Did the Penguin ruin the sport of running?

He talks out of his ass.

For an article like this he says he "promotes running."

Before events that he sponsors, he gets on the microphone and announces how long the course is open and says he plans on getting his moneys worth and being out there as long as possible.

First and foremost he promotes himself. Second he promotes the events he makes money off of. Third he promotes PARTICIPATION in those events.

The sport of running and healthy lifestyle are not close to those listed above.

He is associated with races to use his schtick, stoke his own ego and make money, nothing else.

I agree with the previous post. I have never liked the articles the Penquin wrote and always thought they were a bit self indulgent.

I do not believe he has ruined the sport. I think the slowing of average times just means more people are participating. If they are doing a run/walk that's fine with me. Its not going to slow the people at the front of the race. I went to a run/walk with my wife. I busted my ass trying to get a good time and she jogged and walked. We both got out of the race what we wanted.

Pretty sure some quite serious and accomplished runners practiced LSD long before this guy dragged his fat ass off the couch.

You're giving him too much credit

I think part of the problem is that we just don't have the vocabulary to correctly describe the many, many activities currently lumped together as "running." A parallel example--years ago I taught in an inner-city school. Now I teach in an elite private school. In both, my job title was "US History Teacher," but the actual job descriptions were very different. What Bingham does, what Bekele does, what I just came back from doing (a few easy 7:45 miles), and what my brother-in-law did this morning (26 miles at 9:30-ish while training for an ultra) are so very different as to be worlds apart. But we call them all "running."

i love these people who are running 9:20 minute miles and getting pissed about the 'slow' people.

open your eyes! you're slow too!

1. Is the sport of running ruined?

2. If so, how is it ruined compared to before Bingham?

3. Is he responsible for those differences?

I'd be curious about those answers.

Personally, I don't agree with his methods. However, the more people running, the better for the sport, in my opinion. So I guess I'd say no. Without the masses, no matter how slow, prize money and sponsorships would be less.

Running is one thing. Racing is another. Where people like Bingham and Galloway err is encouraging people to get into races. This is absurd. It has gone from being a competition to being a social event. Why not have social events to cater to these Gallowalkers?

Out.

Bingham became popular in mid-1990s. A few years later, road racing numbers increased dramatically, and Ritz, Hall, Teg began their running careers. Whether there's any causation here, or not, I can't really see a problem.

ilgore wrote:

Running is one thing. Racing is another. Where people like Bingham and Galloway err is encouraging people to get into races. This is absurd. It has gone from being a competition to being a social event. Why not have social events to cater to these Gallowalkers?

Out.

They do have social events to cater to these Gallowalkers. They just happen to called "races". If races were only open to men running under, say, 5:00/mile and women running under 6:00/mile for a 10K, there wouldn't be very many of them, and the *really* fast people would have far fewer opportunities for sponsorship.

I for one would prefer that running *not* become a fringe sport.

I thought this article summed up my feelings pretty well:

THE "JUST FINISH" BOOM

by Tanya Savory | published 01.07.09

Originally, this was going to be a rant about Resolution Runners. You know, the ones who trot out and buy $900 dollars’ worth of running gear, sign up for 17 races, buy a gym membership, and then flail away on the treadmill maybe 3 times before concluding that running is downright dangerous and, gosh darn it all, not even half as much fun as eating a McRib sandwich. But then I considered my own pathetic attempts at past resolutions (drinking 70 ounces of water every day…ha ha ha!) and just how much I’d enjoy having someone point out my personal lack of persistence. It just seemed rude.

But, perhaps more importantly, it didn’t seem quite rude enough. It didn’t have the potential to irritate and rankle new runners en masse in the way that a more carefully-chosen topic might. Further research revealed that the Festering Angst Du Jour involves the topic of brand-new runners setting their sights on the marathon after one jog around the block. Why build up to the distance? Why run those little candy-assed 5Ks? No one will be impressed! I want my Paint by numbersmarathon and I want it now! I don’t care if it takes me 23 hours to finish. When I cross the finish line, I will be a Marathoner.

This is, of course, a dead horse topic that crops up on running message boards nearly as often as debates about how to lose weight (or, more popularly, “loose” weight) or whether or not one experiences chafing (popularly: “chaffing”) due to wardrobe errors or simple excess blubber.

Invariably, a new runner will post something along the lines of : Hi! I’m another newbie. LOL!!! I’ll never be fast ’cause my knees just can’t take it and it causes chaffing :( and plus too I don’t care about speed. But I would like to just finish a 26-mile marathon. Right now I run 10 miles a week and have been running for 3 weeks. Can I be ready for a marathon (a 26 mile one) in 2 months? I’m so psyched!!! LOL!!!! :) :)

This will be followed by a lot of Go for it! You can do it! Everyone’s a winner! Slow and steady wins the race! You go girl! WOOT! sunshine being blown up the original poster’s ass. Then, somewhere in the midst of this Pollyanna-palooza, a longtime runner comes along and rains on everyone’s marathon parade by having the gall to suggest that the newbie race some shorter distances first. Maybe even do something drastic like actually prepare for the marathon over the course of (uh oh) …..AN ENTIRE YEAR.

And then…..

Sides are taken, lines drawn in the sand (whatever that really means), and suddenly, anyone who can run faster than a 10-minute mile is an elitist a-hole snob who resents those who are merely enjoying a sport and trying to loose a little weight.

I try to see both sides of the debate. Sort of. A little. Well, actually, I turn a blind eye to any withering shred of compromise and mock Instant Marathoners mercilessly. Anyway, what always baffles me is how utterly impossible it is for the Just-Add-Water-a-thoners to understand why their rushed quest to check a marathon off a life list might annoy longtime runners. After all, why should we care if they want to strap on an overnight bag and take an eternity to cover 26.2 miles (or 26.9 according to their Garmins)? What difference could it possibly make in our ectomorphic little lives if their achievement gives them the privilege to wedge the word “marathon” into most conversations at cocktail parties? Why should their bright purple tattoo of “26.2!!” surrounded by butterflies and winged feet trouble us?

Allow me to present a possibly lame analogy to the Insty-thoners.

Imagine that you’re a painter (pictures, not walls). You’re not the best, but you’ve worked at it for years, and you’re proud of the dedication you’ve put into becoming a decent painter. Not that many people paint, but those that do have a nice, nerdy bond. They get all geeky and emotional about it, and, let’s face it, they’re kind of difficult to be around when they start blathering about all the dorkwad details of painting.

Anyway. For whatever reasons, painting becomes THE thing to do all of a sudden. Instantly, thousands of people want to paint something they can hang on their walls. Does anyone want to take the time to learn how to paint well? Of course not! I want my painting, and I want it now. For crissakes, just give me one of those paint-by-number Dogs Playing Poker on velvet deals. Before long, everyone’s mincing around in berets and cranking out paint-by-number masterpieces. You have friends who invite you over to see their Sistine-Chapel-in-a-Day murals and the ever-popular Mona Lisa on a Pie Crust or Degas on a Dartboard. Part of you is genuinely pleased that painting has become so popular.

Look! I’m Van Gogh!

But a larger part of you is just a little bit cranky with all the Instant Artists. When you suggest to a friend that he might actually take the time to learn real painting, he flings his beret at you in a huff and bellows that he is a real painter. Look–there’s Les Tuileries on a Toilet Seat, for the love of God! He’s quick to point out that you, sir, are a painting snob and that, after all, he and loads of other people don’t care about style and form, because it hurts their elbows to practice it. He and his pals just want to finish a painting. Get off his back, you elitist Real Art prig.

Well, something like that.

As far as I know, no one has a problem with anyone getting off their cans and going for a run. The last I heard, crabby longtime runners still love seeing new runners joining in this batty pastime . But seeing marathoning reduced to an item on a checklist, a tattoo, a veritable paint-by-number project to be hung on a wall and forgotten….Well, that can tend to lead to some serious chaffing of the longtime runners.

TR contributor TANYA SAVORY is a Nashville-based singer, songwriter and runner, with a 5K PR of 18:55 and a marathon PR of 3:28.

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I'm not against slow people- there are runners who make me look like a joke and I'm aware of my limitations relative to the big picture. However, I do find myself a little irked about people who view racing as a thing on a to-do list. I don't mind someone running 10minute miles- as long as they're putting in the effort. I'd like to think that someday I'll be an old man busting out 23 minute 5ks and straining to outkick people or set age-group PRs.

You wonder why Americans are terrible at running.

Participation is more acceptable than competition.

Plain and simple. It is equally okay for someone to train for an hour a day just to complete a marathon rather than prepare properly and compete and push themselves through the event.

Has he ruined the sport? No. But he is contributing to it.

Another thing that irks me is that we've become "gear" nation. Today on my long run (20 miles) no fuel belts, no GU, no IPOD, no GARMIN, no sunglasses, no hat. Shoes, shirt and shorts. As I passed some slower runners I noticed that 90% of them (the other 10% were dressed in non running attire) were wearing hats, garmins, fuelbelts, trail shoes(on a flat lime path) and sunglasses. This is at 7:00am when there is no sun until 10am at the earliest. On my way back when I finished I happened to notice that these runners were done WAY earlier (maybe ran a total hour) than myself.

Think about all the crap you buy that serves very little to no purpose. This is what is ruining running for Americans.

As far as I'm concerned, the more people in the sport the better. The older I get, the less I'm concerned with the runners vs. joggers debate. If this guy brings more people into it, or if his approach resonates with others and makes them feel good about what they do, that's good.

Personally I haven't always cared for his tone. I think there has sometimes been a lack of respect for those who take their running seriously.

Of course that doesn't jibe with the welcoming, supportive, all-inclusive attitude we all demonstrate here at letsrun.

But I would also say Mr. Bingham's identity as a runner has probably evolved just as it should for every runner. He may now have a better appreciation for the sport as a whole and for the many attitudes and approaches to it. Especially now that his fame and fortune depend on it.

Of course he didn't invent slow running or taking a relaxed approach to a road race, but I don't really see anything wrong with him popularizing it.

Wedpeople, thanks for pointing out that sunglasses are such an annoyance to REAL runners like you.

My eye doctor told me to wear them due to a problem I have, so I will immediately quit running forever so I don't annoy any more REAL runners like you.

Thank you for being the decider of what running is to every individual any carrying the torch of running purity.

You have to wear sunglasses at 7am when there is no sun out for a good 3 hours?

Do you wear them while you sleep? No. Oh then you wouldn't need them at 7am, if there is sun in your eyes, go for. If you want to wear them for the style and because Ryan Hall did for a training run then no, don't please.

Maybe you should put them on when you read too so you can comprehend an article when its written and learn to critcize correctly.

The Decider Of Running...B!TCH

PS nice 2:40 marathon add in your name, im not impressed

Hmmm..... wrote:

I for one would prefer that running *not* become a fringe sport.

You're a few decades late with that.

So in your world sunrise isn't until 10 a.m.?

Trying living in the northeast on a rainy day (when the sun didnt shine until approximately 10 am).

Where do you live? If the sun doesn't rise till 10 it's quite a news story.

By the way, are you 16 years old or off the medication you need to deal with your massive insecurities?