Lady called the running store i work at and said she was training for a 3.1 mile marathon...

I worked many years in running shops. Honestly, the beginning hobby jogger is a pretty good customer. They want your advice and they listen. They usually buy shoes, a couple of outfits, some socks, etc. on that first visit. They come back and bring other customers who are doing the same charity run and training group.

Contrast that with the typical "local hero" who rolls in once a week, pesters your staff with a bunch of inane questions (I just saw some study from the Czech Republic that says a shoe drop of 3.627894mm is optimal for marathon runners. Do you have any lightweight flats with that EXACT amount of drop? Why the hell not? Why don't you not pressure Enormous Shoe Co. to make them?), picks up a few race flyers, asks for the umpteenth time if you will sponsor him (I run a 19:12 5K! I'll be kind of a big masters deal in four years when I hit the big 4-O!), and then mutters something about checking out Roadrunner Sports for clearance deals as he walks out without spending a dime.

Sadly, a lot of running store clerks are pretentious man-children that are only a notch above hobby jogger themselves but, they delude themselves into believing that they are going to be world class very, very soon because they don't work at a cubicle farm and are staying "true" to their dreams.

Check your hotshot attitude and just help the lady become a runner.

Everyone who pays for their shoes is a hobby jogger, some just take themselves more seriously, and the value of that is subjective. The reality is, you serve hobby joggers. So take a step back and re-think whether you are in a place to be judgemental and what self-defence mechanism is kicking in where you want to feel you are superior to anyone.

In specific answer to your question, if someone makes a mistake, feel free to correct them if you think it will be helpful to them. In this case you want to sell shoes, so I'd just be very nice and sell her the shoes you honestly believe will be right for her. Being good at your job and helping people find the right shoes for them is something that you can be proud of - go with that. Being a good person is a worthy goal.

You forgot that to prevent chafing on this 3.1 mile marathon she'll be needing some bodyglide. She'll be out there for minutes maybe even hours. Guaranteed DNF without it.

Tornsituation wrote:

Today I received a phone call at the running store that I work at and she explained that she needed good shoes for the 3.1 mile marathon she was training for. This moment was unlike anything I had previously endured, I politely explained that she could come in and we would help her, however deep inside my soul I wanted to fix her hobby jogger ways.

If you were in my situation would you have roasted her? If so what would you have said?

Self-importance called. It wants its label back.

Portland Hobby Jogger wrote:

Sadly, a lot of running store clerks are pretentious man-children that are only a notch above hobby jogger themselves but, they delude themselves into believing that they are going to be world class very, very soon because they don't work at a cubicle farm and are staying "true" to their dreams.

This is my local running store to a T.

Lets List

shoes

socks

laces

shorts

vest

hat

glasses

hydration belt & bottles

warm up suit

reflective tape decals

gps watch

sunscreen

assorted gels

instruction videos

waterproof pen/sharpie

packet of safety pins

There must be more that a good salesman would outfit her with.

You forgot the 3.1 sticker :-)

Lets List

please add on

shoes

socks

laces

shorts

vest

hat

glasses

hydration belt & bottles

warm up suit

reflective tape decals

gps watch

sunscreen

assorted gels

instruction videos

waterproof pen/sharpie

anti-chaffing lube

packet of safety pins

race distance stickers

running magazine and periodicals

Croakies eyewear retainers

under shoes we need a list of types that a 3.1 Marathoner need in their arsenal

The two pair sell ----one gets a chance to air out and dry between usages

post race recovery shoes

anti-fungal shower shoes

Hey you guys who are holding off your CEO careers to work in a running store so you can be true to 'the gift'. look around the store and see what else you can sell.

I work in service at an auto dealership and we get stupid questions like that all the time. People are idiots! I can't believe they don't understand even the simplest concepts of mechanics yet spend hours a day in their car. I love to denigrate and put them down (which makes me feel SOOO good about myself) because they don't understand what I do.

Karl Hungus wrote:

Portland Hobby Jogger wrote:

Sadly, a lot of running store clerks are pretentious man-children that are only a notch above hobby jogger themselves but, they delude themselves into believing that they are going to be world class very, very soon because they don't work at a cubicle farm and are staying "true" to their dreams.

This is my local running store to a T.

+1

Tell her to get these because they are what coaches wear:

http://www.coach.com/coach-c122-with-printed-suede-and-fringe/G1315.html?dwvar_color=WIN

It's a Sprint Marathon 5k 'Thon

Maybe she was testing you & you failed. You didn't know that a marathon was more than 3.1 miles. I hate running stores with worthless hobby joggers trying to sell me shoes...

+1

Tornsituation wrote:

Today I received a phone call at the running store that I work at and she explained that she needed good shoes for the 3.1 mile marathon she was training for. This moment was unlike anything I had previously endured, I politely explained that she could come in and we would help her, however deep inside my soul I wanted to fix her hobby jogger ways.

If you were in my situation would you have roasted her? If so what would you have said?

You could have said "I work in a shoe store. You are superior to me in every way, so I will pathetically revel in this moment."

We need pics of this filthy whore.

Tornsituation wrote:

Today I received a phone call at the running store that I work at and she explained that she needed good shoes for the 3.1 mile marathon she was training for. This moment was unlike anything I had previously endured, I politely explained that she could come in and we would help her, however deep inside my soul I wanted to fix her hobby jogger ways.

If you were in my situation would you have roasted her? If so what would you have said?

That's how course cutters qualify for Boston or trials races.

Some run 3.1 mile marathons.

Others run 20.2 mile marathons etc.

3.1 mile marathon training shoes are not the same as the actual shoes you use to run the actual event.

Tornsituation wrote:

If you were in my situation would you have roasted her? If so what would you have said?

That would mean you went full retard, man. Never go full retard. Remember Sean Penn? He went full retard. He went home empty handed.

You all know calling short road races mini marathons goes back to the first all woman's road race in NYC sponsored by S.C. Johnsoni and Sons in 1972 don't you? The six mile (one lap of Central Park) was called the Crazylegs Mini to promote a new pink shaving gel for women (this was back when only women shaved their legs) was put on by NYRRClub.

So blame Fred Lebow. S.C. Johnson &Sons wanted to sponsor a marathon that was only for women and Lebow knew there just were not enough woman marathoners to attract a field that would make the advertising viable for Johnson so he suggested a scaled down race, a mini version, if you will, of the marathon.

Mini and marathon got married by some PR agency and big city event road racing took off. Advertisers saw a great way to mass market their brands . . . and thus began the phenomenon called hobbyjogging.