Can someone explain race 'Pacers' to me. (Read 1058 times)

Here's an article on pace groups I found last year when I had the same questions as you. Mind you this is from a specific marathon - details may vary depending on the marathon. It's pretty simple though - they run an even pace and you just keep up. Apparently it's pretty flexible - a friend of mine started with one pace group - was feeling good so he sped up a bit and caught up with the next one.

Here's an article on pace groups I found last year when I had the same questions as you. Mind you this is from a specific marathon - details may vary depending on the marathon. It's pretty simple though - they run an even pace and you just keep up. Apparently it's pretty flexible - a friend of mine started with one pace group - was feeling good so he sped up a bit and caught up with the next one.

Thanks Bonkin and MandyS for the information and pointer to the web page. Pacers are an interesting concept to me. I'm left wondering -- who are these people that are pacers, are there really people who can just say "today I'm going to run 26.2 miles and come in at exactly 3H 30min. Yawn." ? Wow, that boggles the mind. Thanks again.

Ive been hearing more and more negative comments on running related forums lately about 'Pacers' finishing way ahead of their pace groups or way behind the desired times or even having to drop out of races. I still don't know what I think of the concept. I mean sure if they pace you to a desired time thats great and all but if they don't and you rely soley on them to run race pace and they don't for whatever reason I would think it would be pretty upsetting! The best thing I think is l to run your race and shoulder all the responsibility of how well or how poorly you do! If you train properly and set time goals within your means and dont go out TOO FAST especially in the longer distances, you should be ok most of the time.

I still don't know what I think of the concept. I mean sure if they pace you to a desired time thats great and all but if they don't and you rely soley on them to run race pace and they don't for whatever reason I would think it would be pretty upsetting! The best thing I think is l to run your race and shoulder all the responsibility of how well or how poorly you do! If you train properly and set time goals within your means and dont go out TOO FAST especially in the longer distances, you should be ok most of the time.

I sure just had a major "Duh !" moment -- so the pacer just goes out there and runs the race and hits the finish time they've been 'assigned'. If you want to follow along, do it. If not, the pacer has no obligation to have their whole group finish with them. For some reason I expected that you had a group committed to finishing together and lead by this mythical pied-piper-pacer-person who somehow made this happen. Thanks.

But one thing does confuse me: I've heard lots of race strategies that involve starting off a little slower than race pace, gradually increasing your pace, and running the last couple of miles as fast as you can. This contradicts the concept of a pace team running the entire race at a steady pace.

Not all pacers run it this way. This is why - if you are going to use one - you should speak with the pace group leader before the race to see if it is compatible with YOUR race plans.

Or is that the point? I usually like to start near a pace team, watch them run off into the distance while I'm holding back my pace, then catch up to them in the middle of the race, and finally pass them in the last few miles. Is that the way they're meant to be used?

It's your race. Use the pacer the way that works best for you.

Thanks Bonkin and MandyS for the information and pointer to the web page. Pacers are an interesting concept to me. I'm left wondering -- who are these people that are pacers, are there really people who can just say "today I'm going to run 26.2 miles and come in at exactly 3H 30min. Yawn." ? Wow, that boggles the mind. Thanks again.

That can happen, but there are rarely pace groups running the times that I want so I haven't actually used one for a long time. When I ran Cleveland in 2004, the pacer for the group I was in only actually ran the first half of the race, and then passed off duties to somebody else for the second half of the race, so he didn't have to actually run the whole way. I didn't like the person who led the group in the second half so I wound up leaving them behind. By the way, I'm not an official pacer, but I'm planning on running even splits for 3 hours at ING Georgia at the end of the month as a tempo run, so anyone else is welcome to key off of me if you want. Just be warned that I have a tendency to not shut up during races...

Defnitely proceed with caution since not all pacers are the good. [...] He would slow down and surge ahead so many times - it was like running intervals during a marathon. For some reason - handful of people tried to stick it out with him. KC

He probably had a pace band with where he was supposed to be at each mile, hit the split and realized he was off, and tried to make up all the time at once, then was tired for the next one and went too slow, and it just became a vicious cycle.

As a former pacer myself, and someone who has tried to run with pace groups several times, let me share my perspective. There are several different ways to run a marathon without burning yourself out: 1) Start slow, go even through most of the race, and finish strong (negative splits) 2) Run even splits the entire race. 3) Run an even effort the entire race. (If a flat course, 2 and 3 are the same. If a hilly course, then 2 <> 3) Almost every pacer I have talked to or seen on a course does #2. In certain cases, #3 makes more sense, such as at St George Marathon or Boston Marathon. My Experience Pacing: I took the strategy of #2 and I paced the four hour (9:09min/mi) pace group at the Pacific Shoreline Marathon in 2007. (now Surf City) I set my Garmin 205 to give me a 0.25 mile pace split. I hit every single split between 9:00 and 9:15 and finished gun time 4:00:20. Chip time 3:59:44. Afterwards I got several emails forwarded to me from the race director complimenting me on my effort and for helping people achieve their goals. Looking back, however, I should have done #3. There was a decent sized uphill at mile 20 where I lost half of my followers by running an even split. I should have run 9:00 pace and let that hill drop the average pace down to 9:09 so I wouldn't have lost that group. My experience with Pacers I ran StG marathon in '07 with a goal of BQ'ing. I tucked in behind the OFFICIAL CLIF BAR 3:10 pacer at the start and hoped to follow him. But I told myself I should do #3 and not follow if the pacer went out too fast or something. Well, the pacer did go out way too fast. He made it to halfway at about 1:34 and finished in 3:03. (a 1:29 HM!) I made it to halfway in 1:37 and ran negative splits to finish in 3:10:04 and BQ'ed. I remember along the course toward the end when people would yell at me: "good job! Youre probably going to do 3:15". That messed with my head, because I was on pace for 3:10. The only way the spectators were guessing at that is they saw the 3:10 pacer go by 5 minutes earlier and he shouldnt have been that fast. I still wonder how many BQ hopefuls he screwed up by doing that. In conclusion: By all means, jump in behind a pace group. The group energy can keep you going. But most pacers aren't as good as advertised, so follow with caution and run your own race. In fact, I probably wouldn't have paced my race so evenly if I didn't have my Garmin.