is there a post limit or something? i'm banned for what i said here? weird.
is there a post limit or something? i'm banned for what i said here? weird.
of course
The biggest question is how seriously he would pursue the marathon. I'll agree with the naysayers that 2:15 or anything close is extremely unlikely, but if he really wants it close to as bad as he did those 7 tours, I think he could certainly go under 2:30. I know that's a tough time (usually top .1 to .5 percentile in big marathons), but we're talking about somebody with several qualities that'll get you pretty far in pretty much any endurance sport, including marathoning:
1. This guy has just as much determination, and probably more, than anybody else on the planet. If he sets running under 2:30 as an important goal to him, he'll be able to push for it just as hard and harder than anybody.
2. He has the natural tools to get it done. In addition to the straight up numbers like his V02 max and such, he has the advantage of having one of the strongest sets of heart and lungs ever to be seen in endurance athletics. Sure his legs aren't used to the pounding and such, but that's the only thing he's lacking. He doesn't have to worry at all about developing aerobic fitness or threshold, he's already got that checked off.
All he has to do is build up his leg strength and efficiency for running, over say a 1-2 year period, after which he'll still be 35-36 years old. Again, if he really sets out to do it, I bet he can go 2:22:37.