How tough was Steve Jones ?

Jungleroy59 wrote:

It takes time to recover 100% from a hard run when you're not using drugs. The drugs have completely skewed perceptions of normal. The old guys who didn't use drugs used to get tired after races and hard workouts. Obviously from the account of the race, he was 98% recovered in one week, but not 100%. They were fast, but they were unaided humans.

Living in a fantasy world, you are.

Is that how you cover up your limitations? To accuse innocent peopleof using drugs?

Before you slander someone, and try to ruin them with accusations, you better have proof. The only "proof" you have is good performance.

By the way, if you think that a beer-swilling Welshman who never did anythin slower than 6:00 pace and stopped during his races to defecate on subways should be better than a sober Ethiopian who has done 30,000 miles by age 18 and who trains at 8,000 feet, I have a suggestion for you: check yourself into a center for the mentally ill.

Where and when was your last 2:07 marathon?

Of course, I'm just asking you understand.

Daz has it right. It's just like runners in the World Cross there should be no way that an athlete should be able to win the 4k and the a day later destroy the field in the 12k. I just don't think that it's possible. Most guys in the 12k are fresh and didn't run the day before but they still got trashed. The winner never looks tired afterwards either which I find slightly suspicious

Sorry Jungleroy59 has it right and Daz you're living in a dream world. Think about it.....how knackered do you feel after a hard race. think you could take on some fresh legs the day after?

Yeah. I remember that, legendary, he raced that well at the highest level in the marathon and stopped for a shite en-route; could you imagine that scenario in a 400m race? I think not. But on the other hand.... it'd make great TV.

Gen Jack Ripper wrote:

Where and when was your last 2:07 marathon?

Of course, I'm just asking you understand.

What a ridiculously idiotic thing to say. It suits your apparent intelligence well.

Gebrselassie did not take anything but water and bonked badly in London 2002, running his last mile slower than Paula Radcliffe. I and some 6.3 billion others have never run 2:06:35.

Does that mean we could not have told Gebrselassie that what he was doing was stupid?

Why don't you keep your mouth shut before more exceptionally stupid spews forth.

Hate Drugs wrote:

Sorry Jungleroy59 has it right and Daz you're living in a dream world. Think about it.....how knackered do you feel after a hard race. think you could take on some fresh legs the day after?

Your apparent inability to read furthers the inadequacy of your argument.

I have run 2 hard races back to back before. Both were hard and it was very difficult, but Bekele is a top athlete.

Continuing to slander him, an athlete innocent of wrongdoing, outs yourself as a bitter loser unable to accept that great athletes exist whose ability you will never approach because of your sad, defeatist attitude.

daz wrote:

an athlete innocent of wrongdoing

Not sure if this has aleady been linked to or not but here is a recap of the 1985 epic chicago race by Don Kardong:

http://www.juanjosemartinez.com.mx/Steve_Jones/files/steve_jones_runnermag_1986.pdf

Interesting account but I am not aware of any hills in downtown Chicago.

I remember the 1985 Chicago marathon her ran 207 and split the half in 101. Alone! Incredible. Years ahead of those kind of split times

classic thread

and he never wore a watch

http://fittish.deadspin.com/i-never-wore-a-watch-running-lessons-from-a-record-b-1578961678

He had a tough mindset.

His Chicago '85 thoughts after leading alone through the half in 101 exemplify this. Instead of second guessing his pacing strategy, and backing off (he was not wearing a watch), upon seeing the half split he thought lets try to run another half in that same time. (a time that would have broken the world record at the time by a few minutes).

He would run hard and sometimes blow up, sometimes not. He was willing to push his limits.

NorthernLite wrote:

I've read the workouts but has anyone ever trained with him or heard first hand accounts of his toughness in training or races?

I had the fortune of getting a call from Steve’s agent in Salt Lake City, Bob Wood in 1983. I had started the Park City Running Club and had a reputation for putting on races in town. I made arrangements for his wife Annette and his 2 boys to stay in town in a condo near the ski resort. At the same time Hugh Jones of Liverpool was living with me doing his preparation for Chicago as well. What most people didn’t get, was Steve twisted his ankle just before the race and honestly couldn’t do the race. To show what kind of a guy Steve was, he gave his appearance money back to the race director Bob Bright saying it was not right to take it. Bright said , “it’s okay maybe you will come back.” As we know Hugh and Joseph locked into a tough nationally televised last mile and sparked big interest for Chicago. In 1984 Steve got to Park City with his wife and boys and I knew things were different. We had Sunday brunch at different club member’s houses and we would talk about the now 4 olympic athletes I was handling, not coaching, not training, just the guy if you need anything call me guy. Even though Steve didn’t wear a watch I would would ride a bike and provide water and kept time. He was putting together killer times. He was more fit than the year before and definitely faster than at the Olympics. I sounded like “a homer” but I knew him pretty well. He was in great shape. I still have the picture of Steve looking over his shoulder at 20 miles with a tight frame of who’s who in the running world. Does anyone want to go with me?The rest is history as he crushed the last 10k. Whenever Steve Jones was in a race you knew he would keep it honest. Always honest and hard....

. wrote:

a tough guy

Watch this for proof