racing a marathon on old flats--what's the worst that can happen

Stick with the old pair, dont risk a change,

flats give you more stability, due to less rocking and rolling. obviously a lighter shoe helps your pace. either you run faster or you run easier at a given pace.

just dont start the race too fast and you'll be fine.

I used a maltodextrin carbo gel to avoid the wall, it worked a treat.

Go with the 330's, or you'll be mad that you didn't the rest of the time. Hahaha, I fret about this too. It would really save a lot of stress if I only had one pair of flats. You know you want to run the 330's, and they are still in good shape - run in them. Good luck in the marathon

Stick with the old light ones.

MP - stick with the old ones, my man.

MattP, you cant let us all down now we are counting on you not to make us all look foolish.

good look in Huntsville

One great thing about this board is that it's never hard to get good advice. Thanks guys.

There is always the "stone" test. If you can feel pebbles sharply digging into your foot from under the sole of the shoe if you walk or run over them, they've just about had it. You can wear a slightly cushier sock for this run if you think the shoes are a little hardened or the midsole is thinned from being worn out.

At 200 miles you should still be able to squeeze a decent marathon out of them--NBs tend to have pretty fair longevity compared to most mainstream brands. Of course, Bekile ran a nice little marathon in 1960 (Rome Olympics) barefoot so perhaps shoes are overrated.

It'll probably be time to retire them and treat yourself to some well-earned new flats for Christmas after the marathon. Good luck.