Runners now using cheater marathons to get into Boston elite field

Pathetic post OP. Boston qualifier means BQ. You could do same instead of whining like a little jealous b*tch on the worst running site ever.

If there's no clause excluding the use of any particular marathon as a qualifier, then it's fair.

At least you can time qualify to get into Boston without having to buy your way in like another big marathon that has been discussed here recently.

We're talking about the elite field here guys, not BQs. As in, free hotel and entry, ride a coach bus with the Kenyans, personal bottles, start ahead of everyone else, etc. Seems like stolen valor to me.

How is it cheating if its allowed

I’m pretty sure it’s only the top 20 or so getting hotel

I had no idea that the St. George Marathon had 2600 ft of elevation drop, that's pretty significant over a marathon to be honest and should probably be looked at.

But this isn't cheating or their problem. If anything you should be taking it up with the guys who set the rules for Boston, those elites have every right to run their under the current rules.

They can't always anticipate or come up with a rule for every possible loophole someone might think up. Doesn't mean it's not cheating.

For example, it might be technically legal to find a doctor who diagnoses all his athletes with thyroid conditions and asthma and get TUEs. It's still cheating, though.

You can set up a marathon with a laser-projecting pace car and a flying "V" of pacers who hop on and off the course. It's cheating to claim you were first to break the two hour barrier, though.

Or it may be technically legal to bring in a bunch of 23 year old foreigners, whose birthdate and schooling history can't easily be confirmed, label them "freshman", and win an NCAA championship. Most people would consider that sort of cheating, though. Eventually, everyone else has to follow suit and it ruins the sport, or they have to make a new rule with unintended consequences.

Dude, Boston is like the showboater Olympics, let them do their thing.

Why would you care that 2 guys get added to the elite field?? Has no impact on anyone else. You’re just hating for literally no reason.

Boston doesn't give all of that to every elite. Many allowed in the elite field do not even receive a room or free entry so you can chill OP. At minimum they get a bus start and warm place to relax before the start.

OK looks like only the very top guys get hotel but all the elites get free entry plus starting line perks - coach bus, shelter and bathrooms by the start, elite corral, bottles, 2 minute head start - those are huge perks at Boston. 2:51 open men's runners don't belong up there. They belong back in the 6th corral, fighting through traffic with the other 2:51 runners.

According to some Strava posts they also train with Clayton Young and Conner Mantz somewhat regularly. So maybe that helped them?

St. George has the potential to be wicked-fast, but you have to run it carefully. There are some big hills especially after pounding your quads on the downhills, not to mention the whole thing starts at 5000ft. There are a lot of people who run the downhills too fast and and up completely toast the last 10k. Is it a fast downhill course? Yes, but it’s maybe 5min MAX faster than Chicago on a perfect day.

I know both Bybee and kotter personally. Great dudes, great athletes. Are they “ELITE” level? Probably not. But god for them for taking advantage in an OT year

You say the worst running sight ever, but yet here you are.

The St. George Marathon starts at 5,240 feet and drops to 2,680 feet. You do run a significant amount of the marathon at altitude. Where it helps the most is over the last half where it drops more than usual.

I think the only people who get upset about downhill marathons are the people who aren't confident that they can BQ themselves. The OP is most likely a 3:00 marathoner at best, complaining about "Fake Elites".

No you wouldn't. You'd think that you'd accomplished something and wouldn't feel the need to whine about people who accomplished something you haven't.

Okay I agree that the downhill marathons are a joke, but 2:51 to 2:19? Either this Dustin guy is due for a huge breakthrough on a real course, or else he's the best downhill runner of all time

No need to doxx the guys by name, especially considering that the elevation drop definitely wasn’t the only contributing factor to those PRs. I am not good with words and rarely post on here, but I want to say that this thread really left a bad taste in my mouth. It says a lot more about the OP for anonymously calling out runners by name who haven’t broken a single rule. Best case OP is clueless and worst case he is malicious. I hope someone updates this thread after those guys crush their old PRs again.