I love Ritz but.....

rojo wrote:

1962, Baby! wrote:

....why why WHY did he think 61:50 was going to be ridiculous? Chicago is fast, the stars were there, and 2:03 is the new 2:06. What planet is Ritz living on? I swear I'm not saying this just because of the results today. Ritz brain has not caught up with marathon reality in 2013. Well, maybe it has now.....

As other's pointed out. It was too fast for him as he couldn't handle his own slower pace.

It was too fast for most people as well. Do you think Moses Mosop is a 2:11 guy?

OP, are you a runner? If so, what's your PR. Let's say it's 4:10 in the mile. Why don't you go out in your next college race in 1:55 at the half and see what hapens? I mean Kiprop does it all the time. Just go for it.

billy mills didn't think like you

ritz was on the brink of going to the next level

not some collage guy

How about Kimetto running 2h03 after getting sick back in July.

Here are some of the symptoms of malaria: headache, fever, shivering, joint pain, vomiting, hemolytic anemia, jaundice, hemoglobin in the urine, retinal damage, and convulsions and I can add temporary deafness due to treatment and this can last up to 3weeks. Incredible as it can take 2-3weeks to fully recover after the disease.

Kimetto was discovered by no other than Mutai (Geoffrey). Before 2010, Kimetto was a farmer (farming is 5am to 6pm job). He is convinced he is even stronger than Mutai now, that gives you an idea how confident he is.

He placed second to Mutai in Berlin in 2h04:16(2012).

1962 means a lot to me. Back then, we ran to win or to place as far towards the front as possible. Time was secondary and only thought of after the race. In the spring of 1962, I ran the first Chicago Windy City Marathon with 14 other starters and the Boston Marathon with 180 others six weeks apart. I warmed up well and aimed at first place from the gun. Marathon racing was far different in 1962 than it is today. I found it to be great fun.

1962, Baby! wrote:

To be clear, I'm not talking about Ritz doing that pace. I'm talking about Ritz opinions on ANYONE doing that pace, as the front page piece CLEARLY laid out.

The pros are no different than college and high school regarding the fact that there are still different talent levels. Ritz just can't go faster. Other people are better and the longer the distance is, the more that shows. It shows more because of the longer distance and because people don't do sit and kick races allowing less talented runners to win like every championship 1500 race. In the marathon great runners beat good runners by multiple minutes. Ritz simply does not have what it takes to run with the top dogs in the marathon. I wish he would just stick to the 10k, but I'm guessing the money is in the marathon.