Martin Tighe Sets 4 World Treadmill records in 1 Day

He began at 6:15 this morning at the Nordic Track store on the 2^nd level. Bob Jackman was there to set up the digital clock and to see Martin thru his marathon split……

Martin passed the marathon split in 3:09:24 - 7:13 ave pace !!!!!!!!

Martin went on to set a world record for 50K - with a time of 3:44:48 (7:14 pace), so from the marathon to 50K (31.07 miles) , Martin held pace, and then continued on his quest to break the NEXT world record - for 50 miles.

Not surprisingly to those who know Martin, he reached 50 miles in world record time - 6:06:19 (7:19 ave pace for 50 miles on a treadmill !!!!), but there were still more world records to go for…….his work was far from over…

Next up was the 100K mark (that's 62.14 miles !!) and yes he did set another record - his time was 7:39:31 (7:23 ave pace)

So……..lets recap so far: a 3:13 marathon, and 3 world records (50K, 50 miles, and 100K), but could he hang on for the BIG ONE - the 12 hour mark of 85.68 miles???

The race plan was naturally to slow down some (after having set all those records) and take advantage of his time cushion, and still finish up with MORE than 85.68 miles - the record distance for 12 hours to beat.

At the 75 mile mark, reached at 10:20:42, Martin needed to average 9:17's or TM speed of 6.46 to make 85.7 miles (which would be a scant .02 miles more than the record, but still a record nonetheless)…… Martin was holding form, but was struggling to hold it together. He was running at TM speed 6.4 which would not be enough for the record…….obviously he would have to pick up the speed slightly in order to achieve his quest for 4 world records.

For the next few miles Martin kept the TM at 6.4 and was digging a hole for himself , albeit a small one. Then knowing he had to pick up the pace, he put the mill at 6.5 for a couple more miles, and things were looking better.

Then just after 80 miles Martin cramped up and had no choice but to walk for a spell, knowing he was jeopardizing his chances of setting a new record. He ran 9:42 from 80-81 and then he knew he had to pick it up with 4.7 miles to go to achieve his goal.

Now he had to average 9:10 pace for the last 4.7 miles to just break the record. But with Martin's tenacity, and not to be denied' spirit, he recorded miles of 9:07, 9:06, 9:03, and 8:53……..reaching 85 miles in 11:53:02……….

Needing 7-tenths more for the record - he could have even slowed it down - the calculation came out to 9:57 pace to do it, but that of course is not the way Martin would end his journey to nowhere……….he continued to pick up the pace, running 8:23 pace past the OLD record and charged his way to a new world TM record of 85.83 miles - a tenth and a half more than the old one…..

Moments later and walking under his own power, Martin thanked the crowd for their support, and said he couldn’t have done it without them being there…….of course, that is Martin, humble and modest as ever, and now a 4-time record holder in one day!

(final note, with a few miles to go, Martin asked me if he should try to increase the pace to widen the gap between the old and new record…….i told him, he didn’t have to, all he had to do was maintain, but I added - if you have it in you to do it, then go for it……..to which he replied "I do."……….and did.)

For additional information, visit www.friendsofahstrack.netfirms.com and click on “Go The Distance.”

Ray…