Is it lame to kick hard for the last .1 mile of a 5K if you are in 20th place?

Rubbin' is racin'.

Just today i kicked the last 400m against a female friend in a fun 5k

She Works Out Too Much wrote:

I just let him go because it wasn't worth the effort to kick to cut 3-5 seconds off my time.

No... you "let him go" because he's faster than you and you couldn't keep up.

"wasn't worth the effort" hahaha... I love this guy.

dude bro dude wrote:

She Works Out Too Much wrote:

I just let him go because it wasn't worth the effort to kick to cut 3-5 seconds off my time.

No... you "let him go" because he's faster than you and you couldn't keep up.

"wasn't worth the effort" hahaha... I love this guy.

Yeah, totally bro! Gotta crush those 21 minute 5K's like a beast bruh!

Yeah, that was me. I got quite a kick, and I'm not ashamed to show it. Ask your mom about me, she knows.

If you claim to be racing for place, but then you kick past 15 people at the end of the race to finish 200th, that’s pretty lame. This is the “lazy high schooler” method favored by people who claim to be doing their best but are actually unwilling to push themselves. If you’re running at a solid pace (for you) and outkick the guy who’s been next to you all race to get 200th, that’s acceptable.

But there’s nothing wrong with jogging it in, either. This is an open-entry road race with nothing on the line except whatever your personal stake is. Some people like to pretend that “trying hard” at a damn hobby is somehow a noble act. It’s not; get over yourself.

What a gross thread.

Seriously, people critical of a recreational runner not even close to winning the race and beating on him because he didn't drop the hammer on Scott from accounting who runs 15 miles a week with 20 yards to go (and dropping Prefontaine quotes as an added bonus) at the local Run for Hope 5K.

This is why running and runners continue to be the weird, nerdy, self-loathing guys who can't get laid.

Gross wrote:

What a gross thread.

Seriously, people critical of a recreational runner not even close to winning the race and beating on him because he didn't drop the hammer on Scott from accounting who runs 15 miles a week with 20 yards to go (and dropping Prefontaine quotes as an added bonus) at the local Run for Hope 5K.

This is why running and runners continue to be the weird, nerdy, self-loathing guys who can't get laid.

But being critical of a runner trying to beat people in a race is cool?

She Works Out Too Much wrote:

I'd say it is. Especially if you are not going to PR and you are not fighting for the top 3 overall spots.

Happened to me last weekend as I was absolutely tanking my race and some dude wanted to sprint for the finish. We were in a larger race and we were about 2 minutes behind the overall winner anyways. I just let him go because it wasn't worth the effort to kick to cut 3-5 seconds off my time.

Pretty sure that was me that out kicked you last weekend, get rekt bro, QQ less

Seriously though, in any race if you are finishing close to someone else why would you NOT try to beat them? It's a RACE no matter where you are finishing. In any local 5k the vast majority of people will be nowhere close to competitive for winning, you think they shouldn't give it their all just because the leader is going to finish 10 minutes before the majority of them? The good runners I know even on their bad days will finish within a minute or so of what they are capable of in a 5k. If they find themselves way back in 20-30th place they certainly wouldn't allow themselves to be outkicked by a hobby jogger, it really just seems like you came here looking for validation for having a bad race then losing again in the final kick.

In pain there is beauty. Place is but a state of mind. Kick hard, friend.

Not at all. Every spot counts. This is what they teach in cross-country and I don't know why it shouldn't apply to unattached races. Always do your best.

this thread reminds me of the one about how its impossible to waste water because of the water cycle. Yes technically, if you run the perfect race , there wont be much kick left. However, this could easily lead to outpacing yourself, or it could lead to rabbiting the other runners to their perfect race. Who won when Bekele went up against El G in the 5000? The miler with the kicking speed. If he just so happened to meet Bekele on the day he broke the world record, well even then he could draft, but the point being thats a once in a lifetime race. Kick if you can, hell its lame to be able to run long distances, run 50 miles per week and not be able to sprint in a 5k. If this were chasing someone or running away for your life, kicking would matter. Why turn yourself into a tractor when you could have a v8?

I think you are confusing this situation with one in which one teammate outkicks another when there is no benefit to the team. I agree that this is not good sportsmanship. Many of the macho posters here feel differently, but this was strongly discouraged on our team, and I think striving to finish in a tight pack in those situations helped build unity.

As for outkicking random strangers in low-stakes situations, that can be left to personal preference. Personally, I try to keep form, which is generally smart and has the added benefit of keeping me from looking too silly in a mad sprint for 19th place.

You had no idea whether or not the other runner was trying to beat their own PR. You just assumed that, since you were having a bad day, everyone else around you must have been having one too. That could have been the race of their life for all you know.

Sounds like 50% of the finishers in every JV high school xc race I’ve ever seen. So yes, it’s about as lame as lame gets cause it proves that you didn’t really race the first 3 miles.

Boston302 wrote:

I’d agree with OP. One of my favorite charity 5k moments happened in the first year or two I started running (6 yrs ago). I was trying to get back in shape, so anything around 7 min/mile was good for me. Anyway, I was approaching the finish and some dude comes up on my left in a dead sprint and outLEANS me at the tape.

We ran a 20:47 5k.

In probably 300th place.

Still laughing at that finisher photo. Beyond ridiculous.

Sucks to get beat, don't it? You'll get over it one day.

In cross country I'd say go all out (I run in high school so my xc races are 5k) because you might pick up a few more points to help the team. If you're tanking in track and are off of PR pace, there is no reason to kill yourself on the last part

She Works Out Too Much wrote:

I'd say it is. Especially if you are not going to PR and you are not fighting for the top 3 overall spots.

Happened to me last weekend as I was absolutely tanking my race and some dude wanted to sprint for the finish. We were in a larger race and we were about 2 minutes behind the overall winner anyways. I just let him go because it wasn't worth the effort to kick to cut 3-5 seconds off my time.

Kicking at the end of a race is not “lame”. The goal of a race should be to complete the distance as fast as you can on a given day (unless you are competing for the win in which case tactics may come into play).

What is lame is misjudging your effort so badly throughout the race that you are able to approach top speed during a “kick”. I am not accusing you of this. I am simply stating that not all kicks are created equal.

So, a typical “kick” (where you up the effort towards the finish line to lay out everything you have left) should happen every race. It’s the 22:00 kids who are fresh as daisies and closing in 13.xx over the final 100 that are employing the lame version of the kick.

I guess you answered your own question since you are bitching about it on the forum. Use it or lose it at the elbow beeyatch.