Do midpack hobbyjoggers ever SIT & KICK?

Half of them do, but only out of undertrained ignorance, hqving no idea how or ability to sustain a steady effort over an entire race.

The other half go out way too fast and die a slow, painful death.

Serious Answer wrote:

Half of them do, but only out of undertrained ignorance, hqving no idea how or ability to sustain a steady effort over an entire race.

The other half go out way too fast and die a slow, painful death.

I think there's a nuance though. Not knowing proper pacing and having juice left for a kick is different than a sit-and-kick racing strategy. For the latter, you have to actually be RACING somebody in particular and not just going for a PR. I don't know if hobby joggers view a race as competition against specific other runners like that.

I tried to do this to my co-worker in a workplace 5 miler fun run. It horribly backfired lol. I have slightly better 5k/mile 'speed' and he crushes me at everything 10k and on

Anyways we were on an easy pace (for us) the first 4 and I gave him the ol' 'gobble gobble mother f'er'

Too bad he caught me after about 200m lol, and was waiting for me at the finish

treole wrote:

What goes on the middle of these multi-thousand-jogger road races. Do hobby joggers in the midpack ever pick a fellow hobby jogger to sit an kick on to pretend they are actually racing someone?

Or do they not even care about the other runners and just go for PRs every time?

What goes on in these things?

WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE?

And what times do you run, Oh Fast Leader?

In windy conditions they're just like elites.

treole wrote:

What goes on the middle of these multi-thousand-jogger road races. Do hobby joggers in the midpack ever pick a fellow hobby jogger to sit an kick on to pretend they are actually racing someone?

Or do they not even care about the other runners and just go for PRs every time?

What goes on in these things?

WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE?

I don't know who these people are...but I'll tell you who I am and give you my point of view on this nonsense of mocking fitness runners. I'm a former highly-competitive runner, who now in my late 50s has become a fitness runner, or your so-called "hobby jogger" due to a myraid of chronic injuries & OA of the ankle. And because of this, I've now been regulated to a pathetic 15 mpw and maybe, if I'm lucky and the stars are aligned right, a short speed session at the track or tempo run once a week or so. And some days are so bad I run like an 80 yr old man with gas pains! 😄.

Anyway, on the course (open space park with dirt trail loops) that I regulary run on, I invariably always seem to encounter rude "hot shot" elite/sub-elite type runners (you know the young cats with their shirts off, ultra-short running shorts, pricey sunglasses, ballcap on backwards, etc.) . As I see them approaching at their sizzling pace, I always move out of their way, though many of them wave their hand violently at me to move over while giving me dirty looks. And if they're approaching from behind, many have yelled "move out of the way chump!" as they rocket by me.

One time there was a young Buck stretching down in the parking lot who told me; "Hey old fart, I saw ya out on the trail and you're a sad sight for sore eyes...why don't you take up a bike or something" 😄. I agreed with him and said I should probably wear a sign pinned on my running shirt that says "Caution..old fart - broken down - runner...please pass with care." (what can you do - argue with these cats? So, I just agree with them and laugh it off).

The moral of the story? I know there's many hot shot elites/sub-elites who think old, broken down fitness runners (i.e., "hobby joggers") like me are a joke and shouldn't be out running in public or showing up at a race. But someday you'll be old, and maybe also broken down, and you'll come down to the reality of what aging is all about (a lot of us broken down cats were once pretty good in our heyday). So, I wouldn't be so arrogant to mock fitness runners as you very well may become one some day 😕.

I can only speak for myself. Most "hobby joggers" as you would define them are that for 1 of 3 reasons: 1-they have life commitments that don't allow them to train like an elite or 2-they don't really care and are just enjoying the social and/or exercise benefits of being active 3-they are former athletes beyond their prime who just enjoy friendly competition or who are measuring how good they can still be.

I pick strategies for given races just like anybody else does. If it's a bunch of people slower than me running, I might go out even and try to set a PR. If I plan to double, I might go out slower and just worry about where I finish the race rather than my time. If there's no way I can win, I might pick a guy (or girl) I know would be tough for me to beat and try to hang onto them (and sometimes die a slow death for going out too fast), or I might just use them to pace myself to a PR. If I find myself within striking distance the last mile, I'll sit on them until the last half mile or so and then try to out-kick regardless of whether it's to get 1st or 61st place.

As for who we are, we're the people that make it possible to have 5k/10k/half pretty much every weekend throughout the US - even if it is just a small charity event full of hobby joggers and little kids. So embrace us and enjoy front running when you find us in a race with you.

Nice post hobbyJogger01. The term "hobby jogger" that these elite cats are so obsessed with is kinda of a misnomer. Simplified; it's a person who jogs for a hobby, much akin to someone who does hiking, swimming, cycling, etc., as a hobby. But more importantly, a better characterization would be "fitness runner," - as whether or not they race for a PR, or just race for enjoyment, etc., they're getting good health benefits. I don't know what's wrong with these hot shot goof balls 🤔 They should be embracing fitness runners, and instead go after all the sedentary overweight/obese people who are bogging down the healthcare system with their preventable chronic diseases!

Why do you care?

This thread, like many others, highlights one of the nice features of letsrun.com: there are people of many different ages that are actually asking each other questions and communicate. Venues where young people can learn the perspective of older people and vice versa are not common.

I do it ALL the time...🙄

Serious Answer wrote:

Half of them do, but only out of undertrained ignorance, hqving no idea how or ability to sustain a steady effort over an entire race.

The other half go out way too fast and die a slow, painful death.

I'd say it's way more than half that go out too fast and die.

The posts of "hobbyJogger01" and "Fed-Up Old Runner" should be required reading for anyone on these boards.

I'm a pretty average high schooler (17:30 5k, 5:00 mile), pretty mid pack when i go to road races..

In high school races, i've been JV, so I race with the other kids on my JV team mainly (bc we are a pretty dominant JV team, not many have kids who are sub 17 5kers)

In road races- I go for PR's always yeah, and I'm not really mid pack in road races as I am in hs races, but yeah i've never thought "sit and kick"

I'm a hobby jogger. I'm a midpack runner and run half and marathons. I enjoy it. I'm not in any competition with anyone but myself. I run to stay fit and training for marathons keeps motivated. I race to train.

I've never been a competitive runner. However I'm a competitive business man that nets over 7 figures a year.

So...... what is it with you middle class income earners. Do you even try? Or do you just coast along in life?

Dear Treole,

hate to tell you, but you;re a hobby jogger too! Unless you ran in the most recent olympics or world championships, you are just spinning your wheels with the rest of us. As you age, you will slow down even more. You can either keep running - albeit at a slower pace - or you can sit on the couch and die playing video games.

Like a lot of my running companeros, I was a state champion runner in high school. I was a decent D2 college runner. Now past 60, I race for fun - and a an occasional state age record. Do I have a racing strategy? You bet I do. Do i sit and kick to beat designated competitors? you bet I do. I study my opposition just like any serious runner should and I know how to pace myself to a PR or a record.

Age ain't nuthin but a number...but eventually the number wins.

When you reach 60, my times will look very impressive. Because by then, hopefully, you will understand why we all run.

My race is always against the clock and not people. I was a former HS State Champ, XC All-American, and ran for a couple shoe companies in my day. Through time and my career with the military, I am now that mid of the pack hobby jogger so commonly referred to on this site. I only go to a couple of races a year, due to my disability from the military. But mostly, that is all my body can afford me at my old age. I had the fortune to run all over the US and in Europe. I trained with various ages--"young punks" to "veterans". I enjoyed every minute of it. Belonging to a club only enhanced this experience. I can't remember a race that we didn't go back and run in with another club member. Something you might not see nowadays. There's a thought, the next time you are in a race and have finished, why don't you go back and run with some midpack hobbyjogger and encourage them in. Then you can find out firsthand what goes on with these people. Who knows you might pick up a friend along the way.

3/10

Even being older the only one thing I ever try to out kick is the clock.