Ritz=Worst Quote of the day ever?

I actually liked this quote, does that make me a loser, hint, i am also a huge coach d fan, perhaps the biggest

I liked the quote. I copied it to my diary.

I watched the Jerry Rice video. He had a very good work ethic. Most distance runners, especially the Professionals also have very good work ethics. I think Dathan's quote shows that he really enjoys doing the work and thus has a good work ethic. What was your point? Where's the contrast?

Shorter never mentioned winning as a motivation for all the training he did. It was always because he wanted to see how good he could get. And he also always claimed that he liked the physical act of running. Later in his career he did and interview in which he reiterated his enjoyment for running and said that to some extent racing was just something that justified all the training. Yet he managed to do a fair bit of winning.

It's truly amazing to me that a runner who expresses enjoyment of running and a desire to keep on once his fastest years are over gets criticized for that on a runner's message board. Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus still play golf. John McEnroe and Billy Jean King still play tennis.I think it just underscores his point; that there are a fair number of people in the sport who aren't totally keen on it and will let it go once the extrinsic rewards are gone for them. Of course it's too soon for him to know what he'll want to do when he's 40 or 75 but when I was his age I knew I never wanted to stop.

This is the exact reason I like the quote. Ritz reminds me of the old school runners. He enjoys being out there, hammering out the miles and challenging himself. I respect that. And to the guy who claims that Ritz isn't competitive like Jerry Rice - That's total BS. I've seen Ritz race. Believe me he wants to win.

Ritz was answering the question posed by the interviewer. There is nothing to indicate that he was attempting to make some great insight or provide inspiration.

George Carlin's Ghost wrote:

"I like the everyday satisfaction of having done something that most people can't do."

Running. People think running is a sport. Running isn't a sport because anybody can do it. I can run, you can run. For Christ sakes, my mother can run! You don't see her on the cover of Sports Illustrated, do you?

Actually not everyone can run. Quadriplegics and paraplegics can't run. So therefore running is a sport. So please go back to your cave and don't waste others time.

What did Ritz say?

I'll take the other side - having been at the USATF masters xc champs yesterday, where Joan Benoit hung out after the race for hours, chatting - for Ritz to say that she is a model - well, perfect.

This was a gathering of 300 people, most past their prime, she more than anyone, running through mud and hills and muddy hills on a brisk 50 degree day in a town park next to a sheep farm in upstate NY...

For Ritz to say that he wants to be at that kind of race in 20 years makes a guy like me (age mid 40s) respect him. He's not doing it for the money, he's not doing it just to win - he's doing it because he finds value in running per se. As did the 300 people yesterday.

Who would you rather be - El G, who retired early and seems to have disappeared, or Joan B, who still gets out and races?

For me, I'll be Joan B.

Who says the qotd has to be inspirational?

Some are. Some tell a story. Some give race insights..And some, as in Ritz's, offer personal insight as to how they feel about their sport and training...

Personally, I found that it is exactly how I feel about training..

I'm sorry my life doesn't inpire you.

I actually think that his love of the activity makes him more admirable, but it doesn't make his quote noteworthy. Is it rare to hear a professional runner tell us they realized they love what they do? No.

Disgusted with myself as I am, I found some insight in the Jerry Rice reference. I know a lot of us on this board should/would be thankful to be as fast as Ritz, but does being thankful for where you are make it ok to settle at that level? If I was Ritz/Hall/Solinsky/Rupp, ie any of the top American runners, I would slay myself for being less than the best in the world.

Of course, days would come when I would ease up and realize, "No, I'm not as good as KB, but I am doing something I enjoy," and then some douchebag like me would make a post about it and not get the point. *shrug*

Fishing Instructor wrote:

Ritz was answering the question posed by the interviewer. There is nothing to indicate that he was attempting to make some great insight or provide inspiration.

Exactly! Ritz didn't ask to be quote of the day, in fact he probably winces every time he gets mentioned on Letsrun. He simply did an interview.

To the OP and every other moron who didn't get the Ritz quote:

Training is NOT the same as running. If you don't get that then you are probably just an 18 flat 5ker or a 3 flat marathoner who has never trained in his life.

Ritz was not saying "Hey, I realized that I really like to run."

He said that he actually enjoys TRAINING.

He could go out and run every day to enjoy himself. He could even run 10 miles a day just for fun and still be faster than the idiots on this board who don't have a clue. But he doesn't do that. He busts his a$$ running 140 mpw with 2 or 3 days of hard intervals. He works out 2-3 times a day for the joy of doing something difficult.

When he's past his prime (some of you think he already is!) he wants to keep trying to be the very best he can be as long as his body will allow him to do so.

That's pretty inspiring to me.

get real wrote:

Wow, that is one of the most idiotic post I've ever seen. Can you add 2+2? Does that make you right up there with Einstein? Can you say "Hola, Bonjour"? Does that make you fluent in a foreign language? I can throw a football, so I must be as good as John Elway right? If your Grandma could set the American Record in the 5k, yes, she deserves to be on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Go back to your cave, troll.

You know you are arguing with an actual George Carlin quote?

Well said.

I can't even believe this thread got started or that Ritz's quote is the subject of any controversy. He was essentially saying that along with the payoffs and rewards that races offer, he still enjoys the training itself. And you're arguing about this?

I can't believe anyone started this thread either. It's not a big deal. In fact, it's true. Not a lot of people on this Earth are elite runners. That's a fact. Give it up. He's not offensive, get over yourself.

I have just completed 9 weeks of speedwork. I loved the speedwork for the first 6 weeks and am sick of it now. The race I am peaking for is this Saturday. I am taking a week off and then starting back up with LSD and less interval training. Why? Because at this second, I do not love training. I dread another year of training on one hand, while look forward to getting faster on the other. If all I did was LSD, I'd be a happy jogger, but I'd be longing for speed.

I think it is easy for Ritz to say he loves training when he is hurt and can't train. When elite Americans are spending a couple of months racing the circuit in Europe and they have to sit in an apartment 22 hours a day for fear of catching a cold, I hardly think they would be quoted as saying they love what they do. Training and sometimes racing is a pianful sacrifice at times and joy at others. That is, unless you have a hypomanic defense against depression, like Ryan Hall, and misinterpret your faith to require you to force yourself to imagine that you are joyful at all times. Yep, I said it.

ttc wrote:

Dumb post. GOAT Geb's never SAID he loves winning. Meanwhile, Solinsky talked it huge recently. Your logic says Solinsky, not Geb, has what it takes. LeBron talked much more of winning than Dirk.

Geb actually has said that he hates to lose: