"They may be mediocre"????
If they have sponsors, they are anything but mediocre.
I laugh every time I read the running-obsessed, emaciated rack-of-bones runners on this forum bash other sports like triathlons. Triathletes have a much more well-balanced fitness level than runners.
I enjoy running (and that's why I run as much as I do and participate on this forum), but I'm not so myoptic to think that running is the only worthwhile sport to pursue.
Excellent post.
triathlete fan wrote:
"They may be mediocre"????
If they have sponsors, they are anything but mediocre.
I laugh every time I read the running-obsessed, emaciated rack-of-bones runners on this forum bash other sports like triathlons. Triathletes have a much more well-balanced fitness level than runners.
I enjoy running (and that's why I run as much as I do and participate on this forum), but I'm not so myoptic to think that running is the only worthwhile sport to pursue.
the optimal phrase there is fitness level. Their fitness level might be tremendous, but until it is an activity in which inner city children, and even people of third world countries actually participate in - then it is in the "sport" catagory of ice-skating, nascar, and beach volleyball. you shouldn't have to own a $10,000 bike and a $700 wetsuit in order to be "good" .
no way triathletes are more balanced than runners, and no way all runners are emaciated or myopic.
legally blond wrote:the optimal phrase there is fitness level. Their fitness level might be tremendous, but until it is an activity in which inner city children, and even people of third world countries actually participate in - then it is in the "sport" catagory of ice-skating, nascar, and beach volleyball. you shouldn't have to own a $10,000 bike and a $700 wetsuit in order to be "good" .
no way triathletes are more balanced than runners, and no way all runners are emaciated or myopic.
Thanks for the correction. I forgot that sports are defined as an activity that inner-city kids can do. Silly me. I sure am glad all those inner-city kids can afford $100 running shoes (every 2-4 months) and the $100 entrance fee for the better marathons.
When I was a triathlete, I trained some with an Olympic 1500m swimmer who swam mid-15:00s for 1500. Not mediocre.
One of the best triathletes in my area just ran 2:21:xx at Chicago and got his Provisional Qualifier for the Trials. Not mediocre.
Chann McRae, a pro IM, and Steve Larsen, a former pro IM, both raced bikes in Europe, as did several other famous pros like Chuckie V. and Ned Overend. Not mediocre at all.
I don't buy the argument that triathletes are necessarily mediocre athletes. As for AG triathletes: there are more slow and mediocre runners out there than there are mediocre triathletes. And good for them--it's beats the shit out of sitting on the couch and dying a slow death.
If you're trying to race an Olympic triathlon, you are pegged for 2 hours--pegged. Try swimming 1500m in 20 minutes, cycling at 25+ mph, and running sub-34:00 for 10K, all in the same race. I've done that, and I wasn't even very good at Olympic distance racing--there are many who are much, much better.
I don't do the sport anymore because I got tired of it. I'll get tired of running sooner or later and race bikes.
triathlete fan wrote:
Thanks for the correction. I forgot that sports are defined as an activity that inner-city kids can do. Silly me. I sure am glad all those inner-city kids can afford $100 running shoes (every 2-4 months) and the $100 entrance fee for the better marathons.
It's a lot easier to afford $50 - $70 for decent running shoes and the $20 entrance fee for a 10k than it is to afford a $9,000 Tri-Bike, $500 Wet Suit, still need the shoes, and have to pay $100 to $400 to enter a decent triathlon
Triathlon:
Shoes $120
Racing Bike $7,000
Desoto Wetsuit $600
Entry fees for one year $550
Bike Rack $300
Maintenance Fees $275
1st place in your age group at the Portage County Resevoir Race, priceless
not cheaper than running.
I love you Swimfan
Long live Swimfan!!!!!!
DAMN that was so funny i just put that as my facebook quote
Matt Shepherd wrote:
heath leedger wrote:fairy catching is still considered a sport in many western states
It is in Wyoming.
The fairies in wyoming have a lot of wool and go "baaaaa", brokeback style.
I think that they run, bike and swim.
I find it hysterical how many posters on this thread argue that running is better than triathlons because it's less expensive. If the only reason you run is because you can't afford to do anything else, then get a job... and a life for that matter.
BTW, even though it might cost less money, your AG award at your local Turkey Trot 5K is pretty funny. Be sure to mount the $5 medal and the gift certificate to the local running store on your office door... that is, if you're employed.
Bandito wrote:
Excellent post.
No it isn't.
Most elite triathletes have exactly the same build as elite runners, in fact put Alan Webb next to Mark Allen or Simon Lessing and he looks like AAAHNOLD.
Most AG triathletes are so dumb they thing they need big muscles in order to compete in an endurance event and haven't got enough sense to take a look at the elites in their own sport and stay away from the weight room.
The reality is that most triathletes are poseurs and its not so much about being fast but looking cool.
successful triathlete = former swimmers who shed some of the blubber (through running and biking)and has a little bit of talent for running. If you spent your tenage years swimming you MAY BE a good triathlete.
unsuccessful triathlete = former runners (no matter how great they were!)High bone density, lack of ankle flexibility, low body fat etc working against you.
I'm speaking from my own experience. I used to be a swimmer when I was a kid. I was a very strong kicker.I was the best kicker on the team.
Now,after many years of running, I barely make it to the other end of the pool. My legs just tank. They feel like bricks in the water and because of that I'm swimming uphill the whole time.
As a runner who has actually done triathlons id be interested to know how many of you actually have run one. Not just some fun run triathlon, but an actual Ironman or halve iron man. My guess is that all of you who are talking crap wouldn’t finish.
What % of the average triathlon duration is the swim?
Reality Bites wrote:
Bandito wrote:Excellent post.
No it isn't.
Most elite triathletes have exactly the same build as elite runners, in fact put Alan Webb next to Mark Allen or Simon Lessing and he looks like AAAHNOLD.
Most AG triathletes are so dumb they thing they need big muscles in order to compete in an endurance event and haven't got enough sense to take a look at the elites in their own sport and stay away from the weight room.
The reality is that most triathletes are poseurs and its not so much about being fast but looking cool.
Riiiiight, you don't need muscles to swim or pedal a bike. No upper or lower body power needed there at all right? Riiiiiiight. Geb would drown in the ocean. Bekele would ride with the power of a girl! I'm wondering thought...does your heart or lungs touch the ground when you run? No? That's right your feet touch the ground. Now refresh my memory...what actually propels your forward? Lungs? Heart? Mitochondria? No? That's right...muscles!! You only get what you put in. Take two runners that are the same in every way, ht, wt, Vo2max, LT, etc, etc, etc, yet runner A is somehow (me thinks through a proper and progressive strength training routine) able to produce more power with each stride. Guess who will win? Geb strengths trains. Look it up. Steve Spence won the '91 World Marathon Bronze and '92 OT Marathon and changes his strength training routine from a machine based high rep (20 reps) low weight one to a more exercise specific strength based routine (sets of 10). You won't get big, you don't take in enough protein or lift enough, you won't be sore all the time as long as you stay with it.
Alan
Reality Bites wrote:
What % of the average triathlon duration is the swim?
Roughly 1/8 (at least for IM or half IM)... 1 hour of an 8-hour winning time. But what difference does that percentage make? Obviously, a triathlete's upper-body is strong enough to swim the necessary 2.4 miles at a fast clip (or 1.2 miles of a half IM) and the average runner's isn't... otherwise any old runner could just jump in the water. Go jump in the pool and swim a mile and see how pathetic your upper body is compared to your lower body.
I was fortunate enough to coach Josiah Middaugh...one of the top XTerra guys in the world. He was one of the toughest kids ever...and also one of the nicest.
I coached him in high school.