this is the flip side of the whiners complaining about slow runners at NYC being allowed to participate. unless it's presented as like the walk for cancer or something, or some other sort of collegial mass event, if it's a race and they have a clock at the finish and posted results, run it like a race. what does how slow other people run a race mean to your race? does the guy front of NYC marathon finishers slow down because someone else does it in 6 hours? too busy running their own race for their own reasons.
if you're too swept up in this to do it right, sign up for a name brand race and put up or shut up.
i briefly started on JV and i didn't run slower to make them feel better, i won my race by a bunch, laid down varsity times so i'd get switched.