UKC

Blimey! An amazing effort: http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2009/sep/15/eddie-izzard-charity-run

In reply to Removed User: Thats impressive.

In reply to Removed User:

Have been listening to him during the running on Radio 1 in the morning. Hilarious

In reply to Removed User:

lol at 'action transvesite'!

In reply to Removed User: "Runs"? Minces more like.

In reply to graeme jackson:

I know I probably couldn't run 43 marathons in 52 days - could you?

In reply to Removed User:

His personal best is nearly 6 hours. Yes, I could, at that speed which is basically walking fast.

It's still a great effort though.

In reply to Removed User:

I very much doubt that I could either. However, this is the bit that impresses me most:

"He has been trying to take in 5,000-6,000 calories a day, starting with porridge in the morning...."

I think the most consecutive days on which I've managed eating porridge is 4. Then it's back to Crunchy Nut Cornflakes.

In reply to Eric the Red:

I think it's the accumulation of miles that I find boggling - I know my feet hurt after 200 miles, so what 1100 miles must feel like is something I'm not sure I'd want to find out.

In reply to graeme jackson:

Nice.

In reply to Removed User:

It was a joke. Lighten up.

In reply to graeme jackson:

sorry - it wasn't obvious

In reply to Removed User:
I keep fogetting the smileys My bad (as the yanks might say)

In reply to Removed User:

I could probably eat 43 marathons in 52 days.

I don't think I could run 1 marathon in 52 days, to be honest...

In reply to GreyPilgrim:
I could eat 43 marathons in 1 day so long as they were the tiny 'celebrations' ones. I'd probably be sick afterwards though.

In reply to Removed User: I ran a half marathon 2 weeks ago & the thought of running that far again already makes me feel a bit ill

In reply to Eric the Red:

It is indeed. Remember you are not a slightly tubby 47-year-old with only 5 weeks' proper training. I'm not sure that I could comfortably WALK (as in "normal walking") 26 miles 6 days a week for 7 weeks!

In reply to Removed User: 5 weeks training?! Blimey, that's pretty amazing. Most people couldn't run one marathon after five weeks training, I know I couldn't.

In reply to Blue Straggler:

Exactly why it's a great effort. However, not doing enough training is neither big nor clever. It's a good job he isn't doing it faster or he'd be crippled!

Hopefully he raises a lot of money.

In reply to Removed User: That will be why i saw him trotting down past Hillsborough stadium on Peniston road last week chased by three High Vis jacket wearing camera men on a peddle flatbed trike.

In reply to Removed User: I wondered whether he might run into that other "comedian doing a strange endurance based feat", Dave Gorman.

In reply to Eric the Red:

Good point, though I don't think he is claiming that it is either of those - indeed it might be a bit of press hyperbole.

In reply to Removed User: My favorite detail Izzard has run with a modest support team, consisting of his tour manager, a sports therapist and an ice-cream van, which dispenses free ice-creams as he goes.

Always said that man had class.

In reply to Removed User:
Heard about it on Radio 1 this morning, it's a great effort. Fair set of calves on him eh!!

In reply to Removed User:

A phenomenal achievement by any standards.

I'm not a fan of off-topic YouTube links but I'll make an exception

youtube.com/watch?v=s7MCacqN4H8&

In reply to Frank4short:

I need to know which jingle it's using. My money's on Teddy Bear's Picnic.

In reply to Removed User: I'd been following Eddie on Facebook. Bloody brilliant effort from the best transvestite comedian EVER!

In reply to Martin76:

Camptown Ladies

In reply to Eric the Red:

It says here "just shy of five" hours: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/8256589.stm


Not arguing with that, completely agree.

In reply to Removed User: That is amazing. Hats off

In reply to Martin W:

He was doing the first ones in 10 hours which definitely isn't running! He's doing his training as he goes. Wish I had the time to do something similar.

In reply to Eric the Red:

It is all relative. He must be shagged out. 10 hours to a punter is 3 hours to good club runner. Doing 43 of the buggers in 52 days is pretty punishing.

In reply to Removed User: saw him running through lancs a few times while he was our way. Great effort!

In reply to John Rushby:

I don't doubt that he is mentally and physically exhausted. Nor do I doubt that what he is doing is totally worthy and challenging.

I'm just saying he's hardly run them all. 2.6 miles an hour is a slow walk. Jordan managed 7 hours something at London for example.

But, she wasn't wearing heels and a sparkly dress.

In reply to Eric the Red:

My old man is a centurian, they're an elite breed of nutter.

To qualify as one you have to walk 100 miles in 24 hours. Me old man did it in 18 hours, but says he could have done it quicker if he didn't have blisters. But that was the days before proper 'training' shoes.

http://www.centurions1911.org.uk

In reply to Removed User:

Respect to the man! Bloody good effort. Like so many such efforts, pity we only hear about it towards the end. Would have loved to have followed him via Twitter in the course of his challenge!!

In reply to Eric the Red:

I remember seeing an elite marathon runner, being interviewed after crossing the line in the London marathon, pointing his thumb over his shoulder and saying something like: "it was easy for me. It's the runners who keep going for 5 hours who deserve the respect". He meant it.

In reply to Blue Straggler:

As a slightly tubby 30yr old I easily romped along the West Highland Way laden with camping kit in 3 days, 31+ miles a day. Unladen I could have easily managed 26miles in 6+hrs each day. Anyone who has been in the forces may have done more for longer than 52 days - Izzard isn't doing anything superhuman, most of us could force ourselves through that sort of thing at that sort of pace.

However few of us can be bothered, this won't be pleasant for him and the longer he carried on the harder it'll have been to motivate himself.

I confess I really despise the current trend to complete a triathlon, cycle around the highlands, take a challenging holiday, or similar (which you wanted to do anyway) and hitting on everyone for fundraising. I wonder why people don't pass on the triathlon etc. and do an extra days work and donate their earnings? Most professionals could raise £500+ in consulting fees etc. and beat their fundraising target without asking everyone else to stroke their conscience while they take a holiday or fun trip. It's a disturbing trend.

Despite that I was really quite tickled with Mr Izzards efforts and hit his just giving page despite my grumbles above http://www.comicrelief.com/donate/eddie he's gone above and beyond the usual and it's a good cause. So he's actually broken me and I'm a hard sell...

Well done Eddie!

In reply to dinkypen:

Saw him pounding down the A61 towards Sheffield. It changed my view of him completely.

In reply to James B:

I've run two marathons and further, and I'm pretty sure everyone who finishes deserves the same respect.

However, what is annoying me is stupid tv presenters saying things like running a marathon isn't that hard is it? "If he can do it, with only 5 weeks training, it's not that hard is it?"

YES! It is hard. He did NOT start off running them. He's now running them in a reasonable time and it's taken a few months to 'train' for him to do it. How he's avoided injury I have no idea.

In reply to Eric the Red:

It's walking extremely fast, it's a common misconception that 4mph is walking speed, it isn't it's more like 2.5mph, and remember there will have been hills, you can't do that route and avoid them. I think it's stunning that he could mince that far that fast.

In reply to Removed User:
Yarrr! That be a tough wench!

In reply to Removed User:

Randomly bumped into Eddie Izzard today on Piccadilly in central London... had a chat and congratulated him. He's definitely limping a little though!

"it's a common misconception that 4mph is walking speed, it isn't it's more like 2.5mph"

According to BS 3138, which is acknowledged by the International Labour Organisation (and hence the TUC etc.), the official pace at which a motivated man walks on level ground whilst unladen is 4 mph.
This does not of course include rest allowances, which generally work out at 12.5%. This roughly equates to 3.5 miles each hour.
Added to this, a manual worker is expected to continue for their entire shift (of 8 hours).
However rarely does a job exist that is only walking (unladen) on level ground, without impedance.
This does not detract from the fact that 4 mph is indeed walking pace, as recognised by the ILO.

In reply to Wrongfoot: why dont people skip the challenge and just give the money to charity? because most poeple who ' give ' to charity, havent got a charitable bone in their body. They meerley allow charity to benefit from their pleasures.

In reply to fred99: According to the MLTB walking pace should be considered as 5km, just over 3 miles per hour, plus 1/2 hour for every 300mts climbed I would suggest that keeping this up for 31 miles would indeed feel like fast walking, and that is without taking stops into account.

In reply to Al Evans:

David BA Jones has done various tests and reckons a 'brisk pace' to be 3.75 mph:

http://www.jingowobbly.com/Fellrunning/Fell.html