Nova Special - Training for the Boston Marathon

It is here in good ole St.Joseph Missouri.

The group also includes Steve DeOssie a former NFL player whose son is now playing for the NY Giants.

and my wife produced it.

cmass coach wrote:

The group also includes Steve DeOssie a former NFL player whose son is now playing for the NY Giants.

and my wife produced it.

please tell her that it was wonderful! it could've even been longer too, i really enjoyed the stories, but it seemed rushed sometimes. had to get a lot of the actual marathon in. great physiology information and some gutty performances by some "average" citizens.

i honestly was very moved during the whole race...got the chills and really felt the joy and happiness that each of them displayed.

thanks for this!

It is too bad that it had to be edited down to less than 60 min., they spent 9 months filming every weekend plus several weekdays, even one Patriots game following DeOssie around from pre-game till he finished the post game show and that is all you get.

But, it was a good presentation, even inspirational.

I agree, it was nicely done. They managed to fit in the physiology nicely (how many rec runners get to have a VO2max test, or even see one done!) and still did the human interest part nicely and told a story.

I think this would be a great documentary for any recreational runner planning on running a marathon. So many people (like those in the show) decide to run a marathon for various reason after years of being sedentary. Here they were under a team of experts and many still got injured or had potentially serious issues in training, or even beforehand (like the ECG abnormalities). Imagine the people that don't get expert supervision - what kind of danger they put themselves in! I think the show really gets that point across.

A lot of times we take for granted the fact that we do 10-mile runs on a recovery day, whereas that first five mile run was a gigantic step for some!!!

Nicely done show!

Hate to rain on everybody's parade but it made me sick to watch it. I last ran Boston when ONLY qualifiers ran it and the race was respectable. I have not gone back since it has been overrun by overweight walkers. I choose to run elsewhere and sadly will probably never run Boston again because of these people. I love the course; I hate the so-called "runners". This is the first time I've actually seen some of the out-of-shape nonrunners trying to pretend to be "Boston runners" and it just turned my stomach and made me long for the days when Boston was a unique experience. When I ran I think the slowest qualifying time for men was 3:50; this was the 70 & up category. The women's 70+ group had to run 4:20. It was disheartening to see young men in the prime of their lives struggling to run under 5:00, a solid 1:30 PER MILE slower than the 70+ women used to have to run. In the old days these guys' grandmothers would have beaten them by an hour. And the saddest thing is these people get a national television audience showing them "training" for a marathon. Why doesn't Nova come and cover my 90-105 mile weeks and my track workouts? Better yet, instead of filming my slow 2:50 ass why don't they find some people who are actually fast and film their training? That way people can see what real marathon training is, not the watered-down "Biggest Loser" crap.

There are currently over 300 marathons in the United States alone. If these people want to "run" a marathon they should go somewhere else. They have ruined what was once the greatest marathon in the world and turned it into nothing more than an all-day stampede of cows. They can't even start at the traditional 12:00 noon start time anymore or they will have people still on the course after dark.

0/10

Saw it coming....

Alan

I agree but if I were you, I'd duck Buddy.

You are about to get trampled by the "applaud the effort" and "don't be an elitist snob" crowds.

And if Keith Stone see this, you are really gonna get it.

Hey Mr. i wish i had not watched. Go to bed and cry yourself to sleep. The people that were part of the Nova team went from 0- to a marathon in less than 9 months. They took a chance and accomplished something they never thought possible. They will inspire others to do the same.

Not everyone can be a great athlete like yourself, did you actually win Boston? You are just jealous that you have trained 90-100 per week and can't run a time worthy of TV coverage. Listening to people like you makes me sick,

I found it fascinating when the narrator mentioned that humans can outrun various animal over long distances...dogs, antelopes, even horses. I wasn't aware of that.

cmass coach wrote:

went from 0- to a marathon in less than 9 months. They took a chance and accomplished something they never thought possible. They will inspire others to do the same.

Ah yes, I knew this was coming.

Tell me, after they achieved their their "goal", did they continue to run? Is running part of their life now, or now that the attention is gone, their desire to run left as well?

Why did they pick a marathon instead of saying they want to get healthy first? Why did they choose Boston instead of a local half marathon or one of the smaller marathons in the country?

Many of them are still running and will run another marathon. Is that good enough for you?

Imagine what would happen if more people tried? Or would people like you try to make them feel inferior and make them feel like they are wasting their time?

All you great letsrunners, the world class bigmouths.

I thought it was really good, but... I will save that for last.

After about 15 minutes I thought it was really going to be good, and for the most part I was not disappointed. I liked how they tried to explain how the body worked but kept it in simple terms. I liked hearing the stories of the different people and their various issues and struggles. Something that everyone at all levels of running could relate to.

The thing that I did not like was the ending. It seems like they tried to make it too dramatic. If they would have just kept telling the story like they did over the first 3/4 of the programm it would have been really good. Also, a follow up on the runners would have been good also. How they felt a few days later, are they still running,etc.

Overall I would give it a 4 out 5 just because of the ending. I would recommend others to watch if they get a chance.

I watched it and I applaud the people who made the effort to change their lives and get through the marathon. I just don't get the Boston Marathon "dumbing" itself down. Part of the mystic and glamour of this race in the past was that it was for faster runners who made their standards. Why were these 12 people, non-qualifiers, I-pod wearers, with their drug cheating coach (Utta Pipping) given numbers at all? The fastest time was around 4:10 which is a good effort for a first timer.... but not a BQ.

I thought it was very good, very real. Often us not-elite but not-penguin letsrunners seem to forget the JOY that can be running. I've yet to run a marathon (10 days away), but this helped me remember what can be so pure about the sport.

Burbot wrote:

I watched it and I applaud the people who made the effort to change their lives and get through the marathon. I just don't get the Boston Marathon "dumbing" itself down. Part of the mystic and glamour of this race in the past was that it was for faster runners who made their standards. Why were these 12 people, non-qualifiers, I-pod wearers, with their drug cheating coach (Utta Pipping) given numbers at all? The fastest time was around 4:10 which is a good effort for a first timer.... but not a BQ.

You too will get attacked for having a viewpoint other than fawning adoration for them.

mmaaa wrote:

Why did they choose Boston instead of a local half marathon or one of the smaller marathons in the country?

There is the point I was trying to make in case some of you aren't very good at understanding what you read. I said there are over 300 marathons so why Boston? Why RUIN the greatest race on Earth? And, of course, since you have no answer, you choose to avoid the issue and just tell me to "cry myself to sleep." You laugh now, but the day will come when charity runners are in the Olympic Trials. Their strength in numbers and most importantly their strength as a source of revenue will get them into the Trials, I promise. Can't wait for the day I see a 6-hour walker on his Sunday stroll through Central Park competing for a spot on the Olympic Team! THAT will be good TV!

ok, this is for you mmaaa, My wife just got home from the showing at WGBH. So, i can give you the numbers.

All but 2 are still running, 7 are signed up to run Boston next year with the Tuft's Presidents Marathon Challenge.

Not too shabby, don't ya think?

My questions from another thread:

Wes Holman wrote:

are really saying that they are mad at not getting enough attention. Strictly an ego thing.

Couldn't the same be said for those beginners who insist on doing a marathon right away instead of a shorter distance?

Why are the "faster" runners or anyone who dares comment on walkers always called out as egotistical, but nobody is allowed to question the motives of the walkers and why they choose to do marathons instead of halfs or 10k's?

Could it be because the 6 or 7 hour "runners" wouldn't get as much attention doing the shorter distance?