About the Virtual VLM

I feel a bit weird saying this but… marathon season is upon us!

For most people the year is structured in 4 seasons, maybe school terms or even work vs holiday. I have a thing for structuring the year in spring and autumn marathon seasons.

3 months training + 3 months racing twice a year. I tend to complete both seasons at different levels of readiness, I prefer to use the spring as a way of getting 70%-80% ready and then go for a late marathon between September and December.

This year, it’s painfully obvious, has been very different. I was listening to Adam Gemili the other night talking about how athletes have had to make some difficult decisions and how there hasn't been a standard pattern for athletes to follow as they would normally on an Olympic year. I am not comparing myself or other non elite runners to the pro guys but there are some similarities in having to plan ahead, races, training, work, etc.

I personally, have had a very decent year, so far, in how my training has gone. I spent about a good part of 6 months putting in a lot of volume (for what I’m used to) but have done it in a very gradual way so not to get injured. This year, ironically, has allowed me to take my time and ticking all the right boxes when I was good and ready, as opposed to having some hard deadlines and having to bend my own life to fit the racing calendar.

Unfortunately, just as the lack of racing has allowed me to push my training to a very satisfactory level, it has also meant I have no good races to pick from now in which to test myself and see how well I can do.

My objective for the year was to race Valencia marathon in December and attempt to run sub 2.30

That goal gave me the necessary motivation to put in those 120km-160km weeks for months. It gave me the right focus to ensure I progressed in an optimum way with the right mix of patience and desire. Around July it became quite clear (politics aside) various countries were going to experience second waves of Covid19 cases so I understood I would have to change my plans slightly. I was not going to find a marathon race that would be optimal to attempt such ambitious target.

So instead of targeting a 2.30 marathon I will have to make do with racing shorter distances. I have relaxed my training considerably and I’m happy to just keep some decent mileage, race whenever I can and maybe have some fun. The aim is now to get to January/February in decent shape so I have a much shorter route to my desired sub2.30 late in 2021 (London or Valencia)

But… there’s still the question of, will I race the virtual London marathon? And the answer is that I still don’t know!! If I want to be in the Championship start in 2021, VLM are forcing me to get another qualifying time between now and January next year.

I only have two realistic options to get that, a sub 2.45 on the day around Norman Park or a sub 1.15 half marathon on any official half between now and January. With this in mind, am running (not racing) the Folkestone half marathon next Sunday. I have several realistic objectives to aim for so hopefully, even if the conditions make the race considerably harder, I can still get something positive out of it.

Main target: 1.12 (or just under)- this will give me a PB, club record and qualifying time for London. I will be happy if I have a good day and run to my ability on the day and then we’ll have to see what that gets me and make decisions accordingly. If for whatever reason I am unable to run close to that (it can easily happen) I am still hoping to get that 1.15 that will get me into London next year.

In the event that I am unable to run sub 1.15 the logical course of action will be to turn up at Norman Park the following Sunday with a couple of gels and get the job done in a very boring way (23 and a half laps).

Now, it’s precisely that scenario that made me think about a few things… All of which could be summarised by “VLM, what the hell have you guys been smoking!!???”

I completely understand and somewhat agree that it can be a nice idea to encourage people, who had been raising money for good causes and feel they want to show something for their efforts, to complete the distance on the day, over a period of 2 hours and get a medal, certificate, etc. I think that’s a very valid idea.

My issues are more with telling people they can qualify for GFA or Championship start by virtually completing the distance within certain times.

Looking at the tables below I’m almost outraged that they are asking people who, under normal circumstances would struggle to get standard GFA time at an organised event, with water, gels, medical support, other runners and public encouraging them, etc., to perform 3–5 minutes quicker on their own, on a potentially unsafe course, with no medical support, having to carry their own hydration and energy supplies, with a phone on them,… MENTAL!!!!!

At the risk of sounding harsh and unfriendly (when my intent is more to protect and advise), I know there will be a considerable number of people, who really have not trained adequately because their clubs, coaches, experienced fellow runners, etc. have not been available throughout lockdown, and who will be going out on the day to attempt a suicidal GFA time.

This also applies to some championship start runners but by nature there’ll be fewer inexperienced runners at that end so they should know better. A 2.55 runner thinking they can get sub 2.40 (mine is sub 2.45 because I had already qualified for the 2020 race) can be a very bad idea but those runners are well accustomed to pushing too hard and crash (still dangerous).

A 58 year old woman/man, with very little experience and a PB of about 3.30, who originally had to run a 3:19:59 now has to run 3:17:19 (4–5 seconds faster per km) carrying shit loads of stuff and with virtually no support.

Even if VLM did this thinking they would make it so difficult for people, that they would make sure very few runners would qualify, thus allowing them to fulfil their commitment with everyone who’s already secured a place, it makes them IRRESPONSIBLE.

So my advice to runners going out on the day is, please be very careful, don’t treat this like a life and death thing and prioritise having a bit of fun. It is ok not to PB, not to get a GFA or championship start.

I personally, am hoping not to have to take that day too seriously and can help other runners with parts of their runs.

Happy running everyone!