Marathon challenge

[polaco]

Hi all:

During this covid19 difficult times some rowers of my club (Olimpic Barcelona) are using RowPro to keep motivation. We are so motivated (insanely motivated I would say) that we are going to row a Marathon next May 1st 7:00 GMT, please feel find to join us! the more the merrier!

Bests!!!

[Carl Watts]

Good luck the FM is the hardest event to try and finish not only for you but your computer to maintain the connection to the Rowpro race server for 3 hours.

HM is fine but i dont think I ever want to do another FM. Its gets pretty nasty with the time zones as well so yours is 7pm to 10pm local time here still not as bad as the first one I tried that started at 3am local time.

Good luck.

[polaco]

.... but your computer to maintain the connection to the Rowpro race server for 3 hours....

Thanks Carls, indeed having the connection working is going to be the most challenging part of it, personally I have rowed two FM on the erg and another OTW at Dusseldorf and I remember all of them with great pain in my ass

For this one we want to take it easy, slow pace and stops when needed and hopefully a BBQ at the end

BEsts

[mitchel674]

.... but your computer to maintain the connection to the Rowpro race server for 3 hours....

Thanks Carls, indeed having the connection working is going to be the most challenging part of it, personally I have rowed two FM on the erg and another OTW at Dusseldorf and I remember all of them with great pain in my ass

For this one we want to take it easy, slow pace and stops when needed and hopefully a BBQ at the end

BEsts

What pace do you think most will be rowing? I might be interested, but like Carl, I am very concerned about a dropped connection ruining my row.

[polaco]

I am very concerned about a dropped connection ruining my row.

Hi, I will not worry about ruining the row, if the connection drops you PM still works, you just stop at Rowpro, anyway we are going to set a ZOOM meeting for anyone without Rowpro or just to keep feeling connected if the connection drops.

For anyone interested the zoom meeting link is this:


OLIMPIC MARATHON CHALLENGE
Hora: 1 may 2020 09:00 AM Amsterdam, Berlín, Roma, Estocolmo, Viena

Unirse a la reunión Zoom/Join at
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81208248850?p ... o0M1FsZz09

ID de reunión/Meeting ID: 812 0824 8850
Contraseña/Password: 663575

[wphunter]

I’ve done a few half marathons, and am thinking about doing a marathon in next months challenge, but am wondering whether to try or not considering my longest row is about 22kms so far. Any recommendations on making the jump from half to full marathon, preparation etc? My main concern is being able to sit for more than 90 minutes, which is my time for a half marathon. Thank you.

[Dangerscouse]

I’ve done a few half marathons, and am thinking about doing a marathon in next months challenge, but am wondering whether to try or not considering my longest row is about 22kms so far. Any recommendations on making the jump from half to full marathon, preparation etc? My main concern is being able to sit for more than 90 minutes, which is my time for a half marathon. Thank you.

Making the jump from a HM to a FM isn't a bad idea, but it will be hard work. If you're not too bothered about the time and just want to finish, factoring in a few breaks will be a good idea.

A big part of the preparation is your mindset, as it is not comparable to a HM, and it is said that you're training for the last 10k of a FM. Be prepared for when your mind is becoming your worst enemy and is convincing you to stop, and then remember why you started.

How have the HMs felt to you, and what was your drinks/ carbs strategy, if you have had one?

[wphunter]

No drink or carbs strategy. I usually just drink when i finish, but have not done more than 22km to date. I row to lose weight, so dieting and burning carbs on the erg.

[Carl Watts]

The FM is simply horrible, I have only completed one of them.

The difference between a HM and a FM is huge. You can bash out a HM on a daily basis during a Challenge because you can complete it without a drinks break, try doing that with a FM and you hit the wall at about 32km. You simply need a line of 750ml bottles full of Electrolytes or your vision goes and you start hallucinating. You need to start sipping away while rowing from the start, not wait until you fall off the erg.

As already pointed out the last 10k is murder, your head is spinning and you have what looks like a whole hour still to row.

I'm all in for a HM but you can forget about a FM these days !!!!

The worst ever massive simultaneous full leg cramps ever in both legs when I finished. It was not fun.

[Dangerscouse]

No drink or carbs strategy. I usually just drink when i finish, but have not done more than 22km to date. I row to lose weight, so dieting and burning carbs on the erg.

That's good. I don't drink anything if it's less than 30k, so that will help at least to some extent.

I really enjoy 50/50 diluted fruit juice (my fav is apple and mango, but any will do) and add in a teaspoon of sugar and a big pinch of salt (glucose makes the fructose easier to absorb) into a 750ml bottle of water. I'd have two of them for a FM, and maybe a energy gel before I start, along with some pieces of banana as I progress.

Rather than repeat myself, search for '100k' and you'll see a post I made with some advice that is also very appropriate for a FM. I've also done a post on 'Coping Strategies' that might be useful.

[wphunter]

Any recommendations on how to break the total distance up?

[Dangerscouse]

Any recommendations on how to break the total distance up?

In terms of having breaks to stop, stretch and drink? I don't stop, but I guess it depends on what your target is. Maybe 10k or 17k?

Personally I find stopping can sometimes make it difficult to get started again, so I'm not a fan of it unless I really have to.

[DavidA]

Any recommendations on how to break the total distance up?

In terms of having breaks to stop, stretch and drink? I don't stop, but I guess it depends on what your target is. Maybe 10k or 17k?

Personally I find stopping can sometimes make it difficult to get started again, so I'm not a fan of it unless I really have to.

I'm similar. I don't like to take breaks - I find it pretty much impossible to convince myself to restart

David

[Carl Watts]

Depends on your goals if you want to take breaks you can. Depends on if you just want to finish it or you have a time goal.

For me I had a time goal to complete it in under 3 hours so stopping was not really an option, it totally stuffs you average pace. Only stopped once because annoyingly a Courier knocked on the front door so I shot down the stairs to sign for a package and could have only lost about 1 minute but spent the next hour trying to claw back that lost time to catch up again with a guy that I was rowing alongside in RowPro as a pace boat.

Probably better to just row slightly slower than to take breaks. Making up lost time of only a second or 2 every 500meters is painfully slow.

[wphunter]

One more question, better to try and row a consistent pace throughout, or break up into sets such as 10km followed by 500m or so at a slower pace and repeat?