and they will check the videos and give me a time. At least that's what she said and I damn hope this is the case as I need it for my GFA place.

    I know what you mean,though. I don't know how they can prove that I didn't cheat. There will be official photos of me racing and my finish time is consistent to previous years', but still.

    Cougie - it did work at the expo. The guy skanned it and my name showed up on his screen. I remember because he double checked my name (i have a foreign name)

  • Same thing happened to me 4 years ago Edith. I gave them the time I thought I went through the finish and they checked via video footage. Hopefully, as you finished 3.30 you were in pen 3 or 4 so it only took you a couple of minutes to go over the start line so have not list much time from the chip
  • You are not the only person whose chip didn't work. Spoons who posts on the 3:30 thread had the same problem,
  • So did I.  Out of about 18 runners from my club, (Northampton road runners) 3 of us didn't get a chip time. Bloody annoying and I wonder if  VLM are being honest about the amount of failed chips?.  I passed the 3.56 marker about a mile from the end,  but I was hardly going any faster so do I claim  3.55?, and have no idea of splits as I don't like to check time on the way. I was in blue 5, so I guess I'll have to look at the finish line photo and try and deduct how long it took blue 5's to get over the start line?. I'm gutted.
  • need for speed - did you and your club mates contact the marathon office? They will look at the footage for you and work out your time, however if you started from blue 5 it must have taken quite some time to cross the start line so your official result won't be great. As you say it is very annoying. I sort of checked my time throughout but it is hard for me to remember as I concentrate so much on the race. I love looking at my split times after the race and analyze my pacing.

    There are lots of people listed on the results page without any time attached but apparently I am the only one who called the office.

    Hornchurch Hammer - that's right, it took me a mere 35 second-ish to go through so my they will find me easily on the footage. Also, the green start is not as congested as the others and runners go through very quickly.

    When I stopped my watch it was 3.30.02 and I was wondering that maybe my chip time would be just under 3.30. Now I will never find out. I would be gutted if they didn't recognize it as GFA

  • Edith

    I called the VLM office yesterday morning and they they asked me to phone back as their database was down, so that's at least two of us reported it. Heaven knows how many failed?  I'll phone again today and report back.

  • E mmyE mmy ✭✭✭
    Hi Edith - I hope that they sorted it out. When they registered my chip at the expo they made a check to make sure that it had registered. Did they do this for you?
  • Edith

     I have lost my official time sadly. I just phoned the VLM office again and they said it's tough luck, my chip couldn't have registered when i crossed the line. They took my details and said they would give me a finishing time from a photo but the time it took to cross the line is down to me!.  It's anyones guess, I can't remember?. Was it 3mins, 5 mins, 7 mins?.  I was about two thirds back in blue pen 5 if anyone knows how long that took?.

    All that training fundraising and effort and I haven't even got an accurate time, sickening.

  • Emmy - when I registered the guy scanned it and my name and some more info popped up on his screen. He double checked my name (I assume because my name is slightly not what you expect).

    So I know that my chip got registered. It is nothing that I did or failed to do that caused this. And I am feeling very stressed out now because it is paramount to my GFA place. I run it every year because I run under the required time andnow  I am worried that I won't have a place for next year.

    Also, my name was up on the results list but had no time attached. Not it has been pulled down. However my photos has started to upload on maratonfoto, so it is pretty clear I didn't cheat.

    Sorry for the rant but I always took it granted that my time and pacing will be available and I feel like an outsider now, as if I had been erased from the race, if  it makes sense.

  • As your chip didn't register a time for any of the 5K splits, it probably completely failed sometime between the check at the expo and Sunday morning. That can happen if the chip is passed through a strong magnetic field or exposed to strong microwaves. Presumably nothing you did intentionally, but there's lots of magnets around whilst riding on escalators, or placing the chip next to a TV/speakers.

    Maybe there needs to be a way to confirm the chip still works at Greenwich on Sunday morning, although the queues for the toilets are long enough without another queue for chip checks. It probably makes sense to keep the tag away from possible magnetic sources until Sunday morning, e.g. don't wear it on your shoes whilst traveling on the underground.

    As you're clearly on the photos, hopefully VLM will make a special case for a GFA entry for next year.
  • Edith, if you run every year inside the GFA time then last year's time will still be valid for entry next year.
  • Dave, I actually thought about that but I have already used last year's result to get a place in 2012 and I am worried that it may not be accepted for the second time. Mind you, probably they don't check such things as far as the result is from 2011 or 2012.

  • need for speed - I was in blue pen 5 and started not far from the 3:56 pacer - we crossed the line at about the same time and it took about 4 minutes if that helps.
  • Edith, you can use the same time twice no problem.  I can't be certain, but I'm pretty sure I've done that in the past.  As long as it's from a marathon in 2011 or 2012, as you say.  Don't panic!

  • NicChip

    that does help and probably knocks another min' from my time?. Do you know your gun time was?

  • Sorry, didn't look at the clock as I finished - wasn't in a good place! But, I did check the clock at each checkpoint and was always 4 mins ahead of what was displayed.

  • I too have no official time recorded - just rung the vlm office and the girl said the chip had probably failed "due to the huge number of chips in use" ???  they would look at the finish line footage and post me a time MINUS the 25 mins it took to cross the start line (I was in blue pen 9) so I'm fairly happy with that. I did all the splits on my own watch so I know what I did!! Interesting theory with the magnets though.
  • WardiWardi ✭✭✭
    Just a thought.. if the VLM people have had a few problems like this it they are going to be up to their eyes in it for a few days, perhaps a little patience is needed.  One of my club girlies ran a 3:14 championship qualifying time a few years ago.  She was correctly chipped but they still studied camera footage to make sure it wasn't a man in a girl's number.  It took about 10 days before her time was confirmed.
  • Wardi - are you saying that her chip failed, yet the officials granted her the 3.14 championship time based on the footage? That is good news and you are right patience is needed. However it is strange not to be included on the finishers' list, my family was actually quite worried about me when they didn't see my time.

    Interesting theory about the magnets and telly, however I was nowhere near a tube station or television on the day before the run. It might have been something else, though.

  • I did notice that some people had the odd 5k split missing. Do you think they bought a load of chips that were a bit duff. If chips are the way forward, and they certainly are for big events like this, then they need to be more reliable. I can fully understand how people can be pissed off but I can't really understand why you wouldn't have your own watch as back up.
  • I think they bought the chips from the pound shop this year!!  I've never heard of so many failing. I don't like to run with a watch and still want an official time anyway, and it's great looking at your splits and learning from them for next time. I've lost all that this year. There should be a back up timer somehow? or some accurate way of knowing how long it took you to cross the start line, at least you would have an official time then even if the chip failed?
  • alkialki ✭✭✭

    Edith - you can definitiely use the same time twice to enter London

    I got my GFA place this year based on my time from two years ago - I was injured last year and just missed the qualifying time.

  • alki wrote (see)

    Edith - you can definitiely use the same time twice to enter London

    I got my GFA place this year based on my time from two years ago - I was injured last year and just missed the qualifying time.

    imageimage
  • StrayceltStraycelt ✭✭✭
    Edith, last time I gfa'd got automatic for the next two years so you should be okay. Look on the web-site and the instructions are there with the regs so you should be okay
  • Yepeee,

    Not only my result is now up on the marathon results list but actually they must have found my chip because I have all my split times. On top of that I came in just under 3.30

    Did everyone else get theirs sorted?

  • Edith

    No, I haven't and I phoned the marathon office yesterday and all they will say is that they will look at the footage and let me know in two to three weeks?. They said there is only a very small number of chips that didn't register with the start mat strips. As it's their fault and a very small number of us , it wouldn't hurt to give us either a place in next years marathon or at least some sort of discount if we do get in through the ballot, but their attitude on the phone is  ''we don't really give a stuff!''. I haven't even had an apology.

Sign In or Register to comment.