Autumn marathon training - anyone?

[TeaAndHobnob]

In theory I have Manchester in October which now clashes with another race - I'm waiting to see if Manchester gets pulled before I decide which one I'm doing.

Has anyone else got a race entry that is in theory going ahead at the moment?

Have you started training yet? I haven't done any proper long long runs since April but I have kept up running regularly to keep ticking over. I'm going to sit down this weekend and sort out my training plan.

I was meant to be doing my first ever half on 7th June but that was cancelled. I was doing well with the training but it all tailed off come lockdown due to no childcare etc. It’s been rescheduled for
November so I’m trying to get back into training now but it’s so hard to be motivated at the moment

I'm supposed to be doing London but there's no way it's going to happen, expecting the announcement on the 21 June. I've been focusing on the mile but still have a long run of 13 miles. If (when) it's cancelled I think I will switch to 5k or HM focus in the hope there'll be a small race I can do at some point. It's very frustrating (first world problems) as I have the fitness to set PBs across most distances at the moment but no races to do it in!

@ferretface what makes you think there’ll be an announcement on 21 June? I’m also due to do London but too sceptical to start training yet.

@stokey on 20th May they said the next update would be 21 June. Since then other majors have cancelled for this year so I don't see how it can go any other way. The last update from Hugh Brasher acknowledged that it is hard to start training only to have the race cancelled (a second time) so I think they will cancel before people get too far into the training cycle.

@TeaAndHobnob I'm supposed to be running the Manchester marathon too. I don't think it will happen so I'm still running but not training. The date they've said they will give their decision by is 12 weeks before race day so if its going ahead I'll start training then

Thanks Ferret, I hadn’t clocked that in the May email.

London for me too but I'm sure it won't go ahead . I'm training at the moment for it but these early weeks are not much different to my usual weeks so no great hardship . I'm hoping they will tell us on the 21st one way or another

Manchester for me too.

My good intentions to keep my mileage up didnt last long with lockdown.

My lazy fat arse is praying they cancel.

I'm training for Richmond marathon in September. So far they are saying it's going ahead, and that they're working on social distancing measures. We shall see... it's my first full marathon ever, and I've started training, so I'm crossing everything that it does happen!

London, but not optimistic

GNR called off today

Yeah I had a place for GNR as well. Managed to rebook my hotel for next year.

I think we're supposed to hear about whether Manchester is happening on 17th July. I think it's going to be a no tbh but the hope remains @BabyMoonPie In theory my training plan starts today but I haven't been out for a run yet

You could sort yourself out a non-organised marathon-distance run? You'd need to plan a track and probably use phone GPS to follow it, but that's not particularly hard work with an arm strap.

I'm biased, I know a lot of folk need the being-in-a-crowd encouragement to comeplte, but I've done one running event and hated the whole thing, much worse for me than running solo.

Running a marathon outside of an organised event is very very much harder than running a race. So many factors come into play - not having to think about the route (just follow everyone else), the absence of the advantage of closed roads (not having to think about what's around you/cross roads etc), crowd (or family) support, milestones to reach (drinks stations etc), cameraderie from other runners, the 'all in it together' atmosphere and adrenaline. So much of marathon running is in the mind, it takes a mammoth mental effort to run that far on your own or 'just because'. Over shorter distances (and even up to half marathon), it's less of an issue, but a marathon is a beast - it's really not just a 26.2 mile run.

I've got a place for London too, but I really can't see it happening. I'm still running 20-25 miles a week, with a long (10-ish mile) run every couple of weeks, to keep things ticking over. I'm fully expecting an announcement to say Oct 4th will be for elite athletes only. I hope so - I've trained for an autumn marathon before, and said 'never again'. Give me cold, wet, dark winter evenings (and mornings) over heat and humidity for proper training all the way. I love lovely long relaxed trail runs in the summer, but 20 miles in the heat... no thanks.

If London is elite only, you could always see if the reverse London marathon is going ahead. There's a Facebook group for it. It does involve starting in the middle of the night but it's a good group of people that do it and there might be a lot of you this time round.

I'm not putting myself through all the training to run the reverse run! I'll happily train properly to run it in April if it gets cancelled.

I don’t think London will go ahead at all - look at the number of staff and emergency service input needed to close that much of central London. I can’t see them justifying that level of disruption for a small/elite event.

I’ve damaged my foot/ankle, so am glad it’s not long until announcement as I need to sort out if I can possibly be fit for October. If it goes ahead, I suspect I’ll do it (but I’ll be slow (run/walk and probably over 5.5 hours)

If England Athletics lifts its ban on events (I think at the moment coaching outdoors in a group of no more than 6, with distancing, is all that is permitted) then I think there will be enough events to make getting properly fit worth it.

I’d be aiming for an autumn of Halfs then Christmas break, then training programme for spring marathons. Bit like I did last year!

I wondered if even April 2021 might be ambitious for something on the scale of London :( it's not just the race itself but the expo, the spectators... I think there's going to have to be quite a fundamental shift in people's risk appetite and expectations to bring events on this scale back. At the moment we are limited to tiny groups, even very low key events are off the table...I can't see us going from that to big races in a matter of months.

I really hope there's some small races by the autumn, I've been doing well at keeping my motivation up but virtual events are really not the same.

Manchester was to be/will be my first. I want the whole experience. Running for 5 hours on my own, doing loops around my town would make it too hard.

I know some people who have done it though, a shielding friend did a garden marathon, another one did a 13 mile out and back, another one split it into 5 mile loops over the course of the day.

I’m starting to think we won’t see any races this year

I have a place for a September marathon. I'm half minded to swap it for a half on drop out if it goes ahead. It seems that everything is being rebooked for September - including a family wedding, a possible holiday. It's a bit much really.

I'm still running, up to around a half sometimes but slowly. I'm definitely nowhere near a race plan.

I don't think there will be any meaningful races this year. Maybe a few local/small ones. My local half marathon has just moved from being a closed road route (so basically a 'normal' race) to 5 laps of the local racecourse. So no road closures needed. Fewer marshalls/support staff needed (because of loops), but they're saying social distancing will be easier. I'm not sure how that can be, because all the runners are spread out on a 2.5 mile course, rather than across a 13 mile course. It's supposed to be in Oct (already moved from July), but I can't see it happening.

I've done events at motor racing circuits, which are really wide. So if you abandon gun time placing and do it all on chip timing and staggered start, then it might be made to work. Still lots of laps (and therefore a bit dull) but I would have a proper event feel esp with a couple of sound systems.

Loos would be a major pitfall though. But if there was a nice screenable outdoor wild area to be an al fresco urinal, and twice the usual number of turdises (plus oodles of cleaning materials, plus no hanging around for a gun start) it might work

I've done those kinds of events (around airfields, race tracks and rowing lakes) - this one is around a racecourse - as in horse racing. The path around it isn't wide - narrower than a single track country road, so there's really not a lot of room. It's not on the bit the horses race on (which is wide), because that's grass. There's a shingle 'path/track' around the outside of that. It's going to be challenging - especially on only a 2.5 mile loop. Ironically, loos won't be an issue at all - there are LOADS in the grandstand!

London still holding out hope for the 4 October...can't see it but i'll try and put the doubt out of my mind and keep training.

Well that was a frustrating announcement!

5+ more weeks waiting and wondering. Yuk

I wonder how many people’s hotel bookings won’t be working, or can’t fit on trains to get there etc. It seems hopelessly over-optimistic the more I think about it.