no official result - Page 2 - Spring Marathon

NicChip

25/04/2012 at 15:24

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.

Snail1972

26/04/2012 at 09:51

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.

Wardi

26/04/2012 at 09:59

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.

Edith

26/04/2012 at 11:26

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.

Sussex Runner (NLR)

26/04/2012 at 11:48

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.

need for speed

26/04/2012 at 12:09

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?

alki

26/04/2012 at 18:50

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.

Edith

27/04/2012 at 09:22

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.

Straycelt

27/04/2012 at 09:30

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

Edith

09/05/2012 at 14:30

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?

need for speed

10/05/2012 at 07:40

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.

Edith

10/05/2012 at 14:33

Need for Speed

Probably they are still going through the video recordings so they can match up people with the unregistered chips.

I sort of understand what must have happened. My chip must have worked but for some reason wasn't connected to my name. They must have watched the recordings carefully to make sure they don't make a mistake when they assigned the time to me. Don't forget that I started from the smallest Green start and was soon through the start line so I expect it was easier to identify me than you who started on Blue.

It seems that there were quite a few people with this issue so probably in a week or so you will be sorted, too. Fingers crossed and please keep us updated; I hope you will have a happy end, too.

I cannot imagine them giving out a complimentary marathon place, though.

need for speed

10/05/2012 at 15:31

.....no me neither, it would be to open to abuse.

I'll keep my fingers crossed then. I wasn't told that the chip might have actually worked as yours has done, I was told some didn't register on the the start mat, so getting different info' from the marathon office? A member of my running club picked up my number from expo' so I didn't see it registered. I wonder if that part went wrong somehow?

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