Sindy meier and dieter oeckl on their way to the marathon in munich
Although we are in the middle of the winter season, sindy meier from kupferberg and dieter oeckl from ludwigschorgast are not hibernating. Both endurance athletes have set themselves a very special project this year: "MM 131013." The initials and numbers are in for the munich marathon on 13. October. Our newspaper will accompany sindy meier and dieter oeckl on their way and report about their training and their preparatory competitions.
The duo, who start for the laufgemeinschaft (LG) ludwigschorgast, have completely different prerequisites, but when sindy and dieter stand at the starting line in munich, the 42.195 kilometers are the same for both of them.
Started only one year ago
31-year-old sindy started running just over a year ago. "At the beginning, i drove up to the steinhohe near kupferberg with my friend kathrin stocker to do our laps in the forest. But after a relatively short time I ran to the meeting point" sindy tells about her beginnings.
In march 2012 she competed in her first race at the kaiserdomlauf in bamberg. Over ten kilometers sindy meier finished third in her age group W30 with 52:55 minutes.
Their decision to tackle the challenging rennsteig half marathon right away in may was very courageous. For the mother of eight-year-old twins leon and noah, however, the premise was quite clear: "the point was not necessarily to arrive within a certain time, but simply to try and make it". What she also succeeded in doing. With 1:58:47 it even cracked the magic two-hour mark.
Other races followed, such as the steinachtallauf, the half marathon in gefrees, the frankenwaldlauf in ludwigschorgast and finally the half marathon in the habbergen near zeil. For a running beginner, mother of two and full-time nurse at the hospital in kulmbach, it is an extensive competition workload. But sindy meier has just caught the running virus.
Running as a way of life
In contrast, her male counterpart, 54-year-old dieter oeckl, has already run many kilometers – but has never run more than the half marathon distance. "Only once in training did i run 27 kilometers," says, recalls the father of two daughters, jasmin (23) and viola (16).
He started running in 2004 through his wife gudrun. "She laced up her running shoes several times a week, so i thought i'd give it a try too", says dieter oeckl. In the meantime he has competed in numerous national races. And when was his first competition? "I still know that very well. It was the steinachtal half marathon in 2005." For the 21.1 kilometers he needed only 1:44:51 hours at that time.
For dieter, who works for the ireks company in kulmbach, running has now become his life's passion. "It is not only fun, but also good for your health", he says with conviction.
Michael kraus had the idea
How did sindy meier and dieter oeckl come up with the idea of taking on the challenge of the marathon? To put? "Guilt" that's what michael kraus, chairman of the ludwigschorgast lg, is about. After the half marathon in zeil in november 2012, which the trio completed together in 1:47 hours, he asked his two club colleagues if they could imagine running a marathon as well. Both did not think twice. "Yes, we do", sindy and dieter were in agreement.
The only question was which marathon it should be. "The decision was made in favor of munich because we still had a good ten months to go and could therefore prepare ourselves optimally. Besides, it's a very sublime feeling when you run through the marathon gate into the olympic stadium", says michael kraus, who provides advice and support to the two marathon aspirants.
Since december, the three athletes have been trying to run together as often as possible – which is not always possible due to shift work.
Training in all weathers
Under the guidance of your experienced running coach michael kraus (122 marathons and ultraruns), basic training is currently on the program. That means, calm to brisk long-distance running with a weekly extent between 40 and 50 kilometers, distributed on three running units. Running consistently in all weathers, no matter if it's storming or snowing.
Michael kraus wanted to prepare his two athletes not only physically, but also psychologically for the marathon adventure: "a marathon race is a border crossing of emotions, that's what makes the marathon so special," says michael kraus, says michael kraus.
In the meantime, they have also become aware of what they have gotten themselves into, and that it can still be a long and perhaps also a hard road. Nevertheless, they are optimistic: "we can do it", remembers the father of two children, says sindy meier in a chest tone of conviction.
