1. It is too long for most people and is merely a survival walk-jog.
2. Too many people brag about their times even though courses vary widely.
3. It used to be that you only ran a marathon if you knew you had a chance to win.
Otherwise you would be considered nuts.
4. Many marathoners are nuts. They lost their brains many years ago.
5. Some people think they can run a marathon with six weeks of training.
6. About 50% of people who have ran a marathon never ran well again.
(I've seen 1:59 half-milers go to never again being able to break 2:15. I have also seen many
20 year olds not be able to run for 3 years after one.)
7. People think that after they've ran the marathon, they have arrived as a human being.
8. It takes away from shorter races. Track & Field meets for older people almost cease to exist.
9. Gives non-runners a false impression of running. Many think that all runners get knee injuries.
10. All non-runners can ask is "have you ever ran a marathon?"
11. If you say "no," they tell you that you should even though they themselves have never really
ever ran except in PE class.
12. We have an emphasis in America on the so called "superfit." This concentrates on the young.
13. We have many misconceptions of what it means to be fit. 5-11 and 125 is not fit!
14. Marathoners are considered "experienced," runners. The rest of us are considered "beginners,"
by the general public. It really is the exact opposite. More people start out with a goal to run a
marathon rather than a fast mile.
15. It takes far more intelligence to train for a fast mile than it does for a marathon. The training
for a marathon is simple...just run a lot of miles. It's like 95% aerobic!