How was this marathon winner not DQ'd: RnR Raleigh

If you look at the course, the turn she missed was at about mile 18.9. Instead of leaving the trail around Lake Johnson, she and the lead bikes continued on it.

She then states that she continued on the trail until she reached a road. This would have been Avent Ferry which means she ran approximately 1.3 miles to that point. Let's say she ran another quarter mile before finding a police officer. ~1.6 miles. If she had continued on the trail around the lake she would have run back on the course at approximately the 17.9 mile mark. I'm confident that this is where the first police officer dropped her off - "Eventually he gave me a ride, but back to mile 17." It is just up the road.

So, instead of retracing 1 mile of the course, she (race officials) decide to jump back on the course at mile 22.5.

She ran 18.9 miles, another 1.6 miles off course and then runs the last 3.7 miles. That gives her a total of 24.2 miles - even with the mileage off course. I guess to Rock and Roll that is close enough to a marathon.

http://runrocknroll.com/raleigh/the-races/course/

As long the runner doesn't use a vehicle to cover any part of the run course who cares what they do otherwise. Ray Krolewicz once left a 12hr race and watched his kid's recital or play. Should he have been DQd? It only cost him the miles. If someone wants to leave the couse and ride a roller-coaster, who cares, the watch is still going and as long as they run the whole course, it's all good. This runner getting a ride is no sweat, starting back further up the course from where she went off is a problem though.

All rules state you must re-enter where you went off course.

kcv xlk wrote:

As long the runner doesn't use a vehicle to cover any part of the run course who cares what they do otherwise.

She used a vehicle to cover 3 miles of the course.

Read kcv's post all the way to the end, buddy. Or was it too many words for you?

kcv xlk wrote:

As long the runner doesn't use a vehicle to cover any part of the run course who cares what they do otherwise. Ray Krolewicz once left a 12hr race and watched his kid's recital or play. Should he have been DQd? It only cost him the miles. If someone wants to leave the couse and ride a roller-coaster, who cares, the watch is still going and as long as they run the whole course, it's all good. This runner getting a ride is no sweat, starting back further up the course from where she went off is a problem though.

You may technically be correct, but I think this is bananas. Maybe in some 12 hour race, but not in a road race. In track, for instance, you cannot leave the track during a 10k and head over to the infield and have a bagel and some coffee, then meander back to where you left off and rejoin the race.

I agree with the others saying that it is not her fault, pay her and DQ her.

I am not from Raleigh, but wouldn't you kind of know something was wrong when you're all of a sudden alone on the Lake Johnson trail? Does the regular course go around the lake? I used to run there on business trips. Very hilly.