So, if they are going to end up walking – why even bother trying to run?  The obvious answer is that running is faster than walking – but is it, especially at the final stages of an Ironman event?

City Walker once race walked a marathon in 3:22.  That is now a distant memory, and at a time when he was seriously fit!

So, if a marathon can be walked in 3:22 – surely someone who trained as a race walker could go close to 4 hours as the final stage of an Iroman?  How many Ironmen (and women) are slower than that for their marathon?  Quite a few, I suspect.

And there would be a major benefit in training.  We all know that swimming and cycling are relatively injury-free compared to running as they as non-load-bearing.  That enables athletes to log up serious training volume in these disciplines, but running is problematical.

Walking is a very low load-bearing form of exercise, compared to running.  A walker’s foot hits the road from a height of about a centremetre, landing on a straight leg (so the bone structure supports the weight) – about 1.5 x body weight on impact, compared to about 2.5x for a runner.  This is primarily because walkers do not lift their centre of gravity – it is all about energy-efficiency amd moving forward but not up.

So an Ironman who trained walking could do higher training volumes, and would be less likely to become injured.

Obviously this is not for the top performers, but anyone who contemplates an Ironman performance with a “running” time of 4 hours+ should seriously consider becoming a race walker!

City Walker

The road on Mount Victoria is very narrow – its width can really only cater for one vehicle, but it is a “two way” road.  On this occasion the cyclist was coming down the hill, and hit the walker from behind.  The walker was seriously injured – she was thrown through the air, suffered four broken ribs and was lapsing in-and-out of consciousness.

And the reaction of the cyclist: abuse the walker, and then leave – but not before telling  the walker’s companion that he was a surgeon!

Cyclists are the first to say that car drivers do not treat them with respect; that they often feel unsafe because of the attitude and actions of drivers; and that they are the vulnerable party in that they will be injured more than the driver, even if the driver is fully at fault.

So, why don’t cyclists practice what they preach?  This cyclist casued an accident that injured a “vulernble party” – then took no responsibility and became abusive!

Interestingly the cyclist has not come forward to “help the police with their inquiries” – perhaps he does actually kn0w where the resonsibility sits, in which case he can add “dishonest”, “gutless” and “no integrity” to other labels of “rude” and “inconsiderate”.

Finally, equally sadly, a cyclist has come to his defence saying that the walker had no right to be on the road!  Another very poor advertisement for cyclists that – given that I am a cyclist as well as a walker – makes me cringe.

City Walker