Bestzeiten/Personal best:

Bestzeiten/Personal best
10 km: 42 min 53 sec (2011) *** 21,1 km: 1h 37min 35sec (2009) *** 42,2 km: 3h 30min 33sec (2009) ***
56 km (Two Oceans):
4h 54min 00sec (2011) *** 89 km (Comrades uphill): 8h 49min (2015)


Samstag, 30. März 2013

Quick update - Kurze Info Two Oceans Ultra Marathon 2013

Quick update on the Two Oceans Ultra Marathon 2013, 30th of March 2013:

It all went very well, running with my blind partner Hein Wagner, and we managed to arrive almost exactly according to the plan after 5h 50 min.

More information and pictures will be posted soon...

***

Kurze Info zum Two Oceans Ultra Marathon am 30.03.2013:

Alles lief bestens mit meinem Laufpartner, dem blinden Hein Wagner, und wir kamen fast genauso wie geplant nach 5 Stunden und 50 Minuten im Ziel an.

Ausführliche Infos und Bilder demnächst hier...




Freitag, 29. März 2013

Hein Wagner and Axel Rittershaus Test Run for Two Oceans Ultra Marathon 2013 - 29.03.2013

Just after the Two Oceans Marathon International Friendship Run I met my running partner Hein Wagner (http://www.heinwagner.co.za) for a short training run.




We wanted to do see how we get along and how works when I need to guide him being connected through a rope.

And it went very well. We ran for about 2.5 km and feel very strong and confident for tomorrows Two Oceans Ultra Marathon in Cape Town.



Hein is an amazing guy, look at his website: http://www.heinwagner.co.za

I am so much looking forward to running with Hein!

And if you don't know the story behind that running partnership, look at this post about how my plans for the Two Oceans Ultra 2013 changed:
http://ultra-marathon-man.blogspot.com/2013/03/change-of-plans-for-my-two-oceans-ultra.html



Donnerstag, 28. März 2013

Two Oceans Ultra Marathon 2013 Registration (English) - 28. March 2013


The excitement is tangible... (die Deutsche Version dieses Beitrags finden Sie hier...)

This morning (Thursday, 2 days before race day) I went to the registration for the Two Oceans Ultra Marathon 2013.


At 10 o'clock they open the gates and at 9.50 there was quite a nice queue waiting in the lobby.


But the Organizers managed it all perfectly. From 10 o'clock on they opened the doors for a number of runners to avoid a hassle at the registration tables. The third batch to go in included me and 5 minutes later I received my race pack.


Perfect job, dear Two Oceans Marathon Organization.

After registration I looked at the different shops at the expo and was happy when I found some nice summer running gear at the Adidas store.




For all of you who are struggling with the winter: This stuff is made for running when the temperatures are above +20°C ;)

Only two more days... ;)

Two Oceans Ultra Marathon 2013 Registrierung - 28.03.2013

Die Spannung ist greifbar... (the English version of this post about the Two Oceans Ultra Marathon registration 2013 can be found here...)

Heute morgen ging es überpünktlich zur Registrierung für den Two Oceans Ultra 2013.


Um 10 Uhr öffnen die Tore und um 09.50 Uhr war bereits eine Schlange vor der Türe zu sehen.


Die Organisatoren haben aber alles perfekt vorbereitet: Es wurden Punkt 10 Uhr immer eine gewisse Menge an Läufern eingelassen, um das Gedränge bei der Nummernausgabe zu verhindern. Beim dritten Anlauf war auch ich dabei - und 5 Minuten später hatte ich meine Startunterlagen.


Vorbildliche Organisation!

Dann noch eine Runde auf der Expo und ein erfreulicher Einkauf von tollen Laufklamotten von Adidas für sommerliche Temperaturen.



Für die wintergeschädigten Nordeuropäer: Diese kurzen Sachen zieht man an, wenn das Thermometer +20°C zeigt ;)

Die Vorfreude steigt... ;)

Mittwoch, 27. März 2013

Change of plans for my Two Oceans Ultra Marathon 2013

Yesterday, Tuesday the 26th of March, 4 days before race day, I received a call from the Two Oceans Marathon Organization.
Since they know me from my 2012 Pace Setter activities, my name got into their mind, when they faced a challenging situation:

One of the runners at the Ultra is going to be the blind adventurer and motivational speaker Hein Wagner (http://www.heinwagner.co.za/). It's going to be the first Ultra Marathon in his life, after finishing several huge sports events, and also a preparation run for his Ironman 2 weeks later.

Now - his running partner who would have guided him through the race can't make it and they need a guide for Hein. And they did ask me.

I still get goosebumps from writing this. Because one of the themes of Two Oceans Marathon is "run for more than yourself".

For this year I had no special plans for my race, because I know I am not fit enough to run a personal best (sub 5h).Last year I ran for the group I was guiding as their pace setter.

It took a few minutes to make a decision:

I knew, that I felt strong enough to run a 5h 15min or slower and Hein's plans are rather a 5h45min which should be in my range anyway.
But it's a different story to run for a group that could carry on even without me as their pace setter - because they can run without a pace setter - and now having a person who would rely on me 100%.

If I can't run, he can't run. If I can't finish, he can't finish. That's a different kind of responsibility.

But, as many of you might expect, I accepted with pleasure.

I want to thank Stefanie from Two Oceans for giving me the opportunity to run for much more than myself and I want to thank Hein for his trust in me.

On Friday, the day before the race, we will meet for a short "test run".

Wish us luck!

And my finish time can be expected at 11:15 MEZ or 12:15 CAT after approx 5h 45 min.

More posts related to this topic:

  1. Hein Wagner and Axel Rittershaus Test Run for Two Oceans Ultra Marathon 2013
  2. FINISH Line Video with Hein Wagner and Axel Rittershaus finishing the 2013 Two Oceans Ultra Marathon 
  3. Quick update - how did the race go
  4. Two Oceans Marathon International Friendship Run 2013
  5. How to run a Sub 6h Two Oceans Ultra Marathon (56 km) - Pace Charts and more from the official Puma Pacer 2012 Axel Rittershaus


Dienstag, 26. März 2013

How to run a Sub 6h Two Oceans Ultra Marathon

In 2012 I had the privilege of being an official pace setter for the Two Oceans Ultra Marathon (56 km) with the goal of finishing just under 6 hours (Two Oceans Ultra 2012 Review)

It took me quite some time to calculate the right strategy and make it work for runners who are just ready running the necessary pace. Since my personal best from 2011 is a 4h 54min, I had to adjust my own strategy.

And it did work - we finished in 5h 51min.



For all runners, especially the novices or everyone aspiring a sub 6 h run, this is the strategy I used and that did work so well:

km mark time
10 0 h 59 min
20 1 h 57 min
28 2 h 43 min
33.5 3 h 21 min
37 3 h 41 min
42 4 h 12 min
46 4 h 48 min
56 5 h 51 min

Why did I use this strategy?

As you can see, on the first 28 km we are just a little bit faster than a 6 min/km pace.
If you just look at the numbers for the race, a 6min 16 sec/km would be sufficient for a sub 6h.

This would be right, if the race would be flat. But it is NOT FLAT.
And since the hardest part comes after the marathon mark, you need to win some time on the first half of the race. Otherwise, if you start with the 6:16 pace right from the start, you will not make it in time, because the hills will cost you too much time.

The most important two sections are the Chapmans Peak (from 33 km) and Constantia Nek (from 42 km).

I used this strategy for those two make or break parts of the race:

Chapmans Peak:
It's about 4 km long, consisting of a short uphill, a downhill and a longer uphill section. The overall pace for this section should be around 7min/km. So you can run slowly uphill and run smooth during the short downhill section. Remember: I'm still talking about the uphill part of Chapmans Peak.

Chapmans Peak is also key on the downhill. There is one rule:

DO NOT RACE DOWNHILL

The pace on the Chappie downhill should be not faster than 5:45 min/km. Even if you feel that you could run faster, DO NOT RACE DOWNHILL.Because the few seconds you might win here will cost you minutes on Constantia Nek.

Constantia Nek:
Just after reaching the Marathon mark, the race begins. The uphill to Constantia Nek is a 4 km winding road and many lost their Personal Best here, because they were not prepared for it.

Due to the good work in being a bit faster in the first half gives you the absolute freedom and pleasure of  WALKING UP Constantia Nek completely.
Just after the Marathon mark you will find an ondulating route and as soon as the real hill starts, this strategy becomes fun, at about 43.5 km.

Walk with a pace of some 9 min /km. Therefore the uphill section will not be as exhausting - it will rather give you the opportunity to regain some energy. Yes!

When you are on top of Constantia Nek, there are about 10 km to go. According to the strategy you will be on top after some 4h 48 min or so.

Do not think you can race home now! Run smooth and with a pace of about 6 - 6min 20/km.

The last 10 km are ondulating and with 3 km to go you will hit the last uphill part. And you should walk the 200 - 300m uphill again.

And then, just enjoy the final stretch and get that bronze medal...






Two Oceans Marathon 2013 Live-Video-Übertragung

Zu meiner großen Freude ist der diesjährige Two Oceans Marathon 2013 auch wieder international als Live-Stream im Internet zu sehen.

Also einfach am Samstag Morgen ausschlafen, dann den Computer einschalten und 26,000 Menschen bei Halb- und Ultramarathon zusehen ;)

Ich werde voraussichtlich zwischen 10.35 und 10.50 Uhr (MEZ) im Ziel einlaufen.
KORREKTUR der Zeit: aufgrund meines Einsatzes als Running Guide (http://ultra-marathon-man.blogspot.com/2013/03/change-of-plans-for-my-two-oceans-ultra.html) werde ich voraussichtlich gegen 11.15 Uhr MEZ im Ziel einlaufen.

http://www.twooceansmarathon.org.za/live-streaming

Samstag, 16. März 2013

26x Marathon oder länger seit 2007

Ich habe eine kleine Übersicht gemacht und war selber überrascht:

Seit 2007 bin ich insgesamt in Wettbewerben und im Training 26x einen Marathon oder länger gelaufen. Das war mir nicht bewusst...

Im Detail (alle Angaben seit 2007, dem Jahr meines ersten Marathons).

15 x Ultra Distanz (mehr als 42,2 km) (davon 7x bei einem Event und 8x als Trainingslauf)
11 x Marathon Distanz (davon 9x bei einem Event und 2x als Trainingslauf)

Übrigens bin ich diese Woche zur finalen Vorbereitung auf den Two Oceans Ultra am 30.3.13 meinen langen Trainingslauf über 45 km gelaufen und es hat alles gut geklappt.


Donnerstag, 14. März 2013

Ja - ich lebe (und trainiere) noch...

Aufgrund zunehmend vieler Fragen ist es höchste Zeit, den Blog wieder zu aktualisieren.

Am wichtigsten: Es geht mir gut, ich trainiere und freue mich sehr auf Two Oceans Ultra Nummer 5 am 30.03.2013.

Allerdings wird dieser Two Oceans keiner mit einer Bestzeit. Ich war in den letzten Monaten geschäftlich zu sehr eingespannt und viel unterwegs. So kam es, dass ich oft nur 3x pro Woche trainieren konnte, manchmal auch nur 2x morgens um 5 Uhr im Schnee vor einem Seminar - und daher bei weitem nicht die km zusammengebracht habe, die für eine Bestzeit nötig sind.

Meist bin ich auf 50 - 60 km pro Woche gekommen, während 90 - 100 km für eine Top-Form nötig sind.

Also, liebe Blog-Leser und Lauffreunde, ich bin da und werde wieder berichten ;)
Weitersagen und Dranbleiben