I watched last night and tonight and can't wait for next week. I am in total awe of what Eddie achieved. I cannot imagine the pain barriers he went through. I admit I have been in tears seeing him limping and hobbling and the state of his poor feet. This should have been prime time on BBC1 and the thread should have been an apprecation thread as someone else suggested. How can anyone have a negative view of a what he is doing. I have flat feet same as Eddie and I moan about the pain at times, he has been so positive and non complaining. A real inspiration
A marathon is a little over twenty-six miles. I walk at four miles per hour so I would cover the distance in 6.5 hours. Eddie is covering the same distance in ten, eleven, even twelve hours so I don't see what all the fuss is about. Admittedly the total distance is a big undertaking for an elderly man but it's stretching the truth to claim he is 'running' the route - it isn't even a brisk walking pace - more of a leisurely stroll. And he should ditch those so-called running shoes and either go barefoot or wear a leather sole loosely attached to his foot, such as an African tribesman might wear, then his toes would be completely undamaged and he wouldn't be crippled by blisters. Long ago in the previous century there was once a world-class runner who competed barefoot, I think her name was Zola Budd, and he could learn a lot from her.
A marathon is a little over twenty-six miles. I walk at four miles per hour so I would cover the distance in 6.5 hours. Eddie is covering the same distance in ten, eleven, even twelve hours so I don't see what all the fuss is about. Admittedly the total distance is a big undertaking for an elderly man but it's stretching the truth to claim he is 'running' the route - it isn't even a brisk walking pace - more of a leisurely stroll. And he should ditch those so-called running shoes and either go barefoot or wear a leather sole loosely attached to his foot, such as an African tribesman might wear, then his toes would be completely undamaged and he wouldn't be crippled by blisters. Long ago in the previous century there was once a world-class runner who competed barefoot, I think her name was Zola Budd, and he could learn a lot from her.
Let us know when you have done 1100 miles in seven weeks and I'll tell you how mundane your efforts are as well.
Long ago in the last century there was a wise man who said if you can't say anything nice about someone working bloody hard to raise money for a good cause, don't say anything at all. You could learn a lot from him.
A marathon is a little over twenty-six miles. I walk at four miles per hour so I would cover the distance in 6.5 hours. Eddie is covering the same distance in ten, eleven, even twelve hours so I don't see what all the fuss is about. Admittedly the total distance is a big undertaking for an elderly man but it's stretching the truth to claim he is 'running' the route - it isn't even a brisk walking pace - more of a leisurely stroll. And he should ditch those so-called running shoes and either go barefoot or wear a leather sole loosely attached to his foot, such as an African tribesman might wear, then his toes would be completely undamaged and he wouldn't be crippled by blisters. Long ago in the previous century there was once a world-class runner who competed barefoot, I think her name was Zola Budd, and he could learn a lot from her.
when you can do your brisk walk for 26 miles a day 44 times in total and up some of the highest slopes, ie Kirkstone Pass, then you might see what the fuss is about. By the way 47 is hardly elderly
A marathon is a little over twenty-six miles. I walk at four miles per hour so I would cover the distance in 6.5 hours.
Have you done so ?
If yes, how many times ?
Eddie is covering the same distance in ten, eleven, even twelve hours so I don't see what all the fuss is about.
The fuss is caused by the fact that he's untrained, unfit and ill-disciplined but has the "right" mental attitude to achieve his aim, whatever the cost .....
Admittedly the total distance is a big undertaking for an elderly man but it's stretching the truth to claim he is 'running' the route - it isn't even a brisk walking pace - more of a leisurely stroll.
Eddie isn't "elderly" - he's barely middle-aged .....
And he should ditch those so-called running shoes and either go barefoot or wear a leather sole loosely attached to his foot, such as an African tribesman might wear, then his toes would be completely undamaged and he wouldn't be crippled by blisters.
I wonder why that's not common practice for UK runners ?
Long ago in the previous century there was once a world-class runner who competed barefoot, I think her name was Zola Budd, and he could learn a lot from her.
Blimey, not that long ago :
Zola Pieterse, better known by her maiden name of Zola Budd (born May 26, 1966 in Bloemfontein, Orange Free State, South Africa), is a former Olympic track and field competitor who, in less than three years, twice broke the world record in the women's 5000 meters, and twice was the women's winner at the World Cross Country Championships. Budd's career as a pioneer in women's distance running was as unusual as it was meteoric, in that she always trained and raced barefoot.
Women's 5000 metre world record
Budd shot to international fame in 1984, at the age of 17, when she broke the women's 5000 metre world record, posting a sensational time of 15:01.83. Since her performance took place in apartheid South Africa, the world track and field establishment refused to recognize the record.
Budd later claimed the world record officially, while representing Great Britain in 1985, clocking 14:48.07.
Let us know when you have done 1100 miles in seven weeks and I'll tell you how mundane your efforts are as well.
Long ago in the last century there was a wise man who said if you can't say anything nice about someone working bloody hard to raise money for a good cause, don't say anything at all. You could learn a lot from him.
"Better to keep your mouth closed and be thought a fool than to open it and remove all doubt"?
Probably fits the bill.
In anycase I suspect someone is on a gee-up here, overplayed their stupid card I think.
Wow, am I the only person around here who understands history? 1984 was long before computers had even been invented so that places it somewhere between modern times and the Victorian era. That's a pretty long time ago. Zola Budd will now be middle-aged and Eddie Izzard would already have been an adult back then so he must be elderly now. Stands to reason.
The earliest "computers" were mechanical devices used to help people count. The first known counting devices or tools were Tally Sticks from about 35,000 BCE.
The abacus was invented, possibly by the Babylonians or the Chinese in about 2400 BCE. The abacus consists of movable counters that can be manipulated to add and subtract. The abacus is still used today for basic arithmetic.
As mathematics became more complex, it got harder and harder to invent mechanical devices to solve math problems. One of these devices was conceived in 1786 by J. H. Mueller, who called it a "Difference Engine." It was never built.
Difference engines were forgotten and then rediscovered in 1822 by Mathematics Professor Charles Babbage. This machine used the decimal number system and was powered by cranking a handle. The British government first financed the project but later cut off support. Babbage went on to design a much more general analytical engine in 1845, but later returned and produced an improved design (his "Difference Engine No. 2") between 1847 and 1849. Babbage's design was completed in 1871 by his son, Helmet P.Babbage. The Analytical Engine was designed to be powered by a steam engine and was to use punched cards to direct its operation. Punched cards were in use to program mechanical looms at the time.
During WWII Konrad Zuse invented the Z1. According to Mary Bellis, the Z1 was the first real functioning, binary computer (actually, it was a very large calculator--but a computer nonetheless!). Zuse used it to explore several ground-breaking technologies in calculator development: floating-point arithmetic, high-capacity memory and modules or relays operating on the yes/no principle. Zuse's ideas, not fully implemented in the Z1, succeeded more with each Z prototype.
In 1939, Zuse completed the Z2, the first fully functioning electro-mechanical computer. It was followed by the Z3. These machines were used to produce secret codes for the German military. For a while this gave the Germans a decided advantage. But then, the British, guided by mathematician Alan Turing, created the Colossus Mark I.
Colossus was the world's first programmable, digital electronic computer, developed in 1942-43 at "Station X", Bletchley Park, England. British code breakers used Colossus to read the encrypted German messages. The Germans didn't know their "Enigma" code had been broken. This is one reason the D-Day Invasion succeeded.
In 1939, John V. Atanasoff and Clifford Berry developed the Atanasoff-Berry Computer (ABC) at Iowa State University, which was regarded as the first electronic digital computer. The ABC was built by hand and the design used over 300 vacuum tubes and had capacitors fixed in a mechanically rotating drum for memory.
In 1945, ENIAC, created by J. Presper Eckert and John Mauchly, was unveiled. ENIAC (Electronic Numerator Integrator Analyzer and Computer) weighed in at 27 tons and filled a large room. Not surprisingly, ENIAC also made big noises, cracking and buzzing while performing an equation of 5,000 additions. Before the invention of ENIAC, it took a room full of people to calculate a similar equation.
The first electronic computer that could store its own programs was developed in 1948 at Manchester University. It was called "The baby" and celebrated its 60th birthday in 2008. See BBC and Manchester University links in related links below. This is widely considered to be the forerunner of the modern computer.
The UNIVAC I (Universal Automatic Computer) was the first commercially available, "mass produced" electronic computer. It was manufactured by Remington Rand in the USA and was delivered to the US Census Bureau in June 1951. UNIVAC I used 5,200 vacuum tubes and consumed 125 kW of power. 46 machines were sold at more than $1 million each. By this time, computer design was limited primarily by the size and heat of vacuum tubes.
The vacuum tube was eventually replaced by the transistor. Shortly afterward, in 1959, the monolithic integrated circuit (now called the microchip) was invented by Jack Kilby at Texas Instruments in Dallas, Texas, and a few months later by Robert Noyce, of Fairchild Semiconductor in California. The two companies were embroiled in legal actions for years, but finally decided to cross-license their products. Kilby was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2000.
The microchip led to the development of the microcomputer -- small, low-cost computers that individuals and small businesses could afford. The first home computers became commercially viable in the mid to late 1970s, but more so in the early 1980s. By the 1990s, the microcomputer or Personal Computer (PC) became a common household appliance, and became even more widespread with the advent of the Internet.
Personally, I started working on computers in 1969 - the IBM 360 series the 20 and the 50, before moving on to the 370 series - later (1975) I moved to ICL, working on the 1900 and 2900 series before ending on the series 39 - my first PC was the legendary 1981 Commodore 64 .....
:cool:
That's a pretty long time ago. Zola Budd will now be middle-aged and Eddie Izzard would already have been an adult back then so he must be elderly now. Stands to reason.
Comments
No carbs after 6pm though ... tut tut
I'd like to have seen more of his "gig" ..... his "natural" environment .....
Have been to the Theatre by the Lake a few times, would love to have seen him there.
Series of the year, without a doubt.
Who needs a nutritionist eh?
Those kids were great, but i was worried about them getting home.
Yeah, they were a long way from their beds .....
Let us know when you have done 1100 miles in seven weeks and I'll tell you how mundane your efforts are as well.
Long ago in the last century there was a wise man who said if you can't say anything nice about someone working bloody hard to raise money for a good cause, don't say anything at all. You could learn a lot from him.
Have you done so ?
If yes, how many times ?
The fuss is caused by the fact that he's untrained, unfit and ill-disciplined but has the "right" mental attitude to achieve his aim, whatever the cost .....
Eddie isn't "elderly" - he's barely middle-aged .....
I wonder why that's not common practice for UK runners ?
Blimey, not that long ago :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zola_Budd
"Better to keep your mouth closed and be thought a fool than to open it and remove all doubt"?
Probably fits the bill.
In anycase I suspect someone is on a gee-up here, overplayed their stupid card I think.
Perhaps running in bare feet, or those special running slippers, would be a good idea.
They make the runner run on the balls of their feet which takes the load off the joints.
Trainers place all the load on the heel which causes untold amount of stress on the body
I seem to remember in last week's programme they said he had flat feet so was wearing special trainers
Hello:)
I never doubted you for a second.
An interesting article:
Entitled: To Run Better, Start by Ditching Your Nikes
Read More http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2009/07/barefoot/#ixzz0hvAvRgfZ
Hello:)
I didn't watch it.
He makes me feel uncomfortable.
I don't know why.
Apparently not .....
You think Eddie is "elderly" and Zola Budd's achievements were "long ago in the previous century" .....
:rolleyes:
Oh yeah Eddie could keel over and die at any moment at his age.
Didn't run in the first program either.
You know what you're talking about...
Old people include Tom Jones, Bruce Forsyth
Middle-aged George Clooney, Brad Pitt
Well done Eddie
It depends what you mean by "understands" .....
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/When_was_the_computer_invented
Personally, I started working on computers in 1969 - the IBM 360 series the 20 and the 50, before moving on to the 370 series - later (1975) I moved to ICL, working on the 1900 and 2900 series before ending on the series 39 - my first PC was the legendary 1981 Commodore 64 .....
:cool:
Zola is 43, Eddie is 47 ......
You do realise
that having the
support of certain people
doesn't actually
strengthen
your case greatly,
don't you?