An open letter to race directors from the back of the pack!

1/10

Can understand to a degree, but author didn't win me over with the tone. Any realization of the labor and costs needed to provide a full, safe experience for every last participant?

Before criticizing, author should give up 4-9 hours of a weekend day, arriving on or before 6:30 a.m. to volunteer for a half-marathon or marathon that remains open for 6+ hour finishers. It's a lot to ask of people.

Should we also demand earlier (faster-- there, I said it) finishers stick around to provide a festive finish for stragglers?

The race scene has, IMO, improved over time for the slower finishers*, but people have to realize what it entails to put on a long-distance running race.

* I remember a point of contention-- among our state's running association-- when a regional marathon, c. early 2000s, should keep the course open to 5.5 hr (from 5); those pointing out the downsides were condemned as elitists.

Ah, more outrage

shes an idiot she should ask first about when the curse is going to be shut down

An open letter to the back of the pack runners!

Lose weight and get faster.

Sincerely,

Everyone else

If a race is advertised to be open for a certain amount of time and you are under the pace needed to complete the course in said time, then I totally agree with the point being made. I would assume that a back of the pack runner would expect to have the same amenities as everyone else. If they are behind cutoff pace then I would expect that those amenities would be removed if they are allowed to stay on the course.

Confuzzled wrote:

If a race is advertised to be open for a certain amount of time and you are under the pace needed to complete the course in said time, then I totally agree with the point being made. I would assume that a back of the pack runner would expect to have the same amenities as everyone else. If they are behind cutoff pace then I would expect that those amenities would be removed if they are allowed to stay on the course.

I agree 100%. From what I read of the article, she(?) was ahead of the pace (barely) and they were already breaking down the race course. That, to me, is unacceptable and the sign of a bad RD.

More races should allow these back of the pack types (say 6:30+ marathon) to start two hours earlier than the real runners. Things might not be fully set up as they start, but it won't be torn down when they finish their lengthy voyage.

nonelitestart wrote:

More races should allow these back of the pack types (say 6:30+ marathon) to start two hours earlier than the real runners. Things might not be fully set up as they start, but it won't be torn down when they finish their lengthy voyage.

Except then you'd have the back-of-the-backers in the way of the faster runners which could be a really messy situation....

nonelitestart wrote:

More races should allow these back of the pack types (say 6:30+ marathon) to start two hours earlier than the real runners. Things might not be fully set up as they start, but it won't be torn down when they finish their lengthy voyage.

...besides, even if you did this, the back-of-the-packers would complain that they didn't receive the same treatment at the start....lol

I would hope no race would have more than 100 people like this, and over two hours they would disperse a lot. I don't see them blocking the way unless the road is VERY narrow and a couple of 300+ pounds form a roadblock.

MeHereYouWhere?! wrote:

Confuzzled wrote:

If a race is advertised to be open for a certain amount of time and you are under the pace needed to complete the course in said time, then I totally agree with the point being made. I would assume that a back of the pack runner would expect to have the same amenities as everyone else. If they are behind cutoff pace then I would expect that those amenities would be removed if they are allowed to stay on the course.

I agree 100%. From what I read of the article, she(?) was ahead of the pace (barely) and they were already breaking down the race course. That, to me, is unacceptable and the sign of a bad RD.

+1

However the article is pitiful. This person has no self esteem/confidence. They feel the need get confirmation from others instead of facing reality.

The finishers medal section is just sad, quotes below

"running a race is the hardest physical thing that we have ever done in our lives. We trained months for race day."

"As a fat athlete, I am constantly disappointed. Stores don’t have my sizes, I get weird looks when I run, I’m categorized as lazy, and when I finally push myself out of my comfort zone, I’m still told that I’m not good enough."

"It’s a badge of accomplishment to show and prove to ourselves that we went to war with the road and we conquered in spite of everything that we went through on that day. It’s what we have to show for beating the odds.

When you don’t have our medal, what could have been a joyous moment, a buoyant moment that propels us further into a passion for fitness and health, becomes yet another disappointment in a history of disappointments that each and every fat person goes through over the course of their lives."

Gosh. What an angry person.

I think it is great that people feel able to join in a mass participation event like this even if they are massively overweight as it is a great way to get in shape and to be a part of society.

I think water should be available for as long as someone running at the slowest pace within limits agreed in the race rules.

I know everyone has a story and you should never judge someone's pace, they may have run a marathon the day before, they may be coming back from injury or crossing something off a bucket list as they are on chemo and time is running out.

But if you are still waddling round in last place after six years, you are doing something wrong.

It is a fair point that races should not be running out of water or medals. That is definitely on the RD. Everyone who pays should get what they are promised.

On the other hand, there is a limit to what some events can do to cater to participants who are moving at a pace that is not even as fast as a brisk walk. At my home town marathon, there was a big dust up over walkers who were starting early and interfering with the runners once the races started. The city enforced a 7 hour limit on how long the course could keep traffic closed. This meant that anyone taking more than 6.5 hours to complete the marathon would have to take to the sidewalk to finish. The walkers needed 7-8 hours and threw a fit when the marathon cracked down on early starters. But there was a solution. Someone started a marathon with a 9 hour max for all the walkers. There are races out there that are walker friendly. It is not fair to expect special accommodations at running events when their are published time limits. Those limits are almost always due to the local municipality requiring roads to reopen.

The problem is that it is a race, not a walking event, OK walking pace varies but there has to be a generally agreed cutoff - which is why longer races often have them. As someone who has stood out on the far reaches of courses freezing my arse off, I can say that to see someone making no attempt to do anything that would be called a run is really dispiriting.

The whole point of the article was to say that course amenities are not avail able to runners who are still finishing WITHIN the time cutoffs. As a race, if you don't want to have volunteers out for that long, then have a shorter time cutoff. I'm following the rules just as much as Kipchoge is following the rules. In fact, many times I'm at a disadvantage, as it is 30-45 minutes AFTER the clock starts ticking that I am able to start. Staff the course appropriately, stock the aid stations, or shorten the time cutoff.

Nothing wrong with starting from the bottom wrote:

But if you are still waddling round in last place after six years, you are doing something wrong.

Indeed, and here is the part that cracks me up:

started running in 2012 and races were not friendly to bigger, slower runners like me. And it hasn’t gotten any better since.

What hasn't gotten better? Your times? Really, I am a fat old asthmatic and even my times have improved immensely since 2012, even though I am getting older. I'm getting lighter and as I get lighter, my times improve. So does my asthma. This person needs to spend the angry energy put into this article and learn to run on PURE HATE.

An Open letter to the back of the pack runners

Stop being so slow

sincerely,

everyone that has to wait for you to finish

I mean I feel for the back of the pack 'walkers' but at the same time I don't... Come on, people, do some shorter distances, work yourself up to longer races when you are in better shape... You signed up for a running event, not a walking event. There is just way too many first time marathoners who never run anything over 5K distance in their lives but feel like they have to sign up for their, in their own words, first 'thon, for whatever reason... It's crazy!!! I do applaud the determination, just freaking progress through distances, train and get in shape first!!! It's safer, and better for your health, that way...

Or, maybe we need to do it like in Europe, where lots of races have these Nordic Walking events tacked onto marathons, pretty much power walking with sticks. Kinda ridiculous on flat paved surfaces but it seems to be popular with older folks. (I see their place though in hilly trail races.)

Not surprised by the tone of the article. What would you expect from the FB, IG, and all of the other social media, 'self-entitlement' generation... smh