"Are you OK?"
"Are you OK?"
Winter 1976, I'm running a 10 mile race in a snowstorm in Gardiner, Massachusetts. It was tough going as ice formed on the bottom of my shoes and I was slipping every step after the halfway mark.
I was an 18 year old hippy with a big beard, so snow and ice formed a giant snow beard on me!
A little toddler saw me huff & puff on by, and yelled "Look mommy! It's Santa Claus!"
A very skinny Santa, thought I.
I was happy with my 60 minute finish, but my pal Tim, a year younger, ran 56 minutes! Talented kid, 9:27 HS 2 miler back then.
"Hey, nice leg speed velocity!"
I was on my own, doing a workout at the local high school track. It was ~5:30pm/6:00pm, so a lot of people were walking across the fields on their way home from work.
I was running 300s, and when I entered the homestretch on my first one I noticed that a woman who had been walking across the field was standing staring at me. When I finished she exclaimed, "That was really good!"
"Are you LATE?!?" -- asked with a sardonic grin by a guy in his driveway (I'm a chick) as I was barreling down 4th St in Boulder from Wonderland Lake toward downtown.
personnaly i'd probably resent pretty much any comment coming from the (non-running) peanut gallery folks...
who cares what they think-- good , bad, or indiffernt...
the only comments that count are from coaches and other runners
Having said that much--a couple of times--long, long ago-- women were know to whistle at me from the car (wolf whistle thing, apparently signifying their "approval" of my body)....that was kinda cool i suppose.
I had a cop tell me how fast I was going since he clocked me on his radar gun. Made me chuckle.
As I was passing an older guy he told me "You make running look like falling off a log"
While going through an aid station half way through a long trail race, I was in my late 20s, young woman maybe 18-20 said: Want a drink? Want a date?
Class of 73 wrote:
I was trying to chase down the lead runner - some skinny 20-year-old - in a local 10K, putting on a strong kick in the end, when I heard a young voice excitedly yell out "Look! It's Grandpa!!!"
That was my 5-year-old grandson jumping up and down as I finished runner-up 19 seconds after the winner. The very best thing I ever heard!
very cool
I'm a woman and some small children in my neighborhood were playing one afternoon when I ran past them. One of the little boys yelled out, "Are you a boy or a girl?" I had my hair pulled back in a braid, no make-up and I have a runner-girl build (thin, flat-chested). I just laughed and ran by, but when I looped back, he yelled "well.... what are you? a boy or a girl?" I yelled back that I was a girl. He seemed satisfied enough with the response!
As I have a 3 year old, I thought it was funny and felt like now I'll never have to stress if my child asks someone in public if they are a boy or a girl. LOL!
22 miles into a bonked marathon, were I was on 2:20 pace at 18 miles but ended up running/walking 2:36...
kid asks mom
"this guy is in second place? he's walking"
"aww dude, gross! That runner shit himself!"
Someone asked me if I had a spare cigarette during my long run.
Finishing up a 20 miler in Washington DC at like 8am, a homeless guy under the Key Bridge looked at me and said, "You're still going to get fat."
I just laughed and ran back to my apartment.
Strange thing was that he was right. As I write this, I am about 15 pounds over racing weight!
I was at mile 18 of a marathon and some black kids from a local high school were working the water station. As I approached one of them said "Damn, he look smooth!"
The Running Gods giveth and they taketh away:
Running top 30 in a major 15k race with no shirt and sub-4 shorts. Two 20 something girls remark as I passed by them: "Oooh, that one has a nice body."
Running down Sorority Row in college one co-ed remarks to the other: "Oh my God! Did you see how skinny that guy was!"
"Geez! That guy runs like a f%#kin' gazelle!" overheard from a female college tennis player standing alongside the track as I was doing quick 300s in about 35 or 36. I think that was a compliment???
Young kid to his father "why is that man running in his shorts when it's snowing?"
It made me feel hard-core.
"Those are the elite runners!"
Heard by a woman tell her kid as me and an older guy were in the lead racing an 8k XC-style course.
I won in 29 minutes..