Boston Marathon wanna-be

Your body can't keep up with your mental pace? Gee, that really doesn't
say much for your body.

hmm, just the kind of mean-spirited post i could do without. i guess i'm the
only runner ever who has dreamed of running much faster than they currently
can....

"Miss Anne Thrope" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Your body can't keep up with your mental pace? Gee, that really doesn't
say much for your body.

I'm a newbie too and hadn't seriously considered it, but...what exactly does
one have to do to qualify for Boston? And then if you do qualify, do you
still have to go through a lottery process to actually *get* in?

"brickled" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

hello all,

i am pushing 38 yrs old and for some reason can't get the lure of the BA
out
of my mind. i've just begun, albeit in a very unscientifical way, to
train.
after two days of running (two 4.5 mile runs - plenty of stops thru each
to
catch my breath) every inch of my body aches. i'm almost afraid to share
this aspiration with friends and family - i don't need everyone telling me
to give up as people tend to.

have any of you started so "late" in live and still qualified for the BA?
what advice could u give to someone whose body isn't keeping up with his
mental pace?

i want so badly to start seeing improvement in my pace/distance/physical
condition. hoping some of your experiences can help inspire me.

please share.....

you can find all the qualifying times and other such info at
www.bostonmarathon.com

"teknofyle" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I'm a newbie too and hadn't seriously considered it, but...what exactly

does

Quoted message said:

one have to do to qualify for Boston? And then if you do qualify, do you
still have to go through a lottery process to actually *get* in?

"brickled" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

hello all,

i am pushing 38 yrs old and for some reason can't get the lure of the BA
out
of my mind. i've just begun, albeit in a very unscientifical way, to
train.
after two days of running (two 4.5 mile runs - plenty of stops thru each
to
catch my breath) every inch of my body aches. i'm almost afraid to share
this aspiration with friends and family - i don't need everyone telling

me

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

to give up as people tend to.

have any of you started so "late" in live and still qualified for the

BA?

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

what advice could u give to someone whose body isn't keeping up with his
mental pace?

i want so badly to start seeing improvement in my pace/distance/physical
condition. hoping some of your experiences can help inspire me.

please share.....

brickled said:

hello all,

i am pushing 38 yrs old and for some reason can't get the lure of the BA out
of my mind. i've just begun, albeit in a very unscientifical way, to train.
after two days of running (two 4.5 mile runs - plenty of stops thru each to
catch my breath) every inch of my body aches. i'm almost afraid to share
this aspiration with friends and family - i don't need everyone telling me
to give up as people tend to.

have any of you started so "late" in live and still qualified for the BA?
what advice could u give to someone whose body isn't keeping up with his
mental pace?

i want so badly to start seeing improvement in my pace/distance/physical
condition. hoping some of your experiences can help inspire me.

please share.....

I saw lots and lots of books in the store the other day with the sole
purpose of training for your first marathon. Have you read through
anything like that?

I started competitive sports at 30 and was burned out by 35. I guess I
had a short fuse. But I don't think 38 is really all that old, in general.

-J

teknofyle said:

I'm a newbie too and hadn't seriously considered it, but...what
exactly does one have to do to qualify for Boston? And then if you do
qualify, do you still have to go through a lottery process to actually
*get* in?

This link will tell you everything you need to know:
http://www.baa.org/BostonMarathon/Qualifying.asp

Phil M.

--
"Learn from the mistakes of others. You can't live long enough to make
them all yourself." ­Martin Vanbee

Phil M. said:

teknofyle said:

I'm a newbie too and hadn't seriously considered it, but...what
exactly does one have to do to qualify for Boston? And then if you do
qualify, do you still have to go through a lottery process to actually
*get* in?

This link will tell you everything you need to know:
http://www.baa.org/BostonMarathon/Qualifying.asp

Phil M.

It's interesting that they maintain a 30 minute difference between times
allowed for men and women of the same age group, although the overall
allowed time grows as one moves from a younger age group to an older age group.

To me that means that older women have to be closer to men in their
finishing time than younger women. Is this something that actually
happens? Do men slow more than women as they age?

Just curious,
J

"brickled" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

hello all,

i am pushing 38 yrs old and for some reason can't get the lure of the BA

out

Quoted message said:

of my mind. i've just begun....

please share.....

Speaking from experience, it can be done at your age. I firmly believe that
anyone willing to put in the requisite miles is capable of completing a
marathon. Qualifying for Boston is another matter entirely that no amount
of training will guarantee.

Don't let others discourage you from reaching your potential, but don't set
yourself up for failure either:

That said, if your last two runs are any indication, you have either just
started running or have increased your distance significantly.

EXPERIENCE: Start by training and racing shorter distances to realistically
gauge your potential. If you are struggling to break 50 minutes for 10Ks,
Boston most likely will not be within your grasp.
Maintain a base of 15-20 miles per week for at least a year before training
for a marathon.

TRAINING: Follow (and complete) a regimented training plan -
www.halhigdon.com has plans for many abilities and distances.

EXECUTION: Establish a race plan and stick to it. If the course is not
flat, maintain consistent effort to achieve an average pace that will allow
you to finish within your goal time. Slow down on the ups and speed up on
the downs.

Good Luck,

Mike

brickled said:

hello all,

i am pushing 38 yrs old and for some reason can't get the lure of the
BA out of my mind. i've just begun, albeit in a very unscientifical
way, to train. after two days of running (two 4.5 mile runs - plenty
of stops thru each to catch my breath) every inch of my body aches.
i'm almost afraid to share this aspiration with friends and family - i
don't need everyone telling me to give up as people tend to.

have any of you started so "late" in live and still qualified for the
BA? what advice could u give to someone whose body isn't keeping up
with his mental pace?

i want so badly to start seeing improvement in my
pace/distance/physical condition. hoping some of your experiences can
help inspire me.

It sounds like you don't need inspiration. If anything, you need to get a
grip on what you're asking your body to do in such a short time. If you're
male you'll need to qualify for Boston at a certified marathon with a time
of 3:15 or better (7:26/mi pace). If you're female you'll need 3:45 or
better (8:35/mi pace). I'm a man of 47, so I need a 3:30 or better. I'm
hoping to get my BQ this October. Based on my training and current
condition, I believe I'm on pace to qualify. I have run 4 marathons in the
past as well as several half-marathons, 10Ks, and other various distances.
The main point is that you need to start from the begining and work up to
it very gradually. You should start by sitting down in your comfy chair and
reading a good book on basic endurance training.

Phil M.

--
"Learn from the mistakes of others. You can't live long enough to make
them all yourself." ­Martin Vanbee

jogger said:

"Phil M." wrote:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

This link will tell you everything you need to know:
http://www.baa.org/BostonMarathon/Qualifying.asp

Phil M.

It's interesting that they maintain a 30 minute difference between times
allowed for men and women of the same age group, although the overall
allowed time grows as one moves from a younger age group to an older age group.

To me that means that older women have to be closer to men in their
finishing time than younger women. Is this something that actually
happens? Do men slow more than women as they age?

Just curious,
J

In more detail, 18 year old men need to finish in 190 minutes, while 18
year old women need to finish in 220 minutes. Women are allowed 1.157
times longer than men at this level.

A 75 year old man is allowed 285 minutes, while a 75 year old woman is
allowed 315 minutes, only 1.105 times longer than men.

If that same spread were used in the first age group, women would need
to finish at 210 minutes, or 3 hrs 30 minutes, a full ten minutes faster
than is required now.

Reference numbers from website:
18-34 men- 3hrs 10min / women- 3hrs 40min
75-79 men- 4hrs 45min / women- 5hrs 15min

Trust me, 38 is *young*. Ran my first marathon just before my 45th
birthday, missed qualifying by 13 seconds. But now have qualified
for Boston several times (still haven't managed to schedule a trip
there yet, though). You do have lots of time. You'll need to
build up a good, solid base mileage before thinking about a marathon
training plan. That will most likely take several months at the
minimum. Most marathon training plans are then an additional 16-18
weeks of buildup in mileage. I would say to look for some local
shorter races as pre-goals and see how you like it. Then choose a
nice half-marathon after you are ready and run that. THEN start
thinking about training for your marathon. You really want to
take your time builing mileage so you don't get injured. I'd say
don't mention the Boston plans just yet, first do some local
races, then announce your plans. They'll probably believe you then,
and with luck support your efforts. Good luck!

Teresa in AZ (47 now and running Tucson Marathon again in Dec).

Quoted message said:

hello all,

i am pushing 38 yrs old and for some reason can't get the lure of the BA
out
of my mind. i've just begun, albeit in a very unscientifical way, to
train.
after two days of running (two 4.5 mile runs - plenty of stops thru each
to
catch my breath) every inch of my body aches. i'm almost afraid to share
this aspiration with friends and family - i don't need everyone telling me
to give up as people tend to.

have any of you started so "late" in live and still qualified for the BA?
what advice could u give to someone whose body isn't keeping up with his
mental pace?

i want so badly to start seeing improvement in my pace/distance/physical
condition. hoping some of your experiences can help inspire me.

please share.....

jogger said:

jogger said:

"Phil M." wrote:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

This link will tell you everything you need to know:
http://www.baa.org/BostonMarathon/Qualifying.asp

Phil M.

It's interesting that they maintain a 30 minute difference between
times allowed for men and women of the same age group, although the
overall allowed time grows as one moves from a younger age group to
an older age group.

To me that means that older women have to be closer to men in their
finishing time than younger women. Is this something that actually
happens? Do men slow more than women as they age?

Just curious,
J

In more detail, 18 year old men need to finish in 190 minutes, while
18 year old women need to finish in 220 minutes. Women are allowed
1.157 times longer than men at this level.

A 75 year old man is allowed 285 minutes, while a 75 year old woman is
allowed 315 minutes, only 1.105 times longer than men.

If that same spread were used in the first age group, women would need
to finish at 210 minutes, or 3 hrs 30 minutes, a full ten minutes
faster than is required now.

Reference numbers from website:
18-34 men- 3hrs 10min / women- 3hrs 40min
75-79 men- 4hrs 45min / women- 5hrs 15min

The Boston Athletic Associatoin sets the rules. My guess is that they do
not set the qualifying standards based on any standard, but rather on the
distribution of ages and sexes that have actually qualified and showed up
on marathon day. If they feel there were too many in a particular age
group, they might make the qualifying standard a little more difficult
for that AG.

Phil M.

--
"Learn from the mistakes of others. You can't live long enough to make
them all yourself." ­Martin Vanbee

Quoted message said:

I'm a newbie too and hadn't seriously considered it, but...what exactly does
one have to do to qualify for Boston?

Send me money, I'll get you in.

Quoted message said:

I'm a newbie too and hadn't seriously considered it, but...what exactly does
one have to do to qualify for Boston?

Send me money, I'll get you in.

Phil M. said:

The Boston Athletic Associatoin sets the rules. My guess is that they do
not set the qualifying standards based on any standard, but rather on the
distribution of ages and sexes that have actually qualified and showed up
on marathon day. If they feel there were too many in a particular age
group, they might make the qualifying standard a little more difficult
for that AG.

Phil M.

I'm not entirely sure what you're saying. Bear with me, I'm slow. But I
looked at the stats from last year, here they are.
From 2004 statistics
Runners by Age Group (#entered, #started, #finished, % finished)

Open 18-39
male 4811 4293 3996 93.1%
female 4585 3932 3691 93.9%

Masters 40-49
male 4622 4113 3873 94.2%
female 2394 2098 1986 94.7%

Veterans 50-59
male 2460 2205 2037 92.4%
female 613 531 482 90.8%

Seniors 60-69
male 672 593 533 89.9%
female 100 84 76 90.5%

70 & Over
male 82 75 57 76.0%
female 5 2 2 100.0%

number of men entering compared to number of women entering:

open- 1.049 men to each woman
masters- 1.93 men to each woman
veterans- 4.01 men to each woman
seniors- 6.72 men to each woman
70&over- 16.4 men to each woman

Looking at those numbers, I think that old ladies are the last group
that should be made more competitive by harder qualifying standards.And
maybe the reason that the numbers look that way is that it's
proportionately harder for old ladies to make the qualifying time?

As I'm rapidly becoming an old lady, I probably find this more
interesting than others, I know

-J

jogger said:

Phil M. said:

The Boston Athletic Associatoin sets the rules. My guess is that they
do not set the qualifying standards based on any standard, but rather
on the distribution of ages and sexes that have actually qualified
and showed up on marathon day. If they feel there were too many in a
particular age group, they might make the qualifying standard a
little more difficult for that AG.

Phil M.

I'm not entirely sure what you're saying. Bear with me, I'm slow. But

What I'm saying is that the BAA sets the rules. They are not required to
follow any particular standard, no matter how strange that standard.

Phil M.

--
"Learn from the mistakes of others. You can't live long enough to make
them all yourself." ­Martin Vanbee

On Tue, 31 Aug 2004 14:31:27 GMT, "brickled" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

hello all,

i am pushing 38 yrs old and for some reason can't get the lure of the BA out
of my mind. i've just begun, albeit in a very unscientifical way, to train.
after two days of running (two 4.5 mile runs - plenty of stops thru each to
catch my breath) every inch of my body aches. i'm almost afraid to share
this aspiration with friends and family - i don't need everyone telling me
to give up as people tend to.

have any of you started so "late" in live and still qualified for the BA?
what advice could u give to someone whose body isn't keeping up with his
mental pace?

i want so badly to start seeing improvement in my pace/distance/physical
condition. hoping some of your experiences can help inspire me.

please share.....

I started running at 38 and qualified for Boston at my first marathon,
two years later. The key is the "two years later" part. It's great
that you've started running, and it's great that you want to run
Boston someday, but the thing you need most is the ability to keep
Boston in mind for the next long while, as you increase your
endurance, speed, and stamina bit by bit by bit. You've been running
two days. Multiply that by 365, or some other number.

Phil M. said:

What I'm saying is that the BAA sets the rules. They are not required to
follow any particular standard, no matter how strange that standard.

Phil M.

--
"Learn from the mistakes of others. You can't live long enough to make
them all yourself." –Martin Vanbee

Ah, I see. I wasn't holding you responsible for the qualifying times 🙂
But it was you who posted the link to them, so I responded to your post
when asking about them. Simply trying to keep a context flowing in the
thread and all that. I didn't expect you personally to explain it all to
my satisfaction.

I know they are free to set any standards they want. And I am free to
ask about them. I've shunned other races because I didn't like the
organizers' policies, but I do try to understand why they are the way
they are before I pass negative judgment. So I did wonder if the
difference between men and women narrowed with age, or if they just
didn't care so much about maintaining a level of consistency for their
qualifying times. It's interesting to discuss, to me, but not
particularly important, as I'll never ever run that fast over 42 k.

-J

"jogger" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

As I'm rapidly becoming an old lady, I probably find this more
interesting than others, I know

So, the older you get the more rapidly we age? I agree but I'm old
and can't count. 😉
-DF