Competitor group's masters runner comped entry standards

Jennifer sounds hot.

OP, you don't have a leg to stand on.

You are asking them to give you a free entry.

It would be great if they did but they are certainly under no obligation. It would definitely be charity on their part, however, as your participation does not add any value to the race in the way that Meb, or any other actual elite, does.

So you are basically begging them for charity and then pissed off when they don't throw a few coins your way.

Your communication with them was needlessly antagonistic.

The fact that you seem to have zero self-awareness about any of this is your biggest problem.

I am embarrassed to have the same name as you.

Wow...you are not an example of a decent human being. That I am siding with Competitor over you really says something.

I went as far as to email Jennifer and point out this thread to show her that most of us runners aren't complete rude crybabies like yourself.

mildlyfastmaster wrote:

The tone of my email was cordial until I figured out that besides not comping my entry they are not willing to comp any master's entries unless your Meb or Kevin Castille.

Bullshit. You call this cordial?

"I am a master's athlete. Im sure they dont have to run 1:06. What are the master's standards? They are not posted."

You are a terrible person.

Pics?

Hmmm..... wrote:

Jennifer sounds hot.

Brian turned 40 a month ago and is already begging for free master's entries. You're gonna pay, Brian. You are gonna pay.

mildlyfastmaster wrote: I don't have a problem paying race fees.

In this instance, it really sounds like you do. After all, you threw a temper tantrum with the elite coordinator, and created this thread to publicly complain about not receiving a comped entry.

The standard for a comped masters entry at this race is really high, sure, but no one actually cares about masters racing (or old athletes in general). Happy 40th.

And he has never broken 16:00 in the 5k and barely broke 1:15 on one of the fastest half marathon courses in the east. Ever. Not as a masters. Ever. Let that sink in.

gabbergaw wrote:

Brian turned 40 a month ago and is already begging for free master's entries. You're gonna pay, Brian. You are gonna pay.

Age grouper here, and that USATF list is not comprehensive at all. I scored 88.5 on a USATF certified course and another guy in my age group was 90% and neither are on the list. And in another race an American record holder in a different age group ran a 90% and he's not on the list either.

I've gotten comped into one race in the past 5 years, a regional championship, and I feel eternally grateful. OP you are giving masters runners a bad rep.

mildlyfastmaster wrote:

Like I said above the standards are discriminatory toward master's athletes only.

you should be grateful that master's division is even a thing. in most sports when people get old they don't get the opportunity to compete against a bunch of other old people to win prizes.

Does this seem elite to you?

https://www.athlinks.com/Result/Search?searchTerm=Brian%20Crispell

He's now moved down to about 5th masters runner on the thread even though he is the youngest masters runner on the thread and even when using his non-masters times.

SwixSwenson_The_Real_1 wrote:

Age grouper here, and that USATF list is not comprehensive at all. I scored 88.5 on a USATF certified course and another guy in my age group was 90% and neither are on the list. And in another race an American record holder in a different age group ran a 90% and he's not on the list either.

I've gotten comped into one race in the past 5 years, a regional championship, and I feel eternally grateful. OP you are giving masters runners a bad rep.

What are the odds you show us that you are in fact human by coming back to the thread and admitting that upon reflection you were in the wrong in your communications?

I'm guessing somewhere around 0.01%.

He reminds me of this kid in Baltimore that lies about his PRs by one second just to get under some arbitrary standards.

I run a competitive running event with national participation. The top athletes in the event never ask for anything. Their agents make arrangements out of their travel budgets and even pay the entry fee.

It's the unsponsored athletes, a few rungs down, that typically need travel or entry help. As others have said. That unsponsored athlete is not bringing anything to the event. The top athletes create the draw that brings the B-level athlete plus spectators. That's the unfortunate math.

The fact that you are looking for a free entry illustrates that they have created a desirable event.

Why do you want a free entry anyway? Affordability? Status? Equality? I will always give consideration to an athlete with a compelling story. Maybe Competitor will too.

mildlyfastmaster - I have no idea why you believe that you deserve a free entry. Forget about whether your time is good for a masters athlete. Why do you believe you're entitled to a free entry no matter your performance? Do you regularly berate other businesses for not giving you free stuff? Good grief, for a 40+ runner, you seem to have some growing up left to do.

The Competitor people have always been extremely gracious and respectful to masters runners. Yeah, full disclosure, they've comped me a couple times (then again, I was running a couple minutes faster than you are now when I was 50). But they haven't always comped me, and they haven't comped most of my clubmates, at least a dozen of whom are much older and faster than you. Thing is, we don't expect freebies just because we got old. We're pretty damn happy just being healthy enough to still toe the line and enjoy the sport.

My advice: Enjoy the fact that you're still racing--and still racing well--at your age. If someone offers you a comp, be happy. If they don't, whatever (and if the race is too expensive without the comp, do what the rest of us do: don't run it). Let the open runners have the comps; they're the sport's present and future. Don't begrudge them their time to shine, and stop trying to make it yours.

An Event Director wrote:

I run a competitive running event with national participation. The top athletes in the event never ask for anything. Their agents make arrangements out of their travel budgets and even pay the entry fee.

You are a liar or simply uninformed. No top tier athletes expect to pay an entry fee. There are enough of us on this board who knows how it works and have been there. The second an elite finds out they have to pay for their own travel and expenses is the second they find another race.

This board is always full of commenters ready to bust out the pitch forks. There is nothing wrong with the original poster asking for a comped entry and also asking what their masters standards are. Competitor has NEVER been consistent across the board. One year I have personally been given entry and a room, another year with a faster PR I was given nothing.

As a Masters Champion (At Broad Street, a very competitive field no less) and almost as important, a local in the Philadelphia area, it's obscene that the original postwr would not be offered an entry to the Philadelphia Rock & Roll event.

Green Acres wrote:

As a Masters Champion (At Broad Street, a very competitive field no less) and almost as important, a local in the Philadelphia area, it's obscene that the original postwr would not be offered an entry to the Philadelphia Rock & Roll event.

Obscene? Not quite.

Does he have a good case for an entry? Sure.

Is he a terrible person who acted like a spoiled d!ck? Most definitely.