What’s so epcial about that time? Is it a qualifier of some kind? It’s not very fast (considering both men and women have gone under it), so what is it?
What’s so epcial about that time? Is it a qualifier of some kind? It’s not very fast (considering both men and women have gone under it), so what is it?
I don’t know about you, but 5.3 min miles sustained over 26 miles is pretty freakin impressive to me 
Then why not 2:15 or 2:20, make it more round?
Sorry, couldn’t help it since this is a triathlon site.
david
What are you talking about?
I saw in the other thread Mark Allen tried to run 2:18, but failed, so I was wondering what was special about this time.
some and the B standard is 2.22.
As a marathon it’s reasonably quick, would generally put you in the top 20-30 in most big marathons but you are right, its slower that the women and the chances are if Radcliffe ran the US mens qualifying she’d finish in the top 5 after KK, Dan Brown assuming he runs it, Culpeppar is not running the mara so she might even make the first alternate spot
Currently, to qualify for the U.S. Olympic marathon trials the A standard (meaning they pay your way to the race) is 2:20 or under. The B standard (you pay your own way) is 2:22.
I believe the significance of 2:18 is that it USED to be the A standard for the Olympic marathon trials (at the time Allen was trying to run a qualifier). Back then 2:20 was the B standard.
Since U.S. marathoning has turned to crap in recent years (with a few exceptions) they (I think USATF) relaxed the qualifying standards so that there’d be more than 15 people in the trials.
In 1994, Allen took a break from Hawaii and tried for 2 goals: One was an olympic-qualifying marathon time… not that he wanted to go to the olympics, but rather that he felt it would give more credibility to triathletes in the arena of “pure” running. As someone else said, he blew at about 18 miles. He said he was fit enough, but his legs had trouble with the pounding at that pace (and he runs 2:40 off the bike in 90 degree heat!).
His other goal that year was a sub-8 hour Ironman at Germany, but that, too, did not come to pass.
God bless.
I don’t know what 2:18 is supposed to demark other than a fast national level time. It is 5:15 pace if that’s any threshhold. On the international stage a 2:18 doesn’t get you much.
The interesting discussion is the history of fast Triathletes giving a go at the Mar. I know Christian Bustos (2nd IM Hawaii '92) ran a 2:16 at Frankfurt around that time. It was scary speed to bring to an IM, but M. Allen still blew him away at Kona race with another one of his 2:42’s.
Molina tried at Boston one year to get a qualifying time for the trials, but I believe he too, had a tough day and never got near it.
As toj and pdxjohn point out, it would put him in the top 10 American masters, and at 43, it would make him the oldest man to run that fast. For reference, the current 10th place marathon time is 2:18:31.
Granted, in a world of 2:10 runners from Kenya, it doesn’t sound that impressive, but it would make him the fastest 43 year old in America.
Not to be (too) sarcastic, but I know I’m not the only person out there who has heard of google.
I run with a guy who has run 2:18 and 2 or 3 2:19’s. Whats so great about it? Try running a 1:09 half if you really want to know what is great about it, or a sub 30 10km. Then when you have failed miserably you will know whats so great about it. When I’m doing mile repeats at 5:45 he can tell jokes, laugh, tell a story and keep me on pace for the whole workout. Or he can pace me through a 35min 10k road race and not break a sweat. It is also lots of fun getting spotted 300m on a 1200 and trying to hold him off. Or watching him blow past you at 4:15 pace on the track.
I know 2:18 isn’t world class, but its damn fast, especially when that speed is on the same track.
Currently, to qualify for the U.S. Olympic marathon trials the A standard (meaning they pay your way to the race) is 2:20 or under. The B standard (you pay your own way) is 2:22.
Sorry about that last post. What I meant to post was what do you get if you run 2:21?
Running 2:21 get you in under the B standard as stated above. Things have changed around the world, but if we are talking multi-sport people 2:21 gets you a lot of respect (whether you can bring on multi-sport day is another question).
I use to train with a guy that ran 2:10 one year at Boston. Granted, when we became friends it was more than 10 years after his best times were run, but it is evident that there is a physiological difference in people who can run like that. He was around 40 when we trained together, I was 12-14 years younger and trying to go under 30:00 for 10K. Even though he really didn’t train seriously, and was by his admission out of shape, and working full time as a custodian, physiologically he was just able to hang with me. I think that a 2:18 puts you into, or nearly into, that bracket of physicologically “different.” I can’t quantify it, but we all konw people like that . . . Sure, it is not that great on the world marathon level but it is a time that is hard to hit on just “training” alone. I trained my butt off to run 1:08 in a half, running 100+, however I concede that there is no way I could ever run 1:04 for the half, my body just cannot process oxygen like that. That is what is special about running in the 2:20 and under range in my opinion. In the alternative, if a sub 2:10 marathon runner looks at TT splits in olympic distance races in various places and sees that many people can ride well under a minute for 40K, he may be quick to assume “what is the big deal about riding 55 minutes for a 40K since so many people do it” until he actually tries it.
2:18 ah that’s nothing.
I have a friend from Brazil who ran a 2:13, oh and he did it barefoot. He grew up really poor and didn’t have money to buy running shoes. He has since moved to the US and now has a wife and a child and a house in CA and is building a house in Brazil for his family. When he came to the US he had 3 dollars and couldn’t speak english. It is a pretty cool story.
Really though 2:18 is flying. It always amazes me when you see people going that fast they never seem to look like they are going that fast.