Run 20 minute 5ks and 43 minute 10ks during triathlons. Usually place in my age group in Triathalons. Run in vaporflys and enjoy competing in races at 58. From late teens until early 30s ran mid 14 5ks and low 30 minute 10ks. Always wore the best shoes for me and price was never a concern. If you push yourself to run fast at any age why would you not get the best equipment to help your run as fast as possible?
or, put another way wrote:
short answer wrote:
They have money to spend on chasing illusions.
If a super shoe helps go from 19:20 to 18:59, then sub-19 isn’t an illusion.
Everyone has goals, whether to run 52 5ks a year, or finish in less than 30min, or whatever. If shoes might help, people will get shoes.
+1. Well said.
I know my plans for the weekend - gonna get the most expensive elite racing singlet I can find and order some Alphaflys in a size up and these will now be my bumming around the house clothes. Heck, I might replace my pancake syrup with some Maurten gel just for good measure. Just to stick it to this guy. Yep, my new Alphafly recovery sandals are gonna rule! Whatdya think about that bro?? That get your goat? Get you all stressed just thinking about it? Keep ya up at night?
Steffen wrote:
hobby jogger extraordinaire wrote:
Hi, your local elitist hobby jogger here. My local road racing scene is pretty non-competitive except for a few races out of the year. Regardless, I still try to race about once a month for fun and training motivation, and usually run in the 16:00s and 17:00s. I just wear traditional racing flats rather than super shoes, mostly because I'm cheap and old school, but also because I rarely do a half or full marathon, so I don't see the point in spending $200+ on a pair.
I do happen to notice that the super shoes are becoming quite common among runners that are like 18-19 minute 5k runners, if not slower. I simply don't understand why people are getting and wearing these shoes for a 5k. It strikes me as complete overkill for your local 5k, 5 miler, 10k, etc., especially when training a bit harder will produce better results.
Why the heck are mid pack runners wearing these shoes for local dinky road races? Is it just an outcome of group think, wanting the latest and greatest, and keeping up with the Joneses? I can see the top end competitors at the bigger races benefiting from the super shoes but I haven't noticed any differences in competitiveness or times at the smaller races. I simply don't understand why mid packers have jumped on the super shoe train as well.
I´m 52 and run 5k´s in 19 minutes these days. I have Alphafly, Adios Pro and Hyperion Elite 2 in my closet. Why? Because they are fun to run in, save my old legs and I also happen to have a lot of money.
Ask a hobby golfer how much money they spend on equipment...
+1--I haven't raced in them yet, but more-so the reasons you mentioned-i have been running for 35 years and some days my legs feel real old, and those shoes certainly make a 10-12 miler on pavement way more enjoyable!
runderun wrote:
One Yorkshireman wrote:
Racing flats? Do you think you are a pro or something? What's the point of that when you are running 16:00s and 17:00s? Back in my day the kids running that slow weren't even given shoes. Some would tie a bit of brown paper to their feet with twine to look like they were good enough to wear shoes, but it was just sad. I see a loser running as slow as you wearing shoes and I just laugh. What's the point? You need to train a bit harder instead of wasting your money on shoes. Loser.
Oh, so you had a bit of paper with twine did you? Bloody posh boy. We had to run with used toilet paper wrapped around our feet and we'd think ourselves lucky. If we got blisters we were grateful for having a dog to pick them clean. Kids these days don't know they're born
Used toilet paper for shoes? Luxury! Our dad used to wrap our feet in rusty barbed wire, make us run a 10 mile warm-up before our weekly marathon, an' if we got blister he'd scrub 'em out with steel wool an' boiling oil.
I suppose they wear them because they want to and can afford them and hope the shoes can get them a faster time.
When you buy nice things there will always be people that judge you.
"Wow, this is a lot of house"
"Must be nice to go on a vacation like that"
"You know public schools are free right?"
The reason is that people have different values. I may value a nice meal or VF4% or organic produce while you may value something entirely different, that's okay. You do you.
Typically I find that folks saying these type of judgmental things may be insecure about their own decisions in life.
"If a super shoe helps go from 19:20 to 18:59, then sub-19 isn’t an illusion."
Then it is still an illusion, as the person didn't achieve that time, the shoes did.
sprintmiddleager wrote:
hobby jogger extraordinaire wrote:
Minimal racing flats are cheaper than trainers. I like to challenge myself to get a time, and sometimes do well enough to get some prize money or a nice little gift certificate to the local running store. So basically a metro area sub-elite semi pro.
LOL. This is the funniest thing I've read on here in days! 16-17 min 5K is sub elite semi pro for a female.
I'm just here to bring this back up again. This guy honestly claimed to be sub-elite when he's running sub-17. Are you a 50F?
burgerman5 wrote:
"If a super shoe helps go from 19:20 to 18:59, then sub-19 isn’t an illusion."
Then it is still an illusion, as the person didn't achieve that time, the shoes did.
To be clear, there is no scientific backing to the idea that the super shoes would drop your time by over 20 seconds in a 5K over a racing flat. Unless you think Rhonex Kipruto would smash 26 minutes on the roads in super shoes. The shoes' real sweet spot is in the HM and Marathon and considering times have already been reset to a faster place it's kinda silly to compare eras and go back to how it was in 2015 or whatever.
Have We Done This Before wrote:
hobby jogger extraordinaire wrote:
I don't have anything to say to you, really. But you seem quite self conscious of how others might perceive you.
I'm the self conscious one? I'm not the one asking the questions nor making the bold claims. You have claimed over and over again in this thread with your valiant (?) non-sequiturs and absurdisms with the occasional ad-hominem that what others are doing is somehow worse than the way that you've decided to do it.
Obviously you think of highly of yourself [self rated sub-elite local pro?], with relatively pedestrian times [16? or is it 17? I cant keep up], but you've decided for some reason to look down on those who are either slightly or significantly faster than you.
I assure you it is not I who am self conscious. I am well aware of my limitations, I am merely asking your level of hypocrisy.
Obviously I am slow. I bought some speed, anyone not running barefoot did the same.
And even if we have decided to wear shoes, clothing, or whatever, who cares? Obviously there are diminishing returns. Everybody loves the blue collar work ethic. So what if super shoes are 'only' worth 20s or something in a 5k to someone stuck around 21 minutes.
Your post is a sad admixture of anti-consumer culture and elitism, ironically.
Thanks, this was good for a laugh.
coffee cup wrote:
I know my plans for the weekend - gonna get the most expensive elite racing singlet I can find and order some Alphaflys in a size up and these will now be my bumming around the house clothes. Heck, I might replace my pancake syrup with some Maurten gel just for good measure. Just to stick it to this guy. Yep, my new Alphafly recovery sandals are gonna rule! Whatdya think about that bro?? That get your goat? Get you all stressed just thinking about it? Keep ya up at night?
Please do so and share your instagram handle so I can follow the updates and get mad.
Signed,
Your metro area, super sub elite, semi pro, overly competitive, anti-consumerist, altogether poor hobby jogger
hobby jogger extraordinaire mobile wrote:
Have We Done This Before wrote:
I'm the self conscious one? I'm not the one asking the questions nor making the bold claims. You have claimed over and over again in this thread with your valiant (?) non-sequiturs and absurdisms with the occasional ad-hominem that what others are doing is somehow worse than the way that you've decided to do it.
Obviously you think of highly of yourself [self rated sub-elite local pro?], with relatively pedestrian times [16? or is it 17? I cant keep up], but you've decided for some reason to look down on those who are either slightly or significantly faster than you.
I assure you it is not I who am self conscious. I am well aware of my limitations, I am merely asking your level of hypocrisy.
Obviously I am slow. I bought some speed, anyone not running barefoot did the same.
And even if we have decided to wear shoes, clothing, or whatever, who cares? Obviously there are diminishing returns. Everybody loves the blue collar work ethic. So what if super shoes are 'only' worth 20s or something in a 5k to someone stuck around 21 minutes.
Your post is a sad admixture of anti-consumer culture and elitism, ironically.
Thanks, this was good for a laugh.
You couldn´t think of a more intelligent response? You clearly don´t have any more troll aces up your sleeve.
hobby jogger extraordinaire mobile wrote:
coffee cup wrote:
I know my plans for the weekend - gonna get the most expensive elite racing singlet I can find and order some Alphaflys in a size up and these will now be my bumming around the house clothes. Heck, I might replace my pancake syrup with some Maurten gel just for good measure. Just to stick it to this guy. Yep, my new Alphafly recovery sandals are gonna rule! Whatdya think about that bro?? That get your goat? Get you all stressed just thinking about it? Keep ya up at night?
Please do so and share your instagram handle so I can follow the updates and get mad.
Signed,
Your metro area, super sub elite, semi pro, overly competitive, anti-consumerist, altogether poor hobby jogger
Don't even put elite anywhere in your categorization. It doesn't matter what you put in front of it. You're a hobby jogger and in the same category as the 25 min dude with five gels and a camelbak for the local 5k.
The answer is still just an addiction to shopping.
$200 is obviously expensive for a pair of running shoes, but all of these people were going to be wearing some shoes that probably cost $50-$120 anyway, so it’s not like they’re spending $200 that they wouldn’t otherwise. The cost of the super shoe to them (for whatever value their logic prescribes) is more like $80-150.
Would I pay $80 for the questionable shoe-caused improvement of a few seconds on a 5k time? No, but I could understand why someone who has the money and spends a lot of time and effort on their hobby would happily do it.
Another giver of +1. wrote:
runderun wrote:
Oh, so you had a bit of paper with twine did you? Bloody posh boy. We had to run with used toilet paper wrapped around our feet and we'd think ourselves lucky. If we got blisters we were grateful for having a dog to pick them clean. Kids these days don't know they're born
Used toilet paper for shoes? Luxury! Our dad used to wrap our feet in rusty barbed wire, make us run a 10 mile warm-up before our weekly marathon, an' if we got blister he'd scrub 'em out with steel wool an' boiling oil.
Only a 10 mile warm up before a weekly marathon? You were lucky. Our dad would wake us up every morning 3 hours before we went to bed and have us run in bare feet on gravel roads for 40 miles a day before sending us to work a 24 hour day at the mill. But you know, were happy in those days.
They cab afford it.
coffee cup wrote:
I know my plans for the weekend - gonna get the most expensive elite racing singlet I can find and order some Alphaflys in a size up and these will now be my bumming around the house clothes. Heck, I might replace my pancake syrup with some Maurten gel just for good measure. Just to stick it to this guy. Yep, my new Alphafly recovery sandals are gonna rule! Whatdya think about that bro?? That get your goat? Get you all stressed just thinking about it? Keep ya up at night?
Douche Bag of the week
This Yorkshireman sub-thread is the best thing since the Colt Goucher story installment thread.
So did desi improve her PR in super shoes?
I don’t think so... she should have destroyed her pr’ if they worked.
Also why can no one run as fast as Ryan Hall or Steve Jones?
I’m not saying they don’t feel great, but honestly there should be at least American 15 guys under 2:10 in Chicago or any normal marathon course if they worked. Why didn’t 10 American guys break 2:10 at Boston if it’s so easy... or CMI?
Please Watch Steve jones and Joan Benoit again....