Be inspired: Meet Andy Ward: The Brit had a 30:20 age pb from age 25 to 44. Now he's sub 30:00

Race records wrote:

Furthermore, here are the world single-year age records he could threaten for 10K on the road:

44y119d 29:26 Luketz Swartbooi (NAM) 05 Jun 2010 RSA

45y262d 30:02 Antonio Villanueva (MEX) 13 Apr 1986 USA

46y296d 29:59.9 Stephen Moneghetti (AUS)19 Jul 2009 AUS

http://www.arrs.net/SA_R10K.htm

Yes, the guy is amazing. Incredibly talented and aging very well.

But I never find these stories particularly "inspirational" as rojo suggested. I just find them impressive, and good examples of super talented runners.

HIs talent ain't making me or anyone else faster!

There is no mention of him actually stopping running or competing.

He kept things ticking over during his "lay-off".

I suppose you might think he is a potential dopper?

The Reverend Norm Green was fantastic... He was in his fifties and I was early forties. We raced the masters circuit and I saw him quite often.Norm came down with prostate cancer and retired. I am sure he still has some 50plus records..

baseketball wrote:

Agreed. Sub 30 at that age and with a break is remarkable.

Sub 30 @ any age is remarkable. But yes, much more so @ 44. Guy is a stud.

typical of the LR audience with the snide remarks, bashing. Sub 30 is a fine effort regardless of age, let alone 44. Perhaps more information about his training will be added, seems as if he only does a quality type session once every two weeks or thereabouts. Steady running by HRM serves him well. Something to be learned here about best use of HRM if you own one.

typical of the LR audience with the snide remarks, bashing. Sub 30 is a fine effort regardless of age, let alone 44. Perhaps more information about his training will be added, seems as if he only does a quality type session once every two weeks or thereabouts. Steady running by HRM serves him well. Something to be learned here about best use of HRM if you own one.

I'm inspired.

Andy ward does do a lot of what we used to call steady running.

These are done over different times on feet as opposed to distances and I think one session over short distance a week.

David moorcroft 13min 5000m WRHolder was mainly a steady paced runner, it is that over the years the word tempo has taken over and a love of slow mileage running.

A good mix of steady running over short to medium distances might just transform a few mortal runners on this site.

Obvious doper

rojo wrote: ...became a house-husband, raise the kids and got back into it ...

^This

reed wrote:

i wish he'd go into further detail regarding his training. nobody can do lactate threshold pace for every run...maybe he just means around 6 flat pace?

his LT must be around 5:10/5:15, but he differentiates that from "tempo".

anybody here knwo more about this guy?

He is not listed in the World masters ranking list (40-44) for 10000m. Apparently, he does not race on the track?

harmon1ca wrote:

Andy ward does do a lot of what we used to call steady running.

These are done over different times on feet as opposed to distances and I think one session over short distance a week.

David moorcroft 13min 5000m WRHolder was mainly a steady paced runner, it is that over the years the word tempo has taken over and a love of slow mileage running.

A good mix of steady running over short to medium distances might just transform a few mortal runners on this site.

I suspect the same, steady running. But one must avoid injury.

subfive wrote:

He is not listed in the World masters ranking list (40-44) for 10000m. Apparently, he does not race on the track?

Where's he going to find a 10,000 on the track?

Hardloper wrote:

subfive wrote:

He is not listed in the World masters ranking list (40-44) for 10000m. Apparently, he does not race on the track?

Where's he going to find a 10,000 on the track?

There are 10000m masters track races...not many. But in the US, there are USATAF championship races from 100m to 10000m outdoors. The fastest time in 2012 in the 40-44 ag was 28:57.88.

runnerdnerd wrote:

My definition of sub-elite would be "PR barely misses olympic trials/usatf nationals."

I am impressed with his times for his age, but your statement remains invalid.

What a moronic post.

First, you MAKE UP your own arbitrary definition of "sub-elite," then you premise a whole argument on that made-up standard and conclude that the statement is factually invalid?

Dumb, dumb, dumb.

subfive wrote:

Hardloper wrote:

Where's he going to find a 10,000 on the track?

There are 10000m masters track races...not many. But in the US, there are USATAF championship races from 100m to 10000m outdoors. The fastest time in 2012 in the 40-44 ag was 28:57.88.

In the US it wouldn't be hard, as there would be lots of college meets to enter. But in Britain I don't know. From what I have seen most European (and American all-comers) meets go up to 1500, and only sometimes have a 5000. Even Bekele basically had to get the directors to add a 10,000 in a Belgian meet. I guess I see your point was that he should have gone after the top time in 2012, not that he should be running on the track instead of the roads.

As a young bloke he was racing mostly on the fells. This sort of work is great for your fitness but doesn't develop your flat speed.

Had he spent those younger years focused on track and road he probably would have been at least a minute quicker back then. Also if most of his early racing was on roads around Derbyshire then he probably didn't run many fast courses.

A good example of this is fell legend Ian Holmes. Ian has never broken 30 for 10k or 50 for 10 miles. On the fells even now in his 40s he can thrash 29m guys. I'm sure Holmes has the motor to run low 29s even now. But he would need a couple of years to develop the skill set for the flat running.

Steve Moneghetti was running about as fast at 40 as he was at 22, he had some faster years from mid 20s to mid 30s though.

Jack Foster ran 2.11 in his 40s he was only running 2.12/13 in his 30s.

He came back from an injury break at 50 and off a couple of months of 40 to 50 mpw ran 51.40 for a hilly 10 miler. He then cranked it up to 70 to 80 mpw for 2 months and ran 2.20 for the marathon.

subfive wrote:

Hardloper wrote:

Where's he going to find a 10,000 on the track?

There are 10000m masters track races...not many. But in the US, there are USATAF championship races from 100m to 10000m outdoors. The fastest time in 2012 in the 40-44 ag was 28:57.88.

Without looking it up(I am old and lazy) that 28:57 was run by Kevin Castille if I am not mistaken. He ran that at Stanford in the Peyton Jordan meet and not in a masters track 10k.

I know you did not say that he ran it in a masters 10k, but I wanted to throw that out there.