Richard - dont worry about hijacking the topic - we were talikng about spank-me bunches and pole dancing last week!!!

Hi Vicki

Just spotted this thread.

Am definitely in for 2007 & at the moment (could change!) predict 2:20!

Mandie R.. Really? Is there any chance of moving the thread back onto those topics? With visual aids?

PS has anyone thought about buying their own personal video from marathon-videos.com ? Wondering if it's really worth £7.50 to see myself struggling for breath.. I can get that almost any time I like!

Hi all,

Well my first GNR was half run half walked and i have to say i din't enjot it in the least!

How then have i registered interest for next year???

Can someone explain when going through 11 miles i was trying to figure out why the hell i was doing this and even after finishing i was in so much pain (hips mostly) that i couldn't enjoy it - i am thinking about next years race?

My time was very slow at 3.17 (was aiming for under 3) but as i said i walked half of it - very undulating although to be honest i can only remember the bloody uphills!

Hope everyone else enjoyed it though - looks like i've got alot more training to do!

Bernadette, you're clearly hooked.
Rekopn you'll break 3 hours next year no problem :0)
Welcome to the thread.

Who says the camera doesn't lie?

Those pictures of me crossing the line do no justice at all to my state of exhaustion and dejection at being 3 minutes slower than last year!

motr- what number were you so I can compare finish photos?
Just after that photo was taken my legs seized up and I was bl@@dy miserable.
Mandie- Feel alright today actually. Club run tonight (only the short one mind you) followed by a couple of pints. Mmmmmm...

Talking of hijacking the thread, check out the hoff, doing his thing in possibly the worst music video ever!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIFh1ydXWmg

I am hoping to get a place in the FLM07. In fact I've set my heart on it! If not I'm going to have to plead for a charity place. I have no idea how I'm going to run that distance but it will be the biggest achievement of my life.

I thought that Russell, about the distance. But it was the best day of my life :-).

And while i was running on Sunday, i remember thinking "the marathon was easier than this".....

But that was probably due to the fact that i trained for 8 months to do it, and didnt do one training run for this year's gnr and had a broken toe! Good luck to you x

O'Donut how did you feel when you crossed that finish line in the marathon? Was it emotional?

Mum on the run.
Thanks for the info on the FLM. I will take a look at it asap.
Thanks.

Blimey, i was crying my eyes out! Still well up now when i sit and think about it.

I remember reading a quote on here somewhere, that "pain is temporary, finishing lasts forever".

As i ran around the corner onto birdcage walk for the last 400mts there was a big banner saying exactly that. Thats what got me to the end!

I trained using a book called "The Non Runners Marathon Trainer" from Amazon and followed the 16 week schedule religiously. My mile splits varied between 11 minutes and 11:15 - managed to keep my pace constant the whole way round.

It really is the most amazing thing, i won't go on about it on here coz the others will start huffing and puffing (!!) but there are loads of threads on the FLM forum page. Or mail me if you want to chat some more x

Wow, I have that book on my lap O'Donut! The story about Mark Block had me in tears on the train home from the GNR! I thought the schedule looked very reasonable. Just not sure about running 4 times a week in the dark.

Hello all... can anyone drop in? Just finished 2006 so thought id also join the 2007 thread!

All are welcome Stu :)

I don't want to just 'get round' a marathon, so i figure 5 or 6 years worth of half training will sort me out ;)

sounds about right Vicki, I've been at it 5 years now.
I WILL get under 1:40 one day.
despite Sunday's backward step.

Stoxy - my number was 25361. only 2 photos and both at the finish. I always look shocking when I run. Even when I feel fresh as a daisy I still look like I've run a full marathon.

And on that subject - Russell, when I crossed the line I was totally bombed out! I thought I would be ecstatic but it was a really surreal experience. The joy came later and the thing is you realise that YOU did it. No matter how much support etc you get from other people (and thankyou to my hubby for all those long miles on his bike with me!) at the end of the day you cannot do this without training properly. And when you finish it makes all the cold, wet, snowy mornings, when you could have stayed in bed, well worth while.

I echo what Donut says - if ever you want a chat, drop me an email. I went on the sub 4 hour thread during my training and they were a really brilliant bunch of people. Even managed to bump into one of them in the bar of the hotel I was staying in after the race and we had a couple of drinks. A few of posted mobile numbers a couple of days before so that we could try and meet up (London's a big place!) and a lot of folk from this thread picked up on it and they sent me some lovely messages on the morning of the marathon, I was really touched.

Shielsy - got it in one! It's the average speed on the BBC time lapse video of the journey from start to finish of the GNR.

(I'm typing this whilst crossing the Tyne. On a train obviously otherwise the laptop would get wet)

Vicki - if you go for the FLM, so will I! You know you can do it!

O'Donut - you are remarkably consistent. I had no breakfast on the day of FLM hence my 4:26 and wasn't well (excuses again Mandie)

My trip to the library was a bit of a disappointment. Could not find the 1986 results in the Journal or Evening Chronicle. The library had the 1984 and 1985 events in separate books. The Evening Chronicle offices directed me to the Civic Centre (I remember when that was new...) which I was very grateful for. Now according to them if I can find any past results (as if...) I only need permission from Nova. Colin Hill, if I can find old results can they go online? I know you might still possess the data (although it's unlikely as the first event is practically older than the humble PC).

Two John Airey's completed the 1985 event, although I suspect the one who finished in 3:03:10 was me. I hadn't trained properly and cramped at nine miles. It took me an hour and half to get to the finish from there.

If anyone out there has old results books, perhaps they should contact the library in Newcastle.

Mum on the run - as a great run member you should be receiving the results book as well.

Hiya y'all.
Just done my very 1st half (GNR) in 2.17 and sooooooo proud of myself. I had the time of my life, just wish by 3 kids were there to see me. I've registered an interest for 2007 and I'm telling myself I'll do it in 2.10 or less next time. (We'll see, huh!) I'll be gutted if I don't get a place next time.
You've just inspired me to try for the FLM now too - you all have a lot to answer for!

Is it possible to double the distance in 6 months tho???????

BoozyBlonde. After resting up from GNR just keep ticking over til Christmas, still doing some long runs. With a 1/2 under your belt already you've got a really good base to build on. New year will see marathon training in full swing, but if you go for it, don't skimp on the training, it's not worth it and you won't reap the rewards at the end of the day. Find a schedule that suits your lifestyle so that you can stick to it.