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London Marathon 2020

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jda
Aug 2020
4:48pm, 17 Aug 2020
8,131 posts
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jda
But you still have the London place, right? It's just that to start near the front, you need to show you are worth it. Which doesn't exactly seem intolerably onerous to me. GFA isn't a reward for someone who used to be quick in their youth, it's so the serious runners don't have to wade though a pack of joggers/walkers. There will always be a few in that pen who are off their best for any number of reasons but I don't see why anyone would think the organisers ought to increase this proportion.
Aug 2020
5:00pm, 17 Aug 2020
432 posts
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Spideog
A place in 2022 or a consolation place in 2023 is of no value to me. I can run another event by then and get a GFA place through the normal methods, or if I can't then I'm no longer good for age so won't get a place.

What I require is the GFA place which I have currently earnt and have an additional time to show I'm still good for age as recently as last years London Marathon, but instead they want me to run a solo time trial at the same pace as when I was racing last year and with unknown additional proof which they haven't told us anything about yet.
Aug 2020
5:14pm, 17 Aug 2020
11,717 posts
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larkim
You're in the worst of all positions spideog with your GFA 2018 and VLM 2019 times, I sympathise and can empathise - I ran a 3:14 when 3:14:59 was allowable and then they changed it to 3:10 when I had no opportunity to rectify it so I felt I'd had a GFA place snatched from me too.

But it is, at the end of the day, only a race.
Aug 2020
6:18pm, 17 Aug 2020
3,139 posts
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Little Miss Happy
I doubt very much they will be manufacturing more medals and t-shirts so that they can increase places in the virtual race. I read it that you had to have an existing GFA to use the virtual race as a qualifier - wasn't it in the section for runners so only for those who already had a place?
Aug 2020
8:57pm, 17 Aug 2020
7 posts
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Chrismean
Little Miss Happy - it's not under a specific section (the virtual race as a qualifier) - it is under the general FAQs
JR
Aug 2020
10:28pm, 17 Aug 2020
721 posts
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JR
Surely you don’t need to do anything as fancy as manipulate a gpx file but simply give your watch to a faster club mate who can jog round with it?
Aug 2020
10:36pm, 17 Aug 2020
2,885 posts
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Pothunter
If you see some bloke tearing along with multiple garmins on each arm you know what he’s up to :-)
JR
Aug 2020
10:45pm, 17 Aug 2020
724 posts
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JR
Now there’s a plan pothunter! :) Maybe I can offer my services for any septuagenarian or octogenarians who might like a GFA time :)
Aug 2020
11:49pm, 17 Aug 2020
433 posts
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Spideog
Make sure cadence and HR are all turned off, put several phones and watches in a bag, take it in turns to run 10km with your buddies who are looking for a GFA time. Get another freind to take a couple of photos of you all looking knackered afterwards and just say you ran as a pace group all the way.
Aug 2020
6:16am, 18 Aug 2020
3,140 posts
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Little Miss Happy
Chrismean - not trying to be awkward or argue the point too much as I don't know the answer either but my interpretation was that the email with the link to the FAQ was only sent to people who had an entry in this year's race so therefore would only apply to them.

About This Thread

Maintained by larkim
Endless discussion about will it happen, won't it happen for VMLM 2020
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