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VLM 2014 Good For Age
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I ran 3.07 last week, I am 40 years old. I will be 41 by the time the 2014 race comes round. They have changed the GFR time to 3.05 for 18-40. Is it your age when you run your time or your age at the time of the race the qualifying time goes by?
It is your age on marathon day that decides which age band applies; any result over the previous 2 years (I think, need to check bit?) counts - but from what you posted you're 2 minutes over anyway...
It's his age on marathon day which counts which means that his GFA time for 2014 is 3:15 (he'll be 41 by then). So he's in.
Full changes are documented here:
As that's too small to read, try here:
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=548498095202699&set=a.504526936266482.131483.480765925309250&type=1&ref=nf
I wonder why the first age group is 18-40 and not 18-39 which would be more consistent with the other age groups?
Also the site doesn't say when the GFA time has to be achieved (like in the last 2 calendar years which is what it's been for the last few VLMs), so maybe that's something else they might change? So for Boston it has to have been achieved in the 18 months prior to the race, so effectively the time for any race only counts for one Boston entry (assuming the race is held only once a year). With London you've been able to count a time for two years.
I cannot believe they just did this to me. I ran 3:48 in Amsterdam in October and have thought for the past 6 months that I've run a GFA time, only for them to change it on me now. My next marathon is in 3 weeks and I've lost 10 weeks of training due to a serious illness so it's actually dangerous for me to push it and try for sub 3:45 now. I"m not too proud to say that I just sobbed into my cornflakes this morning.
This is a cruel, cruel thing for the organisers to do to its runners.
Cheerful Dave you have cheered me up today. Thanks for confirming.
I still think it is wrong that they change the GFA after the prior years race. I know a number of people who paced their race based on the GFA times. Some people may say if they could have ran faster they should have but from personal experience this year I did not want to go all out for a sub 3, end up falling apart at 19 - 20 miles and coming home with a 3.15 - 3.20 or worse. I had planned for months to target a GFA this year and then carry on the training and if I achieved the GFA go for the sub 3 next year.
I'm still officially very BFA
It does now: "please note the times must have been achieved since the 1st of January 2012". There's nothing on the age on day of the race thing, but that's the way it's always been and I can't think of any reason why they'd change it.
In the past, changes have always been after the previous race. In the start pen of my first LM, having qualified GFA with 3:15, I heard rumours that it might change to 3 hours for the next year. Which it did, after I missed out on sub 3 that year. But in those days the GFA cut off was in September and the ballot closed in July or thereabouts, so much more time to sort out a qualifying race.
Cheerful Dave - I'm 50 on race day next year. Can I take it that Sub 3:20 will now be good enough when I run my marathon on 12 May or will I still need to run 3:15 because I'm still only 49?
DS2, if the rules stay unchanged from previous years then as long as you turn 50 on or before 13th April 2014 then your required GFA time is sub 3:20, to be run after 1st Jan 2012 regardless of your age when you ran that GFA time.
There is that 'if' though. There's a number on the VLM website to call with questions (0207 902 0200). I don't imagine you'll be the first one asking them that today.
Thanks CD - I may be the first who is actually 50 on the day though!!!
Lets hope nothing else changes!!!
Me too Ten!
I am gutted! I went for sub 4.15 this year a s good for age and today they are showing sub 4 and a change in the age group. I feel so sick and I didnt enter the ballot either. Stuff VLM , I will do another one next year.
squirrely, I also feel like crying...
they have changed mine too - ran a 3:06 for GFA at berlin and it was 3:10 but now its been changed to 3:05..gutted. Any good summer marathons out there that a flat as a pancake?
please sign the following petition
www.avaaz.org/en/petition/Give_the_London_marathon_good_for_age_times_one_year_grace/?LncFeb&pv=4
done it - really peeved i had a time to aim for and got it, now they have changed it with no time to try again - not sure what the thinking for it is other than to just annoy as many people as possible
thanks for that Alan, just signed
andy me too, I just went into my age category (as it was) so the obvious thing was to try for that time and I followed a schedule and achieved it, to have this happen now is just cruel. If it had been sub 4 I would have tried and had I have failed I would have entered the ballot! My bubble has truly burst.
Just signed. A period of grace should be allowed for all those unfairly affected. Thankfully, the changes are in my favour so I've got an extra 5 minutes but I would be furious in the position some of you are.
Good luck!
I'm so lucky I had a good day at the office last week. I feel gutted for everyone that trained for a sub 3.10 and have now missed out. That would have been me last year.
Its really poor of VLM to do this to people without any prior warning.
After watching the TV coverage, where after the elites finished they went back to see the 6hr runners going over Tower Bridge, I doubt the organisers give a toss about the serious runners.
This may go some way to explaining the rationale but completely wrong to snatch it away from others that have achieved what they set out to and were asked to!!!
This doesn't affect me but i do think the new GFA's are fairer.
Having said that, you have to feel for those who thought they had qualified only to be told now that the goalposts have been moved.
Meant to add - Wardi had posted this on another thread on this topic last week.
To me it looks like the changes have been designed by someone who has just looked at the results of the last race and thought about what kind of quotas they want, but has no understanding of the way runners actually operate. I think they said somewhere they couldn't finalise the new times until they'd had a chance to analyse last week's results. That only makes sense if they're imagining people thinking 'oh, I would quite like to enter the London Marathon I will just check to see if my time qualifies', rather than training towards a specific target time for ages beforehand. And if they think everyone who runs a marathon just goes out and runs as fast as they can, rather than pacing sensibly towards that target. Muppets.
Muppets indeed. Due to the fact that London is so hard to get into, many people get their GFA times at all of the 100s of other marathons that are available so just analysing this years London results will mean nothing.
When I went for sub 3.10 last year that was the aim. Not to run as fast as I could but just make sure that I came in under the time. I ended up with 3.07 and pretty much cruised the last 5 miles. I didn't see the point in smashing myself and risk blowing up and ending up with 3.10.01. I can imagine that many other people did a similar thing this year.
I'm sure there are Millsy, carefully aiming for the target.
I feel really sorry for Wabo who I know worked her socks off (and probably most of her underwear too) to get sub 4:15.
Squirrellypoo too. Both snatched away.
On the other hand, there are plenty of other marathons to enter and enjoy different places, countries, sights.
Signed! I just feel it most unfair to those who went for a "qualifying" time, only to find it had been changed without notice. It is irrelevant whther or not the new GFA standards are fairer or not, people chased the advertised times.
For those who missed the petition:
www.avaaz.org/en/petition/Give_the_London_marathon_good_for_age_times_one_year_grace/?LncFeb&pv=4
Or see Alan's post above if my link doesn't work!