Ineos 1:59 Challenge

[Alfred_E._Neuman]

Anybody else keeping up with this at all?
Eliud Kipchoge is going to try and run 26.2 in under 2 hours this Saturday morning. Not an official WR due to the pacing strategy, but still will go down as maybe the single most impressive feat of human endurance if he can do it.
Live stream on youtube for free Saturday morning.

[Fat Cat]

maybe the single most impressive feat of human endurance if he can do it.

It's a big deal but I don't know about that level of hyperbole boss.

[Alfred_E._Neuman]

I don't know. I tend to think these efforts in the 1-2 hour range at crazy intensity is a much more challenging task than the ultra distances at lower intensity. There's just something especially gut wrenching about walking that line between barely able to maintain it and blowing the fuck up.
The 2 hour marathon is just about the last of the "unbreakable" barriers left in traditional distance running. One of the only other high intensity endurance records remaining would be the cycling hour record getting pushed past the 60 kilometer mark. The level of intensity that has to be maintained is insane. It's something like a 4:37 mile 26 times in a row.

[nafod]

Anybody else keeping up with this at all?
Eliud Kipchoge is going to try and run 26.2 in under 2 hours this Saturday morning. Not an official WR due to the pacing strategy...

Pacing strategy...so he's running it through a white neighborhood while wearing a hoodie?

[nafod]

Well OK then...



He ran every single mile faster than I can run a mile. Or 400M, probably.

[Alfred_E._Neuman]

When I do my strides and top end speed work, I get around 3:50-4:00 pace for a bit. 200m repeats are at about his record pace. Absolutely staggering he did that for 26.2 miles.

[newguy]

Was there a crutch? Meaning he had a van in front of him so he could draft....it was downhill......anything like that?

[Alfred_E._Neuman]

Was there a crutch? Meaning he had a van in front of him so he could draft....it was downhill......anything like that?

There was a car maybe 50 meters in front of the pace group that was beaming a laser onto the ground in front of the pacers that kept them in their exact lanes and on a perfect 2:50/km pace. The car wasn't part of the drafting strategy, it was just there to beam the laser. The aerodynamics guy actually said he would have preferred not to have a car in front as it put up a bit of turbulent air for the leaders to push.

The real wind cutting was done by the pacers. Inverted V of 5 guys with Eliud running just behind the center pacer. Two more pacers were just behind him on either side. They switched groups every 5k. Eliud also had his manager on a bike beside the group so he could ride over and give him drinks and gels.

The course played a role as well. I've never seen a road that straight and flat. Over the 9.5k loop, there was something like 2 meters of elevation gain and loss. The roundabouts at the ends were much bigger than a 400m track, so no speed was lost even turning around.

Looking at how much he had left when he smelled the barn with ~1k to go, there was more in it. I think he goes head to head with Bekele in Japan next year and takes gold. If that happens I think he'll retire. Or maybe give sub 2 a go at Berlin for a legit IAAF WR. So maybe 2 more full gas efforts left in him at 26.2.

[seeahill]

This distance takes me 6 hours. Those people who want to get it over with in 2 are just lazy.

[Alfred_E._Neuman]

I've gotten into the 20's in a day on hikes before. And I was carrying all my stuff for the night. So 2 hours and no backpack is just phoning in the effort.

[SubClaw]

Just to put things in perspective...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ds21U7coQzI