Did Mike Rossi (viral marathon dad) cheat his way into Boston?

I never really liked the movie Boondock Saints, so that probably says something

At the 2012 Qualifier marathon in MI, I thought I was in 3:03 shape, however, we had an outlier May 20th and it was 68F at the start. I was demoralized by the weather, but went out at 7:00 flat anyway in an attempt for a BQ. Held for 18 miles then literally blew up and had to walk/run the last 8 in nearly 90 degree heat...got a 3:24. It is impossible that he ran that time, on that day, in that weather!

Could someone please explain in layman's terms why there is a suspicion that he cheated?

The St. Louis cheat also cost someone a BQ spot. Brought attention to herself because she inadvertently won the race. Rossi brought attention to himself...so he is outed as a cheat. I wonder how many there are that are not caught??? Must be hundreds. We need tighter standards at BQ races! No excuse for not having several timing mats--it should be a requisite for a qualifier. Then, if you miss a mat, it should be investigated, you miss more than one, bam DQ! Good luck on you next attempt which should be flagged and scrutinized by the next RD. Would have to figure out a way to stop bib swappers though...I guess photo at bib pick up with ID compared to finish photo.

Eliminate any "marathons" that do not meet these standards.

Same for NY and Chicago time qualifiers.

I think you're raising some valid points. This Rossi guy seems egotistical and desperate for attention. But you don't need to know that he probably faked a BQ to see that's the case. His decision to share his self-righteous letter to the principal and revel in the social media spotlight paints that unflattering picture. Assuming he faked a BQ time, what else does that tell us? I suppose the big revelation is that he's a hypocrite--like many others.

I understand that people enjoy the "gotcha" aspect of this. However, I think the indignation, outrage, and fervor are, frankly, a little silly. Yes, he very well might have deprived someone of a chance to run in Boston, in which case Boston and Lehigh Valley could ban him for, say, two years, similar to what would happens to dopers.

In general, I'm unsettled by the mob mentality of the Internet crusaders for justice. People are ready to pillory others for, in some cases, incorrect or totally unfair reasons and, in other cases (such as this one), ultimately trivial reasons. Again, I understand why this guy's hypocrisy and showboating make him an appealing target, However, I do question people's motivations for wanting to bring the Hammer of Justice down on some random guy who got his 15 minutes of social media fame.

My gosh, this guy is a complete douchebag. Probably a tea bagger.

From experience with the Litton threads, the cheat and accomplices will hit on the ploy of posting more and more extreme stuff in the hope of getting the thread pulled.

Stick to the facts which are compelling and ignore all the "get a life" type trolling, ask yourself why they take time out of their "life" to troll a thread on cheating. Only someone with a vested interest in trying to suppress the story would do this.

Has anyone passed this back to The Today Show? Would love to see them revisit this story.

Since Mr. Rossi and/or his followers read (and perhaps post on) this blog, I have copied my recent posting from Philadelphia Magazine's website,

www.phillymag.com

,

http://www.phillymag.com/news/2015/05/05/did-boston-marathon-dad-mike-rossi-cheat/

In the above (update) article by Victor Fiorillo, Mr. Rossi said, "A lot of things they've said on these blogs are slanderous," he said. "Believe me. I've seen them, and I've spoken to my attorney about them. I don't need to prove anything to anybody, because I didn't cheat. It's easy to go on a website anonymously and make comments."

If he in fact spoke with an attorney, then he would know that that the statements made on blogs could potentially be considered "libelous" not "slanderous". However, in order for that to be remotely true, the statements written on the blogs must be false. So far, Mr. Rossi has not provided one bit of evidence or support that what is being alleged is false, such as the GPS information from the watch that he was photographed wearing in the Lehigh Valley Race which qualified him for the Boston Marathon. It would also seem to me that instead of making such a veiled threat to posters on blogs via phillmag.com that Mr. Rossi would have referred any questions by Victor Fiorillo to his supposed attorney, who would have been in a much better position to elaborate on potential defamation issues and the difference between slander and libel. So far, people of just analyzing what is part of the public record of his race results and Mr. Rossi's own social media postings and statements.

In the meantime, a question for Mr. Rossi. Why not silence all doubters and simply provide data or some support for the qualifying time in the race in question? Perhaps you don't have to prove anything, but for someone who has so actively "tooted" his own horn and publicly shamed a principal for doing her job, it is a bit ironic, self-serving, and disingenuous to now go so deafening silent. I think, or more accurate know, that if you (of all people) had that information, you would share it and once again bask in the glory you so desperately want.

I'm fine with mounting a defense, but none of these offerings are substantive.

There is no evidence to support the idea that he "raced too much" before other marathons. Before his 4:26 marathon in November 2013, he ran no races on October, a half marathon in September, and a 5K in July. That is not racing too much even for a beginner. Moreover, it is not just that his marathon times improved. His intermediate distances are not consistent with a 3:11. And finally, there is the fact that his own description of his training - just over 1000 miles in 18 months, increasing to 50 miles per week for Boston - do not suggest a training block that would support his improvement.

I'm pretty sure this was a joke since this kind of claim popped up on Kip Litton threads all the time. But if it wasn't this has been proven to be a lie by the photo analysis. Everyone who finished anywhere near Rossi was photographed multiple times. Rossi never appeared in those photos. I've also looked at photos at various points from the leaders back to people who ran 3:40+ and there is no sign of Rossi.

A sort-of point, but at the same time, there is a relay so it would be possible to go on and off the course without attracting too much attention. In addition, it is clear that someone was with Rossi and took his picture at the end of the race:

The race results also confirm this. It is the very least you have to do to have BQ.

But no race report like Philadelphia and Boston. No video like the Boston and the Broad Street Run. Nothing more than a twitter reply to a co-worker.

This is it. And it is qompleterlyt lacking in substance.

Reasonable response wrote:

In general, I'm unsettled by the mob mentality of the Internet crusaders for justice. People are ready to pillory others for, in some cases, incorrect or totally unfair reasons and, in other cases (such as this one), ultimately trivial reasons. Again, I understand why this guy's hypocrisy and showboating make him an appealing target, However, I do question people's motivations for wanting to bring the Hammer of Justice down on some random guy who got his 15 minutes of social media fame.

It might be trivial for you, but not for others. Especially not for another that missed a chance at Boston. And as Mike said, it might be a once in a lifetime opportunity. What if that other person ran a once in a lifetime race to qualify? Is a once in a lifetime opportunity trivial? Your definition of trivial is different than mine, and then the next person's, and so on.

Besides, it seems like people here are just trying help him continue that 15 minutes if fame.

ROJO

We need you to write the article ASAP. Add the details later. It will help the case get more attention from mainstream media.

Last 5 pages or so we haven't moved an inch. Just a few pro-mike posts. Laughable ones.

Robert H. wrote:

My gosh, this guy is a complete douchebag. Probably a tea bagger.

Not sure about a Tea Bagger...but a DOUCHEBAGGER for sure. Just like dane rauschenberg, this asshat will probably never admit it, write a book about it, threaten those who really do know the truth and sucker the naive into believing his lies and cheats.

I think the spreadsheet shows the proof, I feel the investigation of many have proven this guy is a lying sack of crap. LV and Boston RD's (or assistants) needs to get on board and out this turd.

Reasonable response wrote:

In general, I'm unsettled by the mob mentality of the Internet crusaders for justice. People are ready to pillory others for, in some cases, incorrect or totally unfair reasons and, in other cases (such as this one), ultimately trivial reasons. Again, I understand why this guy's hypocrisy and showboating make him an appealing target, However, I do question people's motivations for wanting to bring the Hammer of Justice down on some random guy who got his 15 minutes of social media fame.

Where were you when Mr. Rossi was berating an elementary school principal for doing her job by merely enforcing the policy set forth by the school district? Where were you when he repeatedly posted her letter and his sarcastic response to her letter all over his social media outlets? In that instance, as in this case, he has clearly demonstrated his disdain for authority and rules. To defend or condone such behavior is troubling on so many levels. Moreover, when you compare his statements about what his trip supposedly taught his children about values, etc., his actions regarding the school district and potentially his BQ performance flies in the face of what he asserts was so valuable an experience for his family.

swimmer not runner wrote:

Could someone please explain in layman's terms why there is a suspicion that he cheated?

I think this is a fair request -- some of this can get a little wonky, and I'm sure there are a number of Rossi's friends who are reading this and trying to gauge the situation. Let me try to speak in total non-runnerese:

1. THE PHOTOS. At every marathon these days, there are several photographers set up at various locations throughout the course. Because only 1 out of 500 photos actually gets sold (I've run for decades and never met anyone who actually purchased one), the photographers are highly motivated to take as many photos as they can, in hopes they find a sucker who will buy one.

So when you think about the photos, keep in mind that they are taking pictures non-stop during the race. I'm sure they'd take a photo of a squirrel crossing the race course if they thought it'd buy a 8x10 glossy. This is why every other runner has multiple photos of them in multiple locations. You simply cannot avoid these photographers if you run the race. So if you're not in a photo, you are either Dracula or you didn't run in that race.

2. HIS PRIOR RACE TIMES. You've probably run a 5K before. Well, a marathon is 8.5 consecutive 5Ks. Imagine the fastest 5K you've ever run. Do you think you could do that seven and a half more times without stopping? If you don't think this is possible, then you should be highly, highly skeptical of Rossi's time, perhaps to the point of 100% disbelief.

3. THE 3:11 TIME/HIS FINISHING VIDEO. A 3:11 is not an elite marathon time, but it's no joke. If you go to a marathon and watch people finish in the 3:05 to 3:15 range, you're going to see almost exclusively fit, experienced runners. And they certainly will be exhausted at the finish line. If it's a warm day, it will be even worse -- the 3:10 finishers will be some of the most fit runners, and they will be near-dying at the finish line.

So, to give a personal example (and there are similar ones throughout this thread), I'm a 3:00 marathoner, with twenty years of race results to support my times, and there's no doubt that I could slow to a 3:11 under warm race conditions -- and I'm 6'1", 160 lbs, and a decade younger than Rossi. Rossi had none of this going for him, and he looks totally relaxed while finishing.

4. THE GARMIN DATA/SOCIAL MEDIA. As you're probably aware, there is a special breed of person these days who feels the need to share each of life's minor victories with the world via social media channels. I gather from the many links on this thread that Rossi was one of these types. Apparently, he conveniently omits any detailed summary or data relating to a race that, under any circumstance we could invent, would have been a major, once in a lifetime outlier event. I don't advertise my successes on social media, but if I ran the equivalent PR of Rossi, I would start my own blog just to let the world know how great I am.

Thanks. Also why is this thread now not popping up more clearly on the LRC homepage? Rojo please get this article going. Also we (especially Brojos) need to reach out repeatedly to Lehigh race director and get the his time from Lehigh dq'd

I agree, this thread has gone nowhere the last several pages. What you have are 40 something runners bragging about their own running times and pro-mike troll posts. Another thing I see are people who are trying to isolate one or two pieces of circumstantial evidence, as if to say it shows Mike didn't cheat. But that is the nature of circumstantial evidence, you have to look at things in its entirety.

Nice summary, each of you points on its own is suspcious, put together someone has to be in denial or plain stupid to not understand.

Clicked on this site...

http://boston.suntimes.com/bos-news/7/119/163973/dad-of-the-year-candidate-cheat-into-boston-marathon#comments

The top four stories listed under "Most Popular" are about Rossi. Number five is the Tsarnaev trial.

I'd say there is some interest in this story...