come again? I have 6 top 10 finishes in WMM, Olympic Games and US olympic trials off the top of my head, seems like he's pretty good at the marathon
come again? I have 6 top 10 finishes in WMM, Olympic Games and US olympic trials off the top of my head, seems like he's pretty good at the marathon
class of 2001 wrote:
Why in the name of blue heavens was he surging and leading and running 2:08 pace?! It just boggles the mind. He should have just relaxed and ran a 1.05.30 - 1.06, then come back strong.
25 years of competitive running and he still can't figure this out.
I mean I don't disagree; hindsight is 20/20. Ritz popped a 1:01 half with one other runner really competing with him in February. It's not absurd at all for a 1:01 guy to go after a 2:08-2:09, especially when that guy is as experienced as he is. I know he hasn't put a marathon together in a while and that starting off slower probably would have been the right choice but the pack was still big at halfway. You run the risk of running by yourself in Boston if you want to run your own race. He went for it today. Gonna be criticized for running poorly or for not going for it on here anyways, may as well go for sub-2:10.
They fell off early. Both of them. Can they be proud of how they run? I don't think they can. Yuki's most certainly disgusted with his performance. You know he is.
Blow ups can happen, Steve Jones ran 2:22 after running no slower than 2:08 in his three prior marathons. Jonesy also ran his first 2:08 with a longest training run of 18 miles. I thought Ritz would run 2:11-2:12 but he blew up, his Olympic chances don't look good with the new 2:11 qualifying standard and the two new American 2:09 marathoners.
1984 Chicago Marathon Chicago, United States 1st Marathon 2:08:05
1985 London Marathon London, United Kingdom 1st Marathon 2:08:16
Chicago Marathon Chicago, United States 1st Marathon 2:07:13
1986 European Championships Stuttgart, West Germany 20th Marathon 2:22:12
Far Out West wrote:
Blow ups can happen, Steve Jones ran 2:22 after running no slower than 2:08 in his three prior marathons. Jonesy also ran his first 2:08 with a longest training run of 18 miles. I thought Ritz would run 2:11-2:12 but he blew up, his Olympic chances don't look good with the new 2:11 qualifying standard and the two new American 2:09 marathoners.
1984 Chicago Marathon Chicago, United States 1st Marathon 2:08:05
1985 London Marathon London, United Kingdom 1st Marathon 2:08:16
Chicago Marathon Chicago, United States 1st Marathon 2:07:13
1986 European Championships Stuttgart, West Germany 20th Marathon 2:22:12
There is a story that Jones entered the Stadium in Stuttgart during a medal ceremony with an Anthem being played and he paused and stood at attention for that.
So that 2:22 may be worth a bit more.
NewtotheSouthSide wrote:
class of 2001 wrote:
Why in the name of blue heavens was he surging and leading and running 2:08 pace?! It just boggles the mind. He should have just relaxed and ran a 1.05.30 - 1.06, then come back strong.
25 years of competitive running and he still can't figure this out.
I mean I don't disagree; hindsight is 20/20. Ritz popped a 1:01 half with one other runner really competing with him in February. It's not absurd at all for a 1:01 guy to go after a 2:08-2:09, especially when that guy is as experienced as he is. I know he hasn't put a marathon together in a while and that starting off slower probably would have been the right choice but the pack was still big at halfway. You run the risk of running by yourself in Boston if you want to run your own race. He went for it today. Gonna be criticized for running poorly or for not going for it on here anyways, may as well go for sub-2:10.
There is a 61 minute HM poster on this thread who could explain it to you if he feels like it.
He Stinsoned it
As averybuday nuhz, the only relz runah on ze planut, my man Eliud Kipchoge, runda last myl 'n 4 clicks 29. Averybudy els evah esa hobbyjoggah.
rojo wrote:
At halfway, Ritz was on 2:09:22 pace.
He ended up running 2:16:19.
If that type of fade seems crazy, it's not. His last mile was still sub-6. He ran it in 5:52.
exactly
match made in heaven wrote:
#stinsoned wrote:
It makes perfect sense why Parker chose him as a coach now.
Match made in heaven.
Yup. Excuses and Excused
Sarcophenia by The Who wrote:
Ritz has old legs. There comes a point for many elites where the wheels will just never hold together for more than 20 miles at a fast pace.
Ritz has been there for the last 5 years at least.
It has more to do with training and racing smarts. Meb is a prime example of will, smarts and experience coming together. When it matters, he gets it done.
Moo Goo wrote:
match made in heaven wrote:
Match made in heaven.
Yup. Excuses and Excused
It's not an entertaining race without Stinson
Ritz was never a marathoner. The few marathons he did OK at (relative to his talent) --2007 oly trials, 2008 olympics, the chicago 2:07--were the exceptions, not the rule. Someone with his immense talents will get an occasional fluke, but no more than that.
The other 20 marathons were disasters.
He was one of the ALL TIME biggest US talents at 5k to HM, and XC.
I get it--the marathon is where the money and fame is at these days, but the poor guy spent the final 2/3 of his career banging his head against the wall trying to be something he is not--a marathoner.
If he would have instead focused his energy at 5k to HM and XC, he would be 12:56, sub 27, sub 60 HM, and our consistent best XC hope.
We can't blame him--he was actually correct--no one cares about 5k, 10k, and XC. Hell the IAAF is getting rid of them and XC is only every other year now and hanging by a thread.
It's been sad to watch really--the poor guy spent the BULK of his career trying to jam a square peg in a round hole, and the results were predictable.
Well, remember he ran under the "this is an experiment , anything can happen" clause. In other words...CYA!
jimmymango wrote:
He should just stick to half marathons at this point. He can still win them as shown in New Orleans. The marathon was never his thing.
Sounds like solid advice for Bekele too.
He did blow up good though wrote:
So that 2:22 may be worth a bit more.
No, what matters is what the clock said when he crossed the finish line. If he decided to stop for whatever reasons, that's on him.
You seen to live in a fantasy world of "what if..."
rojo wrote:
At halfway, Ritz was on 2:09:22 pace.
At 21 miles, he was still on 2:11:45.
At 35k (21.748), he was still on 2:12:12 pace.
He ended up running 2:16:19.
If that type of fade seems crazy, it's not. His last mile was still sub-6. He ran it in 5:52.
huh??
are we veterans or what?
at 20 miles you find out if you have gas left in the tank.
if you don't you slow down radically, which is the normal case for most guys.
this is like, the oldest possible axiom in marathoner.
sheesh.
jeesh, you guys want to logic everything out, and calculate to the nth degree.
in the marathon, it's a crap shoot.
almost all people are subject to this law.
you can be in perfect shape, but on the day, there is like one chance in four that you'll bring it, and the gas tank will be full, as opposed to 90 percent full.
with 90 percent tank, you're nearly out at 20 to 22 miles and then you suck,
most often you have 80 percent total gas.
it's a fact of nature.
only a couple of guys get it right all the time, like half a dozen in the total history of the marathon.
the advice is after you line up, is to accept your fate,
no amount of will power and strategy is going to help if you've got less than a full tank
of course you do all the correct prep. otherwise there is little chance at all.
basically you accept your fate and give it your best.
don't get down on yourself due to the crap shoot of nature.
aesthete e wrote:
Ritz was never a marathoner. The few marathons he did OK at (relative to his talent) --2007 oly trials, 2008 olympics, the chicago 2:07--were the exceptions, not the rule. Someone with his immense talents will get an occasional fluke, but no more than that.
The other 20 marathons were disasters.
He was one of the ALL TIME biggest US talents at 5k to HM, and XC.
I get it--the marathon is where the money and fame is at these days, but the poor guy spent the final 2/3 of his career banging his head against the wall trying to be something he is not--a marathoner.
If he would have instead focused his energy at 5k to HM and XC, he would be 12:56, sub 27, sub 60 HM, and our consistent best XC hope.
We can't blame him--he was actually correct--no one cares about 5k, 10k, and XC. Hell the IAAF is getting rid of them and XC is only every other year now and hanging by a thread.
It's been sad to watch really--the poor guy spent the BULK of his career trying to jam a square peg in a round hole, and the results were predictable.
That was my point, which you made more coherently. Sure, there’s less glory in being the US 15k or 20k champ than winning the Olympic marathon trials or a WMM, but I always felt he could have cleaned house on the domestic road circuit and been a top international below the full marathon if that was his specific training focus. I mean, did he ever compete at the world half marathon champs again after his bronze finish?