Sarah checked out all summer as well as Beattie - didnt have the mental minerals/ability to produce what was expected so ducked out
Leonards a serial DNFer - long history of doing it as a youth and stealing GB vests off more deserving athletes who finished XC trial races. I certainly wouldnt have him as the star of the group, a solid Euro XC and road 10km in Jan disguise a poor run of form since
The GB sub-elite dislike this bunch as they have everything on a plate yet constantly moan, and are not producing decent results. The training is to soft which shows in the races yesterday. Rory and Scott would be better off jumping to Ireland and training with Gidey. Obviously hes got Ethiopian genes so they will never be on his level. the soft training under Hobdell is clearly not working for either of them
Regarding Phily's MRI fiasco: when injuries are very minor, even the most skilled radiologists come up with different diagnosis. MRIs can be very hard to read, a lot of it is more art than science. The anger is not justified.
Also, a runner's knee that presents itself weeks after the fall sounds more like overtraining than a delayed reaction. She couldn't handle the last training block and somehow decided to up the mileage and the intensity...
She should be angry at her coach and herself, not on differing conclusions from a frivolous MRI scan.
I think Chicago was actually the perfect set up for her though.......If she wants to PB she needs 2 things......she needs a pacer (Maybe she couldn't find one in Chicago?) And she needs to run in a group......those are why she PB'd in Berlin. She's a good runner but it's pretty obvious she still struggles with the mental side of things.
I think Chicago was actually the perfect set up for her though.......If she wants to PB she needs 2 things......she needs a pacer (Maybe she couldn't find one in Chicago?) And she needs to run in a group......those are why she PB'd in Berlin. She's a good runner but it's pretty obvious she still struggles with the mental side of things.
It amazes me why people who have clear mental issues such as Bowden and Parkes put themselves out there in the public space. We know these people read the good and bad comments, and probably come on here as well. Such a strange way to scrape, and I mean scrape, a living
Rory and Sarah both said they had freak stomach cramps so they may have had something leading in, could have been both having the same meal from a particular place or something that didn’t agree with them but that’s bad luck in a race that takes no prisoners, it’s rapid from the get go chasing records. Ellis has had some injuries recently, I remember seeing he had some time off, maybe an Achilles but can’t remember 100%.
Rory is a special talent, I think he would thrive massively in a group like Conner Mantz’ where he isn’t the main guy and there’s not the pressure on him for the group to succeed or the BS that the UK running scene breeds. This way, he could solely focus on himself and his progression year on year.
Sadly, I think there’s this pressure on groups in the UK doing it professionally, to break records and change the game, or ‘do things differently’ which is a mantra that I literally puts you on a pedestal to fail, but with so many few trying this set up in Britain, there’s an added pressure on the athletes to be game changers with their performances, mantras, message, ethos etc.
Boils down to when the running part is the weak element, there’s a problem and sponsors eventually, will sack it off. But whilst it’s good and the investment is there, take it! Hoka won’t be taking that budget anytime soon I don’t think whilst Chris Rainsford is in his job but I couldn’t see another brand snapping it up either (Sportsshoes probably would just to tick a box) so drink it whilst it’s on the table and give it a crack.
Agreed, I think there’s a lot of pressure on the British running scene for the very top runners at the minute and very few are able to live up to the pressure. Of the real crème de la creme, the only ones I think are consistently handling that pressure and thriving are
Phil Sesseman, Ben Felton, Emile Cairess and Mahamed Mahamed. Need to concentrate our energy and resources on getting them competing at the world stage.
I think Chicago was actually the perfect set up for her though.......If she wants to PB she needs 2 things......she needs a pacer (Maybe she couldn't find one in Chicago?) And she needs to run in a group......those are why she PB'd in Berlin. She's a good runner but it's pretty obvious she still struggles with the mental side of things.
It amazes me why people who have clear mental issues such as Bowden and Parkes put themselves out there in the public space. We know these people read the good and bad comments, and probably come on here as well. Such a strange way to scrape, and I mean scrape, a living
I reckon they earn way more that you think -- they are deffo not scraping a living. Beats working a middle management job.
Couldn't resist the new Philly clickbait because I was curious about the wrong diagnosis. She's like if I knew it was only a bone bruise instead of a fracture I would have still ran Chicago or started a new marathon plan by now. Bit crazy considering she was in huge pain.
and also! "only" a bone bruise. Bone bruising in a load sensitive area is ALSO a don't-put-weight-on-it injury, just shorter time frames. Don't want to risk it progressing in severity until it becomes a stress fracture. Sure you'd run a marathon on it, that's sensible.
Back on the Bester anti-hype train. Abandons his long run workout this weekend because he's too ill (if you're too ill to complete a workout imo you're too ill to start a workout... so red mark for him there), the workout itself is different to the one his coach wants him to do (red mark again), says he needs a rest day the next day but decides to run a bunch of sub 7 miles because he 'couldn't resist' (red mark to my mind - we know he was running to/from the gym when he had his injury enforced "total rest" from running a while back, so I think he may genuinely have an addiction issue here), does an impromptu 20+ mile workout run averaging sub 6 miles (red flag - surely no serious coach says less than 48 hours after you've abandoned a workout, ended up running on a full rest day in-between yeah go and rip a 20 mile workout now...),.
Slightly controversial take here re: being ill - but if he's too ill to do his job but still wants to take his family out places wear a mask my guy. You still siphon money from the sycophants even when you're too ill to do any running - but some people aren't lucky enough to have that option. Don't think you have to go full covid truther to say that maybe something we should have taken from the past few years is wearing a mask in busy public places if we're ill and avoiding going about spreading where possible. Especially if your nose is larger than normal so (hobby physiologist view here) acting a super spreader in and of itself anyway. Not a looks comment - just saying that surely his massive nostrils are spreading more germs around. Similar to Philly and Dan flying across the Atlantic with Covid - wear a mask and/or delay your flight my brothers in Christ.
It amazes me why people who have clear mental issues such as Bowden and Parkes put themselves out there in the public space. We know these people read the good and bad comments, and probably come on here as well. Such a strange way to scrape, and I mean scrape, a living
I reckon they earn way more that you think -- they are deffo not scraping a living. Beats working a middle management job.
I know we love bashing influencers, and fair enough for a lot of them, lol but when it comes to money, I have to keep it factual when it’s worth it for the conversation.
Phily is absolutely raking it in, and her value is only going up. I’ve been a follower since before she went to Oregon uni and have watched her content career evolve, and my view on that alone, is that it’s incredibly calculated, impressive and financially will be rewarding.
She’s one of the hottest (demand not looks) running creators right now so when you consider YouTube Adsense on an account that’s gone pretty well the past 12 months, her base from On which I predict is circa £100k for exclusivity alone (knowing that one of Lululemon’s UK ambassadors was signed for 50k a year and Phily is streets ahead for a brand) plus looking at her numbers on Instagram, her last 40 reels all got from 250-3m views, without doing the actual math roughly averaging at least 500k, every single time, in a market where creators are struggling to keep their views up, she is consistently. She could easily get 15-30k for a reel collaboration. Smaller brands would be the lower end, and seeing how her fella has set her his agency with a guy who works with The Running Channel, they won’t be naive to this.
Then you add in affiliate marketing codes, any adhoc events, potential bonuses in her On contract that might be content related, coaching income which starts at £150 p/m and she’s been full capacity for as long as I can remember, Patreon members that can pay as little as £5 per month up to £50 p/m, platforms like buy me a coffee she has set up and the merch she has available.
What she has done very well, is set herself up as a multifaceted creator, which is where many do not. Ben Is Running for example you cannot compare, because he’s years in and just thought about selling a T-shirt which comes across as forced and sales driven.
Phily built a community first, that were then begging her to release merch, held off held off held off and then eventually brought out a limited drop which sold out immediately, and then repeat. Supply and demand 101.
Whilst I can’t relate to wanting to wear a t-shirt with a YouTuber on, which I genuinely find hilarious and worthy of searching the hard drive, saying she’s scraping a living just shows you don’t know ball.
Back on the Bester anti-hype train. Abandons his long run workout this weekend because he's too ill (if you're too ill to complete a workout imo you're too ill to start a workout... so red mark for him there), the workout itself is different to the one his coach wants him to do (red mark again), says he needs a rest day the next day but decides to run a bunch of sub 7 miles because he 'couldn't resist' (red mark to my mind - we know he was running to/from the gym when he had his injury enforced "total rest" from running a while back, so I think he may genuinely have an addiction issue here), does an impromptu 20+ mile workout run averaging sub 6 miles (red flag - surely no serious coach says less than 48 hours after you've abandoned a workout, ended up running on a full rest day in-between yeah go and rip a 20 mile workout now...),.
Slightly controversial take here re: being ill - but if he's too ill to do his job but still wants to take his family out places wear a mask my guy. You still siphon money from the sycophants even when you're too ill to do any running - but some people aren't lucky enough to have that option. Don't think you have to go full covid truther to say that maybe something we should have taken from the past few years is wearing a mask in busy public places if we're ill and avoiding going about spreading where possible. Especially if your nose is larger than normal so (hobby physiologist view here) acting a super spreader in and of itself anyway. Not a looks comment - just saying that surely his massive nostrils are spreading more germs around. Similar to Philly and Dan flying across the Atlantic with Covid - wear a mask and/or delay your flight my brothers in Christ.
Nick has positives and negatives to his character for sure:
Negatives:
As you say, he's a running addict and sometimes doesn't know when to rest.
He also can be quite loud and upbeat all the time which is grating for the more miserable, pessimistic types in the world
Positives:
Hugely talented runner. Nearly 40 years old and smashing out sub 30minute 10Ks in the heat and sub 2:20 marathons. A feat even the likes of Sirpoc, Floberg & Felton haven't achieved. Also worth saying that Bester got sub 2:20 at Berlin marathon - both Ryan Thompson and Cole Gibbens (two young runners in their peak who are seen as very gifted) failed to go sub 2:20 in Berlin.
Hugely charismatic and kind to runners worse than him. Always the last man on the course cheering along those still running. He has made the year of so many parkrunners by being kind enough to talk to them. Its not often you see someone as famous as him, still being down to earth enough to chat and encourage Joe Public.
There is a reason that fellow youtubers like RtJ, Aubrey, FOD, Tim Grose, Brooms, Felton etc etc appear to really like and respect Nick. He is an icon to all
Rory and Sarah both said they had freak stomach cramps so they may have had something leading in, could have been both having the same meal from a particular place or something that didn’t agree with them but that’s bad luck in a race that takes no prisoners, it’s rapid from the get go chasing records. Ellis has had some injuries recently, I remember seeing he had some time off, maybe an Achilles but can’t remember 100%.
Rory is a special talent, I think he would thrive massively in a group like Conner Mantz’ where he isn’t the main guy and there’s not the pressure on him for the group to succeed or the BS that the UK running scene breeds. This way, he could solely focus on himself and his progression year on year.
Sadly, I think there’s this pressure on groups in the UK doing it professionally, to break records and change the game, or ‘do things differently’ which is a mantra that I literally puts you on a pedestal to fail, but with so many few trying this set up in Britain, there’s an added pressure on the athletes to be game changers with their performances, mantras, message, ethos etc.
Boils down to when the running part is the weak element, there’s a problem and sponsors eventually, will sack it off. But whilst it’s good and the investment is there, take it! Hoka won’t be taking that budget anytime soon I don’t think whilst Chris Rainsford is in his job but I couldn’t see another brand snapping it up either (Sportsshoes probably would just to tick a box) so drink it whilst it’s on the table and give it a crack.
Agreed, I think there’s a lot of pressure on the British running scene for the very top runners at the minute and very few are able to live up to the pressure. Of the real crème de la creme, the only ones I think are consistently handling that pressure and thriving are
Phil Sesseman, Ben Felton, Emile Cairess and Mahamed Mahamed. Need to concentrate our energy and resources on getting them competing at the world stage.
Back on the Bester anti-hype train. Abandons his long run workout this weekend because he's too ill (if you're too ill to complete a workout imo you're too ill to start a workout... so red mark for him there), the workout itself is different to the one his coach wants him to do (red mark again), says he needs a rest day the next day but decides to run a bunch of sub 7 miles because he 'couldn't resist' (red mark to my mind - we know he was running to/from the gym when he had his injury enforced "total rest" from running a while back, so I think he may genuinely have an addiction issue here), does an impromptu 20+ mile workout run averaging sub 6 miles (red flag - surely no serious coach says less than 48 hours after you've abandoned a workout, ended up running on a full rest day in-between yeah go and rip a 20 mile workout now...),.
Slightly controversial take here re: being ill - but if he's too ill to do his job but still wants to take his family out places wear a mask my guy. You still siphon money from the sycophants even when you're too ill to do any running - but some people aren't lucky enough to have that option. Don't think you have to go full covid truther to say that maybe something we should have taken from the past few years is wearing a mask in busy public places if we're ill and avoiding going about spreading where possible. Especially if your nose is larger than normal so (hobby physiologist view here) acting a super spreader in and of itself anyway. Not a looks comment - just saying that surely his massive nostrils are spreading more germs around. Similar to Philly and Dan flying across the Atlantic with Covid - wear a mask and/or delay your flight my brothers in Christ.
Nick has positives and negatives to his character for sure:
Negatives:
As you say, he's a running addict and sometimes doesn't know when to rest.
He also can be quite loud and upbeat all the time which is grating for the more miserable, pessimistic types in the world
Positives:
Hugely talented runner. Nearly 40 years old and smashing out sub 30minute 10Ks in the heat and sub 2:20 marathons. A feat even the likes of Sirpoc, Floberg & Felton haven't achieved. Also worth saying that Bester got sub 2:20 at Berlin marathon - both Ryan Thompson and Cole Gibbens (two young runners in their peak who are seen as very gifted) failed to go sub 2:20 in Berlin.
Hugely charismatic and kind to runners worse than him. Always the last man on the course cheering along those still running. He has made the year of so many parkrunners by being kind enough to talk to them. Its not often you see someone as famous as him, still being down to earth enough to chat and encourage Joe Public.
There is a reason that fellow youtubers like RtJ, Aubrey, FOD, Tim Grose, Brooms, Felton etc etc appear to really like and respect Nick. He is an icon to all
Besters nowhere near a sub 30 10km? He likes to call me daddy after the spanking i gave him in London. Only King Cole is under the magic marker,
His Strava says he went under 30minute for the 10K distance at Vitality. I think most people go on strava for their PB. I always do at parkrun and for any distance. Chip time is often utter bullsh nonsense
But yes, you also did extremely well there Ben. Both of you handled the roasting temps brilliantly. You cant say you are better than Nick until you go sub 2:20 in the mara though buddy. Considering how warm and sunny Chicago was you certainly did well though so well done
Sarah checked out all summer as well as Beattie - didnt have the mental minerals/ability to produce what was expected so ducked out
Leonards a serial DNFer - long history of doing it as a youth and stealing GB vests off more deserving athletes who finished XC trial races. I certainly wouldnt have him as the star of the group, a solid Euro XC and road 10km in Jan disguise a poor run of form since
The GB sub-elite dislike this bunch as they have everything on a plate yet constantly moan, and are not producing decent results. The training is to soft which shows in the races yesterday. Rory and Scott would be better off jumping to Ireland and training with Gidey. Obviously hes got Ethiopian genes so they will never be on his level. the soft training under Hobdell is clearly not working for either of them
I’ll always back British athletes, we complain enough about not having depth, so slating the ones actually trying to do it feels a bit rich.
Sure, Sarah hasn’t delivered since turning pro and needs to turn it around if she continues, I think the addition of India Weir will help her. Scott ran a great indoor 5k but couldn’t reproduce it outdoors, I can imagine there was a lot of pressure to go up a level from 13:05 so early in the year, but I don’t think either of us have the experience of that class, and Ellis has had injuries leading into Valencia so probably was on the cards for a blow up. But that’s literally how distance running works, it’s up and down.
As for Rory Leonard, man’s the UK 10k record holder. You don’t luck into that. If you’re still holding grudges over junior XC races, that says more about you than him. At some point, you’ve got to stop living in the Power of 10 archives and start looking at actual senior results. The ‘GB sub elite’ opinion doesn’t really move the needle either. It’s not a football team where you’re buying season tickets, it’s just runners commenting from their sofas between league XC Saturdays and Strava uploads. If you’re that outraged about someone else’s funding, here’s a thought, run faster, or get creative. Contracts and content both pay better than complaining. You can suggest they’re taking a sponsored spot from another runner but that ship has sailed now, we live in a world where you can even get free kit from Kiprun these days. I’m surprised Aldi and Lidl haven’t got involved.
So no, they’re not perfect and there’s been some really sh*t runs alongside some good ones. But they’re out there doing it as a group documenting it in a country where the sport is such a load of boring w*nk whilst everyone else is doing play-by-play commentary from the sidelines too scared to start a YouTube.
Staying in Flagstaff and hiring a car for months while keeping a place in the UK and flying across the country can not be cheap.
Like others can not believe she thinks she could have run Chicago when even a small run was giving her so much pain she could not walk after without pain.
She has been very lucky injury wise but I hope for her sake she can now take injury prevention seriously.She does not want to get in the constant injury recover repeat cycle that we see too often with pro runners.
Couldn't resist the new Philly clickbait because I was curious about the wrong diagnosis. She's like if I knew it was only a bone bruise instead of a fracture I would have still ran Chicago or started a new marathon plan by now. Bit crazy considering she was in huge pain.
and also! "only" a bone bruise. Bone bruising in a load sensitive area is ALSO a don't-put-weight-on-it injury, just shorter time frames. Don't want to risk it progressing in severity until it becomes a stress fracture. Sure you'd run a marathon on it, that's sensible.
Phily's video comes across as a bit mean-spirited, and from the comments it looks as though some of her viewers were taken aback by this level of negativity. I think she comes a across as pretty ungracious around what was a cautious reading of the MRI, getting all pissy towards a clinical professional who was only doing their best. She also can't know for sure whose diagnosis is correct. I'm sure the brief offload did less harm than trying to race a marathon, which she pretends, rather disingenuously, might have still been on the cards if it wasn't for some pesky American physio. It's really not enjoyable to watch on any level.
Besters nowhere near a sub 30 10km? He likes to call me daddy after the spanking i gave him in London. Only King Cole is under the magic marker,
His Strava says he went under 30minute for the 10K distance at Vitality. I think most people go on strava for their PB. I always do at parkrun and for any distance. Chip time is often utter bullsh nonsense
But yes, you also did extremely well there Ben. Both of you handled the roasting temps brilliantly. You cant say you are better than Nick until you go sub 2:20 in the mara though buddy. Considering how warm and sunny Chicago was you certainly did well though so well done
So I’ve let chatGPt decide if Mr Bester is truly the ‘darling’ of this thread now. With the prompt - summarise the opinion of Nick Bester based on the letsrun forum thread trials and tribulations of running YouTubers.
Its answer:
👍 Positive impressions
1) Many recognise that Bester is legitimately fast and committed: he’s run a 2:19 marathon, and users note the high training volumes and serious effort.
2) Some praise his content-creation: the “race along with me” style videos are admired; one user said he “does it the best” among similar creators.
3) A number of contributors feel he has done more for the amateur running community than many peers, and is “on another level” in terms of performance and impact.
👎 Negative impressions
1) Some users criticize his personality and presentation: he’s described as a “marmite character” (i.e., you either like him or dislike him).
2) There’s skepticism over how well his training and performance translate to results: multiple posts suggest that despite high volume/intensity, he repeatedly approaches but fails to break past certain benchmark times (e.g., <2:20).
3) Some accuse him of prioritising content, sponsorship or image over racing substance: for example, criticisms about using very expensive shoes, or racing local fun runs for YouTube rather than championship-style events
Overall he does seem very popular however particular with new runners and fellow elites.
Kofuzi is working to pay off his Klarna Loans he used to buy a collection of Nike Running shoes. BITR implied that Kofuzi had been banned from running in Boston AND New York, just that the ban wasn't publicized the way Choi's ban was (fwiw I think running with a selfie stick that extends four to six feet out from you in a race with 10,000 plus runners is just as dangerous as the e-bikes. Allie Ostrander is locked in for the USATF National XC Champs. Spencer Brown is taking an off season after a solid Boulevard 4 Miler in Spokane. Ben Felton is celebrating his PR. Ben Parkes is throwing shade at other YouTubers and telling people not to drink LMNT. Harry Morgan made a video about pacing his 68 year old Dad in a half marathon. And Phily Bowden's videos about being injured get more views than Kofuzi and BITR combined.
Kofuzi is probably finished. Very few videos of him actually running races anymore and trying to be more like a correspondent going out and reporting on things. That's not going to translate into views.
I also wonder if Floberg has been banned from Boston? He filmed on course in 2023 and since that time he never talks about Boston no interest in it kind of acts like it doesn't exist. I bet he was silently banned too although I don't have anything other than speculation to substantiate this.
He clearly can be running it with his times so the fact that he did not in 2024 or 2025 is sus.
Floberg ran Boston in 2024. This is easy enough for anyone to confirm online.
This is definitely the best running show on YouTube. Each episode is more dramatic than the previous one. I cannot wait to see what will happen in the next episode...
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