Does anyone enjoy finishing mid-pack to rear in races?

These are the people I have the most respect for. As hard as we here on Letsrun may exert ourselves in a race, there are people who are putting forth the same (sometimes more) effort with slower results. To continue to train and race like that is, in my opinion, the ultimate tribute to the sport of running.

I've been in fast heats of track races where I've been pulled to a PR even though I was near the end of the pack. Most college students are going to be in that situation at some point, and it's not a bad experience. There's always a next level, and sometimes you have to try yourself against it before you're all the way there.

It would take a pretty slow time to be in the midpack of most local road races where I am. I don't think I'd enjoy running a 30 minute 5K. I'm sure that as a non-elite woman, if I were in a big race, I'd be in a big pack of mediocre men.

I ran a sub 30 min 10k, a PR at the time in mid-pack. I was happy with it.

I've got no doubt many of you Lets Run boys enjoy finishing in the rear.

Some advice:

The best looking women are in the middle of the pack. Pacing with them is a good way to meet them, unless they think you are a hanger-onner or a stalker.

yetanotherchick wrote:

...I'm sure that as a non-elite woman, if I were in a big race, I'd be in a big pack of mediocre men.

Hey, hold on a second, we're not mediocre! We're sacrificing our own race so we can pace you to a PR. We do this in the hopes that, after the race, you'll feel indebted to us in some sort of sexual way...if you now what I mean nudge, nudge, wink, wink...

NO!

I never realized what an incredible sacrifice you were making for me by being slow. How can I ever show you my gratitude?

yetanotherchick wrote:

I never realized what an incredible sacrifice you were making for me by being slow. How can I ever show you my gratitude?

Uhhh, I think you just did...

:-)

I think pacing slower friends is really fun, actually. It provides the mental focus & excitement of racing (since you have to nail their goal splits), but only makes the mental demands of a training run. I haven't had a chance to rabbit a faster runner yet, but that seems like it would be cool, too.

make that: "physical demands of a training run."

nc runner wrote:

At first I didn't like it. But I got used to it because, well, I don't have another option. I can either be satisfied with top 20, or stop running. I prefer not to be near the back, but that happened a time or two when our club team entered a couple collegiate XC races.

If people organized recreational track events the same way they do 5k/10k fun runs, I would probably be able to win a few races (200m, 400m, 800m, maaaaybe even the mile). But anything further than 1 mile and my chances of winning, even on the local level, plummet.

ahhh, the fate of the sprinter/mid D who now is graduated and has nothing else to do but run 5Ks. Dammit. Road races, 5Ks, etc are okay and all, but they just don't cut it do they?

The last marathon I "ran" was at Disney with a friend. Aside from the fact there is 0 pressure you can actually have fun and check out the sights. Seems the further back in the pack you are the hotter the chicks are. And they're in groups running together in matching outfits which typically include spandex shorts or something equally fun to jog behind. Rarely are 2:30 chicks hot, usually they need to eat, and some of the russian ones have more hair on their legs than I have.

Seems the further back in the pack you are the hotter the chicks are.

Maybe to a point. But that point is well in front of the 12 to 15 minute milers.

I was recovering from surgery and did a particiapnt race which put me in the middle of the pack. I never ran there before. Usually when I run there are only males around me but in this race I was running with the most attractive females.

It was great. These weren't the elite skinny females but nicely curved, fit females.

So yes I enjoyed midpack running.