Bruce Fordyce – What It Takes To Win The Iconic Comrades Ultramarathon A Record 9 Times
Article by Renata Bossi for Sweat Elite
On the 14th May, the iconic Comrades Marathon, dubbed ‘The Ultimate Human Race’, was cancelled for the first time since World War II.
Citing the Coronavirus pandemic, the Comrades Marathon Association Board chose to “prioritise the health, safety and well-being” of all who would be involved and “with profound sadness and regret” decided to cancel South Africa’s lead road running event.
For the rare few of you, still unfamiliar with this historic race, this ultramarathon of approximately 89 kilometres (55 miles) is both the world’s largest and oldest ultramarathon race. The route alternates between the ‘up run’ (starting in Durban, and finishing inland in Pietermaritzburg) and the ‘down run’ (the inverse, starting instead in Pietermaritzburg and ending near the coast in Durban). With stringent cut off points dotting the route, five brutal hills nicknamed ‘The Big Five’ and a tight 12 hour cut off, this race requires ineffable physical endurance and mental fortitude to complete, let alone win a record nine times.
Bruce Fordyce, dubbed the ‘Comrades King’ has done exactly that.
Boasting 8 consecutive wins between 1981 and 1988, and then claiming the title once more in 1990, South Africa’s Bruce Fordyce is no run-of-the-mill distance runner. Fordyce has a proclivity for consecutive titles, winning the London to Brighton Ultramarathon for 3 years running from 1981 to 1983, doubling up with Comrades titles for all three years. Fordyce was also the 50 mile record holder from 1983, until just over a year ago when American long-distance runner Jim Walmsley broke his 36 year record by 14 seconds. His PB’s over shorter distances are not to be brushed over either, with a 14:26 5km, a 29:53 10km and a 2h17 marathon under the belt.
But what does it take to win the Comrades Marathon a record number of nine times?
Inspired to take running more seriously after watching the 1976 Comrades marathon aired on TV, Fordyce’s voyage to victory started under the stars on the night of 18 June 1976, when he ran around his university rugby fields for a meagre 10 minutes. At the time, this was all he could manage. One can only guess that this is where his love for ‘consecutives’ began, because he ran again the next day, and the next…
Good genes, commitment, a solid training programme and career-long consistency are factors Fordyce attributes to his Comrades’ successes. It took Fordyce three years to grow his mileage from that initial 10 minute run to 160-190kms a week during peak season, and around 100-115 kms a week during his off season.
In his book titled: “The Marathon Runner’s Handbook”, a must read for all potential Comrades runners and ultramarathon runners, Fordyce breaks down the necessary training required for Comrades success as follows:
January
Build the base: Fordyce stresses a focus on running for longer periods. The emphasis is not on speed, but instead on slow and steady endurance; or ‘time on the legs’. Emphasis is placed on starting slowly – the body does not adapt overnight, and the cumulative stress of an increased training load can be detrimental to not only the recovery but also the longevity of one’s bones, tendons and muscles. He recommends alternating weekend long runs as follows: a medium long run (20-30kms) for week 1, alternated with a very long run (40-60kms) for week 2, and then repeated for week 3 and 4.
February
Consistency, consistency, consistency: February is for focusing on consistent training and adding to the endurance base. LSDs (Long Slow Distances) are of utmost importance to ensure the body adapts to longer periods of time on the legs. Fordyce recommends alternating long runs (30kms) with very long runs (50-60kms) as this gives the body time to recover in between. It is also key to know what pace you plan to run Comrades at, and then practise this pace during these longer runs. Being accustomed to the rhythm of this pace will carry you through on race day.
Intriguingly, in the months leading up to Comrades, runners want to assess their fitness over longer distances and often enter a marathon or two. Fordyce strongly recommends against this. “When I am preparing for a major effort in an ultra-distance race, I have one rule about entering other long-distance races: don’t. If I could have my way I would force my running friends not to race a single race of 42kms or longer in the six months preceding Comrades.” The reason for this? Racing-induced muscle damage is exponentially exacerbated during races longer than 25kms. This muscle damage takes a considerable time to repair and inhibits the runner from swiftly returning to productive training.
March
Hills that give you thrills! Comrades runners need to be ready for two types of hills: the long gradual climbs of a kilometre or more, and the short, but sharp heart rate spiking hills. For the former, Fordyce recommends running at a slow but steady rhythm at a zone 2-3 heart rate. This is between 60-80% of your maximum heart rate. For example, if a runner’s maximum heart rate is 200 bmp (beats per minute), they would want their heart rate to be between 120-160 bmp for a zone 2-3 effort. A good gauge is the ‘talk test’: being able to speak without difficulty, indicating that you are running at an easy enough pace. It is important to note that heart rate zones are individualised, and can only be determined accurately by a performance test.
To practise the short yet sharp hill repeats, Fordyce recommends attacking these at an 80-90% effort (or a heart rate of between 160-180 bmp for a runner with a maximum heart rate of 200 bmp). It is vital to maintain speed all the way to the crest of the hill, and only ease up on the way down. Fordyce further recommends the addition of a midweek long run (15-25kms) at a slightly speedier pace to get the legs acquainted with race conditions. This midweek longer run, along with the weekly hill session and weekend LSD adds valuable strength and endurance.
April
Time to get fast: After months of endurance training, the focus now moves away from long runs and on to quality sessions. Fordyce recommends a thorough warm up of 3-4 kms before commencing a quality session, and a few slow cool-down kilometres succeeding the session. There are four different quality sessions he advises on:
Track work – 400m up to 1600m intervals, repeated with a walk or slow jog in between. 5 x 1000m with a 200m recovery walk in between used to be one of Fordyce’s firm favourites. A common mistake is to over-exert yourself during these sessions. Yes, they will be exceptionally tough to start, but runners must avoid absolutely shattering their legs. It will be far more beneficial to start by executing only two or three repeats, and then to build from there, than to blowout after your first interval session and see little to no improvement in coming weeks because the muscles cannot adequately recover from the physical exertion of the session.
Speed play – A chance to actually enjoy a quality session; the runner chooses objects to do their intervals between. For example, sprinting between lamp posts and then slowly jogging to the next one.
Short distance races – Running a 5-8km time trial. The focus is not on pace, neither is the time trial run at an all out maximum effort. Instead, the focus is on overall time for a set distance, run at your ‘easiest’ hard pace. It should feel tough, but not like you’ve ruptured a lung in an attempt at a new 5km PB. Subsequent recovery should be relatively rapid.
Hill work – Continuing to practice the hill sessions mentioned in the previous month.
May
Ride the route: Fordyce believes driving the route is an extremely important part of mentally preparing for the colossal challenge ahead. “The drive itself is a great warning of what lies ahead for those who plan to run. The point is that you are now worried and cautious and that is exactly the correct frame of mind to be in at the start of the Comrades”, forewarns Fordyce.
Fordyce swears by the importance of one final crucial measure.
Before a runner is ready to pin on their race number and lace up their trainers come race day, they must endure the slow glide taper. Feared by most, and incorrectly executed by many, a pre-race taper can make or break months of scrupulous training sessions, predawn wake ups and laborious Sunday LSD’s. Insufficient or flawed tapering is often provoked by a fear of gaining weight and losing fitness as race day approaches, and therefore requires determined restraint and a precise plan.
“Months of training make you very fit. But, you’re also tired and blown away from it all. Tapering is the final process in perfecting your race. And, it’s called tapering because you don’t just stop with a bang. You gradually reduce your training in a glide path down towards race day,” says Fordyce in an article with Discovery.
“The first sign of the taper period is that the Sunday long-run distance drops drastically”, explains Fordyce. Peaking at a Sunday long run mileage of 60kms, the distance drops dramatically in the weeks leading up to the race. “Say you were doing 100km of training every week before tapering began. Three weeks before Comrades you go to 80km a week, and 60km the following week,” Fordyce elaborates. Regardless of whether the runner is a novice striving to make the 12 hour cut off, or a seasoned distance runner going for a silver medal, the concept of reducing mileage leading up to the race remains the same.
This method served Fordyce so well that he saw no reason to change it for the duration of his winning streak. During the month of May in 1983, his training diary cites the following decrease in mileage: he reduces his initial weekly distance of 180kms to 120kms, and then to 80kms the following week. He then rounded off his taper with a few short and easy runs (listed below) in the week leading up to the race:
- Sunday: a steady 15-20km
- Monday: an easy 8km
- Tuesday: an easy 5km
- Thursday: no run
- Friday: no run
- Saturday: no run
- Sunday: Comrades Marathon (Fordyce placed first in a time of 5:30:12)
Fordyce recommends absolute rest during the final three days leading up to the race. He does not believe in jeopardising one’s race through cross training. Straight from his 2019 tapering blog, Fordyce instructs: “The key to a great Comrades is to arrive at the starting line with fresh, strong, rested legs and champing at the bit to run.”
What about race day nutrition? Fordyce’s running career unfolded pre-gels and sans the oatmeal and banana breakfast that Eluid Kipchoge consumed before breaking the two hour marathon barrier.
Unlike Kipchoge who used a powdered carbohydrate mix called Maurten to maintain energy levels, Fordyce raced to 9 Comrades wins on water and Coca Cola. Nothing else. The current format of forty official refreshment stations that follow the route, emulating a 12 hour all-you-can-eat buffet, only appeared in later years.
In those days there were no salted potatoes or juicy orange slices to help replenish the copious amounts of calories expended during this ultramarathon. Instead, elites relied on finishing before lunchtime and consuming a hearty brunch, while the rest of the field slogged away, as the sun slowly made its ways between horizons.
After completing thirty Comrades marathons, Fordyce was nowhere near done with running. In November 2011, he introduced Parkrun to South Africa which he regularly partakes in (having completed over 400), and still clocks between 60-70kms of running a week himself.
Although the Corona pandemic has left our running and racing world in a temporary state of dismal disarray, it may well be the perfect time to go back to the fundamentals of running easy, and to reflect on the role that this often exasperating but also exceptionally satisfying sport has in our lives.
Just as Fordyce’s Comrades journey started small, but with slow and steady consistency led to great success, he leaves us with one final piece of advice: “Always remember that life is a marathon, not a sprint. Give yourself permission to run slowly, and go the distance.”
Read more articles about Marathon Training and Ultramarathon Training.
