Running bums: Sad or Admirable?

All the running bums I know post college are a bit strange, even for runners. They are also a bit more boring since all they can really talk about is running, which was fine when you were 17 but a little bit sad at 26.

Admirable. The most they could accomplish is qualifying for the olympic trials? Sounds pretty awesome. What's the alternative? Become a wage slave to a family whose endless material desires are fueled by the evil box in the living room? I might be projecting there.

Sad or Admirable ? wrote:

... the most these guys could accomplish is qualifying for the olympic trials ...

Not so. After they have qualified, they can take up coaching.

(Haha, first time I have trolled on letsrun. I must admit it's a heady experience.)

As usual LLD nails it: http://www.logicoflongdistance.com/2014/03/the-running-bum-as-sad-and-admirable.html

Mumbojumbo wrote:

UK Limey runner wrote:

"I wish I had spent more time at work."

Said no man on his deathbed ever.

I wish I had money to pay for medical bills so I wasn't dying, said every man ever.

I wish I wasn't dying because I gave up running for financial security and a lardy swivel chair ass said dying fat man.

I've known quite a few bums who dedicated most of their twenties to their hobby. My observations can be summed up as:

skiing bum:

social

cool lifestyle

see a lot of new places

exciting

seldom exhausted

few injuries

gotta work most of the summer

cycling bum:

spends way too much time training

few injuries

golf bum:

expensive

must either have rich parents or work hard

running bum:

always tired

injury prone

don't get to see many new places

not "fun-driven" only "result driven"

results determined mostly by talent

not expensive

Being a skiing/snowboarding bum definitely seems to be the best. Even though the alpine skiing circus is out of reach for pretty much any bum, I know several bums who have become world class (with sponsor contracts/jobs) in niche disciplines like ski-cross, half pipe, freestyle. Some have even been to the Olympics.

Being a running bum is on the other hand pretty much a dead end for anything else.

From an outsiders perspective I would have to say the surf bum lifestyle looks like the best of all bum lifestyles. The running bum lifestyle is pretty sad but not as sad as the cycling bum lifestyle.

Office Whores: Sad or Admirable?

I understand this may be a sensitive subject for many people on here because they may in fact be "office whores". By office whores I mean people whose job is working in an office with the goal of making money or having a career.

Many of my college friends, who work pretty hard (40-60 hours per week), are living this office whore lifestyle. On the one hand, I admire them because they are going along with societal norms of behavior and pursuing their goals of post-collegiate working in an office, doing it just for the money and status. But on the other hand, I find it sad because the most these guys could accomplish is middle management, which is still a long shot, and they are sacrificing their younger years for this. They are also getting a very early start on their career and most are getting paid almost nothing.

So what do you all think? An office whores's lifestyle- sad or admirable?

Office Whores:Sad or Admirable wrote:

So what do you all think? An office whores's lifestyle- sad or admirable?

The difference compared to being a running bum, is that the more of an office whore you are, the more money and respect you earn. But nobody cares whether you end up running 14:30 or 13:30.

you fail wrote:

Office Whores:Sad or Admirable wrote:

So what do you all think? An office whores's lifestyle- sad or admirable?

The difference compared to being a running bum, is that the more of an office whore you are, the more money and respect you earn. But nobody cares whether you end up running 14:30 or 13:30.

Haha! Right…..because the world is completely infatuated with your mundane life of middle management, t-ball games, and yearly trips to redneck beach.

Most ski bums are not trying to get to the Olympics-just make turns 7 days a week. It is a lovely lifestyle. Read Warren Miller's book-it's the bible for such folks. Max Dercum also wrote a good description-and he parlayed it into developing 2 ski areas.Drinking beer, sleeping in a camper, hunting rabbits. Did it for a year. One of the highlights of my life.I've found that many of the folks who've been office stiffs since they were 22 are idiots, and unable to do anything off script from the "Game of Life" gameboard. Give me the cowboys, the fishermen, the miners, the carpenters, the ski bums, the world travelling vagabonds and the peripheral Olympic hopefuls. They know how to dream.

It's sad. Mainly because these individuals could be going to grad school or working a real job while still running.

LeadvilleNative wrote:

Most ski bums are not trying to get to the Olympics-just make turns 7 days a week. It is a lovely lifestyle. Read Warren Miller's book-it's the bible for such folks. Max Dercum also wrote a good description-and he parlayed it into developing 2 ski areas.

Drinking beer, sleeping in a camper, hunting rabbits. Did it for a year. One of the highlights of my life.

I've found that many of the folks who've been office stiffs since they were 22 are idiots, and unable to do anything off script from the "Game of Life" gameboard. Give me the cowboys, the fishermen, the miners, the carpenters, the ski bums, the world travelling vagabonds and the peripheral Olympic hopefuls. They know how to dream.

Nailed it. The most interesting, friendly, loyal, and enjoyable people to be around in my entire life have been those the life-long cubicle dwellers would call "bums". Whether that be running bums, climbing, skiing, surfing, traveling, etc.

Know a few wrote:

It's sad. Mainly because these individuals could be going to grad school or working a real job while still running.

Working a "real" job can be kind of sad too.

This.