The board reminds me of the rags at the checkout stands. Very little of the gossip is true, but every once in a while they get lucky. I enjoy the untrues and find them humorous. However, the problem stems from people being to dumb to realize.
The board reminds me of the rags at the checkout stands. Very little of the gossip is true, but every once in a while they get lucky. I enjoy the untrues and find them humorous. However, the problem stems from people being to dumb to realize.
...TOO dumb to realize. You are funny!
crazy raisin wrote:
Some of them are big fans of it though - David Torrence, Kara Goucher, Teg...
Okay please note when I wrote this I was NOT referring to the message boards, not the site. Although I can see how my post was taken that way
I am one of the very top elites in the world. I mean the very top. I find the message board like a pig sty and most of those who post there like filthy pigs. So juvenile. You want to be part of the "in" crowd but instead you are just a loser hobby jogger. You could not hang with me for more than a lap til I turn on the jets and blow away from you.
LRC is home to the fan base. The fact it exists at all is a good thing for running.
I'm a former collegiate All-American and I love the boards. Of course I was never really discussed on the boards by name, although my team was some, but I always felt Letsrun kept me grounded and honest. Elites may feel differently, but if you can't stand the heat, stay off the boards. It's pretty simple.
bangalangadanga wrote:
Guys, I challenge you all to be more civil to one another here. Let's make these message boards a decent place to hang out, let's take a strong stance against trashing our top runners, and encourage the up and comers, and hobby joggers that give it all but might not have the talent to be elite or even sub elite. Let us not jump to conclusions and insults, let us not negotiate with the trolls, LET US RUN A MARATHON ON A TRACK!
This^^
Very Top Elite wrote:
I am one of the very top elites in the world. I mean the very top. I find the message board like a pig sty and most of those who post there like filthy pigs. So juvenile. You want to be part of the "in" crowd but instead you are just a loser hobby jogger. You could not hang with me for more than a lap til I turn on the jets and blow away from you.
Apparently Alan Webb posts on here.
I started this thread and approve of most of the responses so far.
By "elite" I suppose a pretty broad definition, actually a set, can apply. College level, certainly All-Americans would be elite, if not NCAA D1 (individual) qualifiers. Thinking about how many kids run high school then only a fraction goes on to college and continue running--making it to the top of the 23 and under set is pretty darn good.
Post-college, usually = pro runners. Those who are making OTs level (but sub 2:40 marathon for women) and/or making a significant amount of their income from running.
Reading between the lines from some interviews the elites rarely mention Letsrun by name, but you they do talk message boards from time to time, and the reference is usually not positive.
Well here we are.
I too would like to see more support toward top runners here. Years ago this board boasted frequent visits by numerous current and former elite runners. That doesn't happen as much now. Most everyone has gone underground.
The few decent runners I've known do check out the boards but it's only reading about performances. I dont ever hear them checking out the training discussions or the gossip.
LRC is where elites go to learn what it takes to be elite.
Just because they think they are elite doesn't mean that we have given them approval.
I know of at least 3 Kenyans who think this site totally anti-Kenyan and stopped hanging out here because they just couldn't deal with the hostility. Shame, really.
Such haters! You'd think they'd welcome a different perspective but no, so-called third world countries have no right to be better than the great U.S of A at anything.
A Duck wrote:
Eli Te wrote:I think you would very surprised about the large number of elites who visit Letsrun.
Some visit for the front page, and not the boards at all.
Some skim the boards, and then head out, they have busy lives.
Most read the boards and then never come back.
As I've shared before, I hung out with some Aussie elites a few days before the Payton Jordan, and the phrase I remember best being uttered about this place was "fcking sht hole, mate." Major name Aussie, I'll let you guess whom.
I know tons of former elites, really famous peeps, who find this place ranging from intolerable, to despicable.
The Brojo's like to make the excuse/analogy that their board is and should be the running equivalent of an NFL chat board.
--Like who here, really spends, or wants to spend time on an NFL chat board??????
You can see what elites think about this board by going back in the archives and seeing how few elites post here any more.
It has also been noted in many college and pro athlete interviews that it is policy to stay off this site.
AND, every single thread any one has ever floated like this ends up getting CENSORED.
Because while the Brojo's think you ought to be able to act like NFL jackhandles and call each other derogatory terms for whatever...they can't handle having a thread calling out their own behavior and product remain in their archives.
Lowbrows.
The Aussie is either Ryan Gregson, Craig Mottram, or that Oliver guy who runs the 800.
I was once a regular on this board until the bashing started if I search my name there is over 7,000 mentions on this board and 80% is negative. I was fine with that but when I did a search of others with a similar amount of mentions I found the numbers to be similar in the negative department.
My biggest problem is that when the negatives start, I get 2 or 3 emails telling me this about it. That is how I found this thread. There are honestly some good people in this sport.
A well known coach told me that a 20% approval rate on this board is pretty damn good. I would never surround myself with those same percentages in the real world so why do it here.
We still love you - come back, we missed you, here you can have my entry into the Holy Guacamole Cinco De Mayo 5K... Please don't be mad at us.
I'm not really a "pro" but probably considered elite. I've run at world champs a couple times and make money here and there from racing. I check the board for results, read the marathon/road racing thread consistently, and stay away from the gossip and trash. It's disgusting how much negativity there is. Tearing people down is not the way to bring yourself up.
I am friends with a former elite runner from the early 2000s and he was even better friends with some fellow elites of even higher caliber. Sometimes for their own entertainment (or if they needed motivation) they would post something incredibly negative on LetsRun that absolutely bashed themselves, just to see how people would respond... As in how many people would jump in and add to the bashing versus how many people would stand up for them and defend them. He said it was all about how you approached it. He said if you were going to read the boards, you had to get on there with the idea that you were doing it for amusement and weren't going to take it personally. I'm sure there are some elites who can't help but take it personally. Hopefully those are the ones who stay away from reading the message boards.
Even though I struggle to buy groceries, I suppose I'm a pro as it's my only form of income at the present moment. I try to stay away from the boards. I love the homepage and will get dragged on to the boards when there is something of interest "on the boards."
The negativity is awful on here and it's really unfortunate as there is some valuable training advice on here. Most of all, I love reading some of the non running related topics. Guys like Flagpole and a few others give some elder life advice that is not taken by granted by many of the youth on these boards.
I'm pretty close to being an elite as well (came in 3rd in my age group at last year's Turkey Trot), and I rarely come here anymore. Absurd amount of negativity to me and my fellow elites. Flagpole's pretty cool, though.