Optimalisering av "Spartathlon"

Spartathlon article Sep 2007

“How can you knock over 4 hours off your Spartathlon time?”
Since running 29 hours 1minute and 29secs for 9th place in this year’s Spartathlon I have had a lot of questions asking “How can you knock more than 4 hours off your Spartathlon best time? I will summarise:

1) Conservative first attemptI always said that my 2005 run was a conservative performance. I ran within myself trying to be sure of a finish. I wanted to have a good look at the course, not get lost and learn as much as I could about the event. I lost a lot of time on the night time mountain crossing as I was hopeless going up and down the goat track at night. I was literally stiff with fear especially on the loose gravel going down.

2) Improved nutrition
For the first time in my ultra career and after 11 years of personal research and trial and revision, I have now discovered the right way, for me, to take on nutrition in ultras. This knowledge gave me the confidence to start much faster than in 2005. By the first major check point at 81km I was 53 minutes ahead of my 2005 time and feeling good despite the heat. I continued on a dilute, liquid only diet and was able to run strongly to the finish with no major dietary problems. I carried small packets of my home-mixed carbohydrate, electrolyte powder in my bum bag and carried a hand-held 500ml bottle throughout.

3) Good specific preparation
Alan Young from dion_networks.co.uk organised a long weekend training camp in the Highlands for me and the work done there paid off as I covered the mountain section Lyrkia to Nestani 90 minutes quicker than 2005. The 3 day camp, based in Fort William, focused largely on off-road running during the day and night time ascents and descents of the Devil’s Staircase using a head torch. This was to improve confidence and technique for the mountain section in Greece.
Furthermore, as the chance of hot weather was high, I did nine, 45 minute sauna training sessions in the last 3 weeks before the race so I was very well prepared for the heat.

4) Having a crew and running faster
I simply ran faster for much of the remainder of the course. The only section I covered slower than 2005 (6 minutes) was the last 22km down into Sparta. Partly because I was more tired and partly because it was about 20°C warmer than in 2005!
Having a crew makes a difference especially when things get difficult. Detailed split information also helps when trying to run good times.

Put all that together and you have an improvement of 4 hours 13minutes.

Faster?
Can I go still quicker? I think there is still more improvement to be made with improved hill climbing, slightly cooler weather and increased experience of the course.

William Sichel