London Marathon 2011 - In Armour?

[Wogle]

Right... As a person who is easily distracted into another project, after spending the early afternoon on Sunday cheering on runners, I figured that I would actually have a go at the London Marathon.



Except I'm going to do it dressed in Halo Armour.



Now the current ideas are either to do it dressed in my Recon ODST or my Armour Permutation from Halo 3. Thing is, I'll probably build both, but use one for the marathon and the other for the London Expo.



In terms of charity, I've been thinking of doing it for Child's Play. What better way to help raise awareness for a charity by gamers? However this is the thing which always gets me - who do you support?



Anyway, just wondering if there is any other interest from people? If there's enough, was thinking of us all doing it as a squadded run. If anyone's wondering the pace I'm aiming for, it'll be just over 5mph (although I'll admit in full armour in possibly warm temperatures it would be a challenge). Any takers?

 

[Hickeydog]

I could see that getting VERY hot, especially with helmets. I doubt that you'll be able to do a marathon. Maybe a mile, but not 26 miles.

 

[CaptainImpactor]

I saw someone doing it in a clone armour suit this year, so doing it in an MC suit may not be too bad.

 

[Nintendude]

Well I think if you do the marathon you should do it in the ODST armor they really don't have any boot armor except for the toe caps that could be damaged from running, you will also be wearing less armor which if you wear the Mark VI type you'll get exausted easy, when I did the All-Con convention I was in my armor 8-10 hours and when I finally got out of it I almost passed out from releasing the weight off myself, either way take safety procedures use a camelback or hydrapack use gatorade or powerade, and if you can find one they make what are called wet headbands that have a gel in the headband which will help keep your head and inside your helmet cool you could probably tie it to other parts inside the armor. Take it from someone who has run 3 marathons you don't want a lot of weight bearing you down and you definatly want to keep cool.

 

[Hugh Holder]

No offense, but I doubt running the entire marathon in costume is possible. There are people that show up in costume that maybe will run a quarter or half a mile depending on what they wear, but it's usually just where the crowds are as a photo op. If you do it, then I expect to see it in the news



I've covered several marathons when I was in the military and when we ran the Marine Corps marathon in D.C. no service member was allowed to run in full gear because of the dangers, even if they wanted to.



Hydration isn't the only important thing you need to worry about. Just running in shorts and a tee you're at risk of causing stress fractures, your nipples might start to bleed from friction, and I've seen some people urinate on themselves while running just to maintain a good run time. All this... and you get to pay for it!

 

[kaboose00]

sounds cool. but not too fun... unless you had a cooling system OF THE GODS!

 

[Wogle]

Ok, thanks for the advice guys. I've definitely been thinking about hydration and cooling a lot, and it's this aspect which I am having a good look at to ensure I don't die from heat stroke and dehydration obviously. At the moment I'm still training and I suppose as the armour is being finished that's what I'm concentrating on at the moment. I do know the dangers of long distance travel with loaded with kit, having done CFTs in the past, so I'm definitely not taking this challenge lightly.

 

[Michalanthropos]

Wow, why didn't I think of that?! I understand that a marathon is a hard thing, not to mention the extra heat, so I can't really tell you "Do it, fgt!" or something. If you ask me, I'd do it. It's hillarious, and it could be for a good cause. Remember, that the suit you'll use will probably get damaged (let's say if you fall down) so don't wear your "pride and joy" armor. I'd strongly recommend that you take another person with you cause you might overheat (thermoplexia). Good luck, and for the love of God, take vids.

 

[Loves hina]

Sound like a cool idea, but depending on how your making your armor, if your molding and casting it, id suggest making a suit out of flex foam from smooth on. Ive seen this stuff used plenty of times before. It doesn't look as solid and accurate as a good plastic, but is considerably lighter, it would move with you, and wouldnt damage anything but the paint job if you fell. Its just a high density casting foam and would work just like smooth cast in a mold, from what i know. And going as an odst would be much smarter, less large peices and more moving/breathing room.

 

[Slide]

for cooling, i suggest one of these: http://www.cpgear.com/StoreBox/clothing_accessories/1029_2.htm



they work, and i'd never go anywhere hot/stressful without mine again.



also: underarmour [like, the shirts and skivvies that wick sweat and moisture] everywhere, from socks to shirt.



a Cammelback is likely a good call, but i'd fill it with ice/water instead of gatoraid... it'll cool your torso and won't screw up your hydration bladder [yes, many of them specifically say they are only for water, mine does]. Filling my 3L pack [which is attatched to my mock-Interceptor OTV] with ice cools the entire back of the vest, making it almost humane to run around on a hot day playing paintball in it



I would also suggest some of this stuff: http://www.cpgear.com/StoreBox/field_items/6028.htm



it works, and will hold up for an afternoon of scenario paintball, so it'll likely hold up for a good while for you too.



Finally: if you plan on running in Spartain armour, do yourself a huge favor an build some extra ventilation into it, you'll thank yourself later.

 

[Lonewolf Armorer]

It sounds like a fun idea, but what your talking about doing is not a good idea. For starts the amount of damage your going to do to your body. Running 26 miles in boots is going to splinter your bones. They do not offer the support/cushioning need to run that distance which will cause shine splints, which is caused by your muscle pulling so tight they separate from you bones. Continuing to push yourself after that with result in the bones beginning to splinter. A helmet would be a big no no as well the amount of heat you body lets off from you head is substantial. Adding anything that will contain that and prevent your body from cooling now runs the risk of actually frying your brain. Others have mentioned hydration by ice water or Gatorade great suggest for a hike or a short run. But for running that much bother answers are wrong. Ice water will cause you to cramp and the sugars in sports drinks are just as bad, the water should be at room temperature.



Sorry to make it sound so bad but the truth is it just a bad idea.