When you line up for a local race, do you select a place

I've run a couple of local 5ks that looked a lot like that. Those kids are good for ~100 yards then they just stop.

Even worse was the Raleigh Rundown a couple of years ago. Some kids fell down near the start and the rest of us aging wannabes hurdled them on our way to ~5:00 glory.

Yeah, I've been to races where the kids dash out and after 100 or so yards just stop. Super dangerous.

Of course.

Sometimes you'll get the odd numpty footballer, who'll usually be wearing a gym tank, tights under his shorts and Asics Kayanos, at the front. But that guy's gonna take off at 4:00/mile pace anyway (and then preceed to jog it in at around 7:00/miles after the first quarter).

I'll sometimes let kids start ahead of me, because they always fly off at the start, so they won't be an impediment (better that than to have them clipping your heals).

I think it's more of an issue when it's a small local 5k. That's at least the only place I've seen it. I don't know if other people sit on those kids shoulders, but I've never had an issue going around a kid who sprinted the first 100m.

I think kids being only familiar with middle/hs XC are taught to get good position as quickly as possible with those huge one-person deep starts.

Sure, we all know the local runners pretty well and can appropriately self-seed. There was this one gentleman who ran in our local races for many years, and for all of them he was slow and doddering. I'm not talking Let's Run slow ("He never broke 15 for the 5k! Pedestrian!"), I'm talking like 12 minute miles in a 2-miler. He always, always, always had his toe on the very line. But everyone expected him and just gave him a wide berth.

I'm hoping that maybe they gave those kids a 5-minute head start.

If not, what exactly does the race director THINK is going to happen there? Is the race director imagining that every single one of those kids is like a little Jordan Hasay and will run the race in 16:30?

Running the Torchlight 5k in Minneapolis one year, it’s a pretty high quality 5k, this dude with gym shorts, keys in his pocket, a phone strapped to his arm and AirPods takes a spot right on the line with a bunch of 14-15min guys.

Everybody starts making jokes about him and sarcastic comments and all that.

The guy couldn’t hear any of it, probably Eminem blasting, you know the one.

Anyway, he probably goes out in a 65, then a 90, then probably didn’t finish.

I blasted by him maybe 600m in, en route to a 17:10. Probably could have broken the 17:05 barrier if I wasn’t laughing out loud.

The dudes key probably chafed a hole in his quad.

Depends on the race. If it's really small crowd, and say on a narrow park path definitely. If it's a massive city street one (I live in a big city), then there will be tons of ppl who will push past at a sub 5:00 mile even though they can't. I let them go and will sometimes start 10 rows back.

Similarly to those bigger races I see pace bunnies like 40:00 or 3:00 line right up like almost front row even though there may be 50+ ppl finishing faster. I tend to stick myself in front of them because I don't want to have to push signs out of the way.

Can't edit.

For context I'm usually finishing top 10. If it's a championship type race then maybe top 50. There I'm more than happy to be a few rows back.

In Cali at a small race, the kids run didn't go off on time so the RD had the whole kids field line up in front of the 5k field. That not being bad enough, the race started across a field for not more than 50 yrds then took a hard turn onto a bike path.

At a race in FL and kids had commandeered the whole starting line and wouldn't budge. Parents were there telling them to stay put. RD acted quickly by having the older/faster runners jog out and when we came back he established a new stating line just ahead of the yutes.

Seen a dad protecting his young daughter's spot on the front line. She was a decent little runner, but shouldn't have been on the line.

Then, if you've raced in DC, Betty Blank.

Nice post. I'll share my story about being in a portapotty after the gun went off.

It was a 5k. I thought I had enough time to use the portapotty before the start. No. The gun goes off while I'm finishing up. I go out side, seeing the race had already started. Made sure I crossed the timing mat, then had to make my way through 600 people. I didn't even come close to the leaders because of this mishap. However this race was scored on chip time, not gun time. I finished 3rd in chip time, about 25th in gun time.

Yes, it does happen. Just this past weekend, local 5k, I was 2-3 rows back from the start, where I should be. Not 100 meters out, 4-5 middle school kids dead stopped right in the middle of the pack, didn't even bother to pull off to the side. I gave them the old man3 second lecture about proper racing etiquette. Maybe they'll remember it the next time!

I show up to the line 5 min before it goes off and get my way into the front. Usually people don't ever seem to care.

This is a 5K geared towards family and friends who are waiting for a parade to start. It comes with a beer voucher. Joke is on you. You thought it was competitive, yet took 1/8 of the race distance to catch this guy. To put in terms you understand, he probably beat you, probably had more fun, probably has friends, probably old enough to drink beer, probably.

Some of us ARE soccer moms or 74 years old.

At local races, it definitely happens with kids. 38 second first 200 followed by an abrupt stop to walk. This can cause bumping but one can avoid it by 1) having a spot near the start, and 2) avoiding being directly behind kids.

I like picking people off bc everyone(including me)goes out too fast. But I also know that Im not a 15 min 5k guy. I think I passed like 20 people in a huge road mile the last 400. I start somewhat near the front tho but not right at the front because its either get out super hard or get run over unless its a smaller race

Sometimes beyond the offleash dogs and walkers on my track I get the young teen too who wants to go jump in lane 1 running 6:00/km when I'm running 3:00. I'm only half guessing the pace because I run into them 2x per their lap.

WTF are you doing? track I yell as I inside step them.

The off leash dog walkers I'm not subtle at all. Get the everluvinfuk off the track.