Why don't we just go back to the 1970s-early 80s for the running part of our training methods for marathon?

EZ10Miler wrote:

Read about Bill Squires training with the Boston Track Club.

It's all still applicable today. Heck we're doing the same thing we just call it something else.

I lived in Boston from '84 to 85' and went to the Boston College track a few times to run repeats. I would try now and then to hang on to the back of a pack doing 400's and 800's. Even at near 65 sec. quarter pace for 400, I would be watching this huge group of men and women quickly fade into the distance ahead of me. And I mean every one of them. That was the Boston Track Club at the time.

Sad, the track has been gone for some time.

You know who has great and wonderful stories about trainin and racing ? Orville Atkins. Not of the 70s late 50s and 60s

patti wrote:

Sad, the track has been gone for some time.

You know who has great and wonderful stories about trainin and racing ? Orville Atkins. Not of the 70s late 50s and 60s

We need to find a way to make him immortal so he can post here forever.

Good stuff HRE. Thanks for the response.

I've got a pretty good long run group but am lucky to have anyone with me on the track as we are all on different schedules during the week. Yesterday I happened upon the Letsrun video of Kipchoge doing a track workout in Eldoret in preparation for the breaking2 run. There must have been 50 runners working out at the same time. It was an unbelievable yet enlightening sight. Never seen anything like that here.

Yes, we do. He's a gem and an eloquent story teller.

patti wrote:

Oh great AJ!

You running Chicago? Wow, good for you.

please keep us posted about you race . Ok? I d enjoy hearing about it ALL.

Its in the details, like life.

Yes. I'll keep you posted. Fingers crossed for cold weather.

HRE wrote:

Ghost of Igloi wrote:

I finished 4th in a 2.13 mile race last Saturday. There were 97 competitors, I ran 15:56 (15:09 for 2 miles). I will be 67 next week. The race was won at 6:00 miles. The announcer was both surprised at my time and age.

Igy

I used to see your name in the lists in National Masters News and then when I saw your posts on the "Igloi" thread it struck me that I hadn't seen your name there for a while and wondered if you hadn't been racing. But then I remembered that my subscription had lapsed for a while so maybe that was why. Anyway, that's cool. Nice giong and happy birthday.

HRE,

Great post above this one. I think that really explains it. After one of my better races I showed up for the awards in my cotton sweats. The winner some Finnish athlete was there with his handlers, all decked out. I was doing it because it was something I enjoyed, just trying to get better. At some point it would end, and for me it was age 26. Wouldn't you know it, I went into coaching.

In regards to masters racing, life got in the way. On the personal side, aging parents and kids transitioning pretty much took out ages 59-65. Raced some, but I did not train with conviction. Around the same time had some issues with my hip, that I have recently worked around. So trying to get back into it, at least locally for sure. If I can hit All-American Standard times I would send the bucks to go to a national meet.

I really enjoy your thoughtful posts. I can tell when someone actually has some experience in the sport. Pretty easy.

Igy

Not to belabor the point, but I've got BR's 2 bios, FS's 2 bios, Beardsley, Jack Welch's bio, and so on.... But your story - you gotta admit - packs some serious drama in its own right, too. Getting off the bar stool, running in the Earth Shoes, the brutal training routine, etc. As they used to say, "...you got good copy..." All the incidental stuff along with the competition stuff would be of great interest. Honestly (here's the guilt trip), your experiences would be of tremendous value to the up-and-coming young lady runners out there. That's it - I won't nag; but, self-publishing is quite the ticket these days.

(Actually, my wife and I met you once at Charlotte Marathon - back in your adidas days. She's from Malden, and we also met BR at Charlotte - they had a good talk.)

HRE is a great example - 150mpw and ran 2:35, 32:20. Kids today realize what's the point? In the 80s they didn't really understand genetics like we do today. HRE would have run 2:35 and 32:20 on 80mpw based on today's science and training methodology. Same holds true for high school kids. HS kids in the 80s ran 100+ miles week and are slower than kids right now. My neighbor's kid just went 8:52i in high school last year and he's at 40mpw.

The ROI is not there unless you simply love to run run over 2.5 hours daily. I did peak right under 140mpw but I only ran 2:30 and 14:20s on the track. Now as a Master I'm just happy at sub-15:40 on the weekends and won't touch the marathon.

Alright, this all being said, I did order up Craig Virgin's book and it just arrived, so let me revel in the 1980s with "Virgin Territory."

HRE. Exactly! That's exactly how it was in back in the day. All by feel. Just get out and run, and try to run a little faster in the next race. Bad races, there was always another run, and you forgot about the bad race soon enough. It was more about the journey. Elite, national class? 99% of us were not but that didn't stop us from the journey or 100+ miles etc. Heck, I think I did 150+ one week between high school and university, during the 1,000 mile summer trend back then. Good idea? Probably not but I didn't get hurt for over 10 years running on high mileage. Summers? Worked construction in Florida, ran in the morning and ran at night. That was the early 70's. And I had a connection with the Florida Track club in Jerry Slaven, mentioned a lot in the Bachelor article, was my junior high coach and kept in touch with him while he was in Florida. Extreme? Maybe for today, but some of us in the 70's and 80's didn't think so. We just ran.

patti wrote:

A disappintment I have about the modern runner are all of the gadgets. To me they displace distract, interrupt, stagnant passion. To feel strong, free, tough and capable in an element of fear of failure, thats what I learned in my running without the gadgets. .

I laugh at the guys that go out there and look like a running store fell on their head as well. They have it ALL compression knee socks, iPod on the arm, phone, sunglasses, hat, arm sleeves, compression shorts, long running shorts, fuel belt, gu, camel back... It's ridiculous.

I run in shoes, socks, shorts, and that's it unless it's cold. These folks are missing out on one of the great things about being a runner. Its an excuse to run around half naked w/o being arrested.

I think 2 big things are different from back then: 1. A good portion of the runners in the field were former track athletes, or athletes from other sports looking to do something post HS or college. They still had that urge to compete, so race were just that- races. 2. There weren't as many races, so all the runners in a particular town were all racing in that event. In my town now there are so many races that if you run a 15 min 5K you can shop around and win one of those races, instead of coming in bottom part of the top 10 if they (top runners) were all in one place.

That summer between high school and university, I ran mostly in a racing flat. I had one of the very first Nike racing flats. It was blue and white nylon, like the Tiger flat. Ran over 1,000 miles that summer in them and never got hurt. Move to 80 and I was now wearing more bulkier shoes and got hurt twice compared to training in racing flats. Again we just ran, no specifics, get out and run everyday, make it up as you go. Over trained? Maybe but we just went out and ran. Hammer out a few more miles, see what happens.

Most of today's road "races" aren't races, they are fun runs with a dozen or so people trying to run as fast as possible, who for the most part, are at very different levels of ability from each other, essentially making the event not nearly as attractive to someone who wants to mix it up with a bunch of similarly fit serious runners.

thank you again for your encouragement. After searching for days, I found t he thumb drive and Danny ecplaibed how to open it. So twelve chapters done and more to follow. We'll see.

let us know about Craigs book. I heard he's back on his parents farm.

I received an advance copy of some chapters from Mr. Marathon Man, but couldnt get it to open. The blind leading the blind..

Please create a backup of your files, just as a precautionary measure! :)

I think maybe the whole point was to go to the extreme. Someone mentioned that with modern training methods I could have gotten my best times on 80 miles a week. I'm really skeptical about that but even if it's true, where's the fun in doing that?

Thanks! I totally agree with your last two sentences which is why threads like this are so enjoyable. If you don't mind my asking, what does an Igloi/Tabori/Douglas guy do with his running at 67?

HRE, Right, huh? LOL!

I don't know if I raced to run or run to race. I just love to run to my hearts content or if I have to get home and put dinner on.