My only hesitation with the one thread is that this particular thread already moves too fast for a lot of us to keep up. I can't imagine what it would be like with one. I'll also say that this thread and the marathon thread have generally had different vibes to them and I fear we will lose something with a combination.

Flavio, Steve - nice weeks

Piwi - Sorry to hear about your cat.  Ours got beaten up pretty badly a couple of years ago and that cost $700.  Then it happened again a couple of months later.  Luckily he's been fine since we moved house.  It's tough when they get old like that though.

Piwi / Steve - national road relays next year is back on the legendary Christchurch to Akaroa course.  It's either dead flat or very hilly depending which leg you strike!  Beautiful running though.  Unless you get the one leg which is uphill the entire way (not joking).

Darkwave - I've never heard of someone naming a treadmill before but I'm entertained nevertheless!

Zebano - I kind of miss when I got to run in the snow in Canada in February, wow that seems like a long time ago now!

Threads - totally not up for a combined thread.  I really enjoy the vibe of this thread and the marathon thread is very different.  Sure that thread has been quiet this year but just wait for events to start happening again and that will inevitably change.

I think it would be pretty discouraging for a new poster targeting maybe a sub-1:40 half on their way to a sub-1:30 to turn up and see some of the fairly heated discussion that has gone on in the marathon thread at times.  Honestly, I hung around in the marathon thread for a bit this year and preferred this thread, even though I was running a marathon.  That's nothing against the marathon thread, I just think that this thread has a more friendly vibe plus I feel like I collectively know you all better than the folks on the marathon thread.  I mean, many of us have been posting on this thread or its predecessors for 5 years plus.  I would say on this thread we have fewer people but many of them take the time to have more meaningful interactions or discussions.  And we have had some newer joiners like Zebano and so on that have really added a lot too.

Also, most of the marathon thread will not have a clue about Nathan Jones.  I will go on record right now as saying that if we merge the threads, I will start a new thread and it will be called the Nathan Jones Appreciation Society.

What is the resistance to a “race training” thread? This isn’t JUST a half marathon thread or only for people running sub 1:30. Truthfully it’s our racing discussions and training discussions. A couple odd tangents happen throughout the year and it still focuses on racing. If anything I would rather see a race specific thread (5k to full marathon, ultras, mile, etc.) then a training discussion thread. I was actually thinking about this exact topic on my run the other day. my work had a group email about office hour availability (everyone had a 3 hour block) and the ONLY reason you were to reply was to say if you weren’t using it, or to claim unused hours. Similar concept for racing. Post your race and/or race reviews, other than that....it’s all training talk. Repeats, plans, purpose of workouts, shoes, weather, etc. are mostly related to training. 

it might actually make it easier to go back and find a race report from March 2021 in November 2021 if there was just one thread discussing racing you had to go through instead of. 128 pages of “will the vaccine allow me to fart in public” “what shoe will make me faster” discussions.

EDIT: I’m one of the folks unknowing of this Nathan James,

What is the resistance to a “race training” thread? This isn’t JUST a half marathon thread or only for people running sub 1:30. Truthfully it’s our racing discussions and training discussions. A couple odd tangents happen throughout the year and it still focuses on racing. If anything I would rather see a race specific thread (5k to full marathon, ultras, mile, etc.) then a training discussion thread. I was actually thinking about this exact topic on my run the other day. my work had a group email about office hour availability (everyone had a 3 hour block) and the ONLY reason you were to reply was to say if you weren’t using it, or to claim unused hours. Similar concept for racing. Post your race and/or race reviews, other than that....it’s all training talk. Repeats, plans, purpose of workouts, shoes, weather, etc. are mostly related to training. 

it might actually make it easier to go back and find a race report from March 2021 in November 2021 if there was just one thread discussing racing you had to go through instead of. 128 pages of “will the vaccine allow me to fart in public” “what shoe will make me faster” discussions.

 

 

EDIT: I’m one of the folks unknowing of this Nathan James,

So why not have a dedicated race reports thread, and maintain the existing sub-1:30 and sub-3 (or whatever it happens to be) marathon threads.

I personally got nothing much out of the marathon training thread this year aside from a few insights from people like JTReeves who don't frequent this thread.  And I was training for an actual marathon, which went ahead and I got to race (lucky me).  It's just quite a different crowd to this thread.  This thread has fewer posters, but a lot of chat and banter as well as weekly training.  I honestly don't think people could keep up if we merged the threads, like JMac pointed out - which would ultimately lead to less posters which is not what anyone wants.  I daresay that marathon thread would've been very hard to follow if more races had actually happened this year but for most of the world there was almost nothing from April onwards.

Sub-1:30 has never been a requirement for this thread - it's an aspiration.  It's just for folks who are trying to run a faster half marathon rather than the lifestyle crowd that do them just for the experience, or as an event to share with friends.  I think we've clearly established that there's critical mass for a sub-1:30 half marathon thread and one or more marathon threads.

Flavio - quit showing off. I've been thinking hard about strength training for a month now without actually doing much

Also running an extra 6 minutes can hardly be a mistake, you just need to phrase it correctly. "I was supposed to run 50 minutes but I got to run 56 minutes!!!".

DWave -  I was going to ask is "Fluffy" a term of endearment or a curse word? If the former, did that kick in because you spent loads of money on the machine or has the Stockholm Syndrome kicked in already?

Zebano - Too bad about the race conditions.

Flavio, Piwi, Steve, DWave - Good weeks, all.

DWave - Even though there is a good amount of overlap between this thread and the marathon thread, I'd be against combining them because of the differences between who isn't in both threads. Last year we had multiple marathon threads with various levels of participation and with them being combined it seems to me that, how do I put this nicely... the "stronger personalities" pushed a good number of people who weren't posting in the more "competitive jerks" oriented thread away and overall participation dropped.
Plus, this thread typically moves much faster than the marathon threads ever have, so adding more to that will be (of course) more for us to keep up with and could be "too much" for some people who mostly hang out in the marathon thread.

Perhaps a Slack channel for us...

Piwi - Sorry to hear about the missing cat, hopefully she shows back up.

Me - My best week in a long time, even if it was "only" easy miles. My issues just seem to be diminishing more and more every day, to the point that this morning I didn't even notice anything amiss. Had a good run in a snowstorm yesterday (got maybe 4" or so total that stuck to the ground), then in a mix of snow, clear patches, and ice this morning. Shameless plug for my Kahtoola nanospikes here. We could even get about that same amount of snow tomorrow, too, which will be awesome.

My (largely unintentional) run streak hits 1 full year tomorrow!

Weekly for period: From: 12/07/2020 To 12/13/2020

Total distance: 55.93mi

Simply because the sub 1:30 half marathon thread isn't specific to sub 1:30 half marathons. It includes marathons, 5ks etc. Marathon/half marathon seems like carry over from Runners world when the forums were much more popular. the marathon training thread this year was crap. COVID 19 hit, half marathon thread stayed on topic, and everyone jumped ship. I wasn't immune to derailing it. Just a difference of opinions and thus far this year my running problem has been having an unpopular opinion. I actually eliminated the time limit from the marathon thread last year BECAUSE it wasn't just about sub 3:30 or sub 3.

 

I personally see no need to include the time limit in the title. Who knows how hard the marathon thread would have been to follow. I couldn't keep up with THIS thread at times. Again, to my running problem. Consistently an unpopular opinion. At the end of the day I'm not starting the thread, and the participants will decide where they want to play. It could literally be called "international thread of running really fast and/or slow" and contain all the same posters discussing everything they wanted to. As long as y'all don't go to a private group and keep me out of it I'm fine. although....plenty have come and gone and stayed gone somehow.

Bit of history here - this thread started as a carry-over from RWOL when that got closed - that was where Piwi, Watson, Flavio, JMac and me came in, and possibly even James as well (I think he had a different handle there).  Plus there was Rune who was a regular until he got injured, hoping to see him back.  Others have joined along the way - Keen, Steve, Darkwave (from the marathon thread), Zebano, you.  DPS was a very regular poster here who basically left the forums because the marathon thread went septic.  Kimba joined and isn't regular now but pops in from time to time.  There's quite a few lurkers as well, Mikkey provides a bit of banter periodically.  So yes, some have come and gone, but several have come and stayed.

Not all are sub-1:30 half runners but most were attracted by the title because they wanted to get closer to that mark.  Most of us run other races but the half is generally the main focus.  I've met many of the people here either in person or via Zoom calls.  Frankly that's way more interesting than a bunch of randoms who jump in and out as it suits them.  With all due respect, you've not been a regular poster on this thread so I'm not sure you fully appreciate what makes it tick.  You don't need a lot of people to have a good, active thread.  You need a few committed people with an inclusive attitude and shared interests/goals.  If you get too many people going in different directions on a thread, people leave and the whole thing dies.  Yes, the marathon thread is quiet.  That is because there are not many marathons right now.  Merging it with this thread is more likely to kill both, or at least lose posters.

Anyway the overall sentiment seems to be in favour of retaining the sub-1:30 thread rather than creating one big amorphous confused mess, hooray.  This does remind me that we need to appoint a thread overlord for 2021.  Steve did an admirable job under trying conditions this year (with everything going on, somehow the table on the front page is still up to date!).  My vote goes to Keen who has been a regular poster and thread mileage king for ages but somehow has avoided this responsibility great opportunity.

 

Bit of history here - this thread started as a carry-over from RWOL when that got closed - that was where Piwi, Watson, Flavio, JMac and me came in, and possibly even James as well (I think he had a different handle there).  Plus there was Rune who was a regular until he got injured, hoping to see him back.  Others have joined along the way - Keen, Steve, Darkwave (from the marathon thread), Zebano, you.  DPS was a very regular poster here who basically left the forums because the marathon thread went septic.  Kimba joined and isn't regular now but pops in from time to time.  There's quite a few lurkers as well, Mikkey provides a bit of banter periodically.  So yes, some have come and gone, but several have come and stayed.

 

Not all are sub-1:30 half runners but most were attracted by the title because they wanted to get closer to that mark.  Most of us run other races but the half is generally the main focus.  I've met many of the people here either in person or via Zoom calls.  Frankly that's way more interesting than a bunch of randoms who jump in and out as it suits them.  With all due respect, you've not been a regular poster on this thread so I'm not sure you fully appreciate what makes it tick.  You don't need a lot of people to have a good, active thread.  You need a few committed people with an inclusive attitude and shared interests/goals.  If you get too many people going in different directions on a thread, people leave and the whole thing dies.  Yes, the marathon thread is quiet.  That is because there are not many marathons right now.  Merging it with this thread is more likely to kill both, or at least lose posters.

 

Anyway the overall sentiment seems to be in favour of retaining the sub-1:30 thread rather than creating one big amorphous confused mess, hooray.  This does remind me that we need to appoint a thread overlord for 2021.  Steve did an admirable job under trying conditions this year (with everything going on, somehow the table on the front page is still up to date!).  My vote goes to Keen who has been a regular poster and thread mileage king for ages but somehow has avoided this responsibility great opportunity.

I know it's carry over. I actually remember seeing it there thinking "MAN those guys are like ELITE level" and I still feel that way having run a 1:30ish half marathon in a marathon. I think DavePNW was the one who pointed out in the marathon thread how I was once active in the sub 3:30 thread and have now broken 3 hours in the marthon. I was just attempting to explain putting a time for the training thread can make it seem uninviting for those slower. I say this as someone who was slower and actively stayed OUT of the faster training threads for fear of being told I'm not doing enough, or don't belong.

Yah I've not been regularly posting. Mostly because, like cal, all my races were canceled. Lost all focus/desire to train at a competitive level, and without it I saw little to no reason to post. I read. I can't tell you of any half marathon going on within 476 km (300 miles) or 5ks. Doesn't mean I didn't listen when things were said and try to understand things before I commented. Sometimes it takes a little patience, or walking away and coming back, to understand things differently. I considreed jumping into the Zoom meeting, but as you outlined I havne't been active so not many people know me. Why join when no one knows me?

I'll probably join in. Keen is probably one of three reasons I stick around these parts. I'm waiting for him to finally have a good race. The other two reasons are Boston v CIM. I dream of a photo where everyone is wearing their jackets and we look like one of those dance crews from Breakin 2. Fun fact: I HATE red so boston will have a RED jacket the year I run it. I was REALLY jealous of the 2020 jackets.