Why Walmsley is popular. Get over it.

You're right 2:09 is only 1.7 miles behind the current World Record.

under a bridge wrote:

A couple fixes:

1) 2:09 is not two miles behind the WR

2) That 2:06 guy got an Olympic medal in the event

3) There would be nothing "devastating" with Walmsley finishing top 10 - he should

4) Google results aside, guys like Fauble and Ward get $30k just to show up to a marathon major. How much does Western States pay Jim to come race?

Word on the street is that Walmsley got like 200k from his sponsor for the WS CR the first time he set it. Ultra running is a bit different in that all the money is in sponsorship not prize money or fees from the race organizations themselves.

Walmsley is boring.

Go check AKUMA SAN aka Momo Elbouajaji

because Walmsley doesn't hide in the whole stigma of hiding mental health issues. He's very open about his dark times and the community of running that got him through it. The man has cojones too. Talk about someone who isnt afraid to blow up in races, he really gets after it. If youre talking about the trials I understand. There are some really good runners who are gonna have the experience of the marathon training for longer. So qualifying would be tough, but if you talk about who is gonna have the guts to go after it from the gun? Id take Jim over anyone.

Ultra community doesn't know track? The majority of ultra runners come from a xc, track background. Jim did really well in xc actually. Matt Daniels? Sub 4 min miler. Just one other example (feel free to do minimal, basic research and prove yourself wrong, we both know you wont't). You don't know the ultra community bud. No one thinks he's a god, but when "fast" runners on let's run talk about how he won't do this, can't do that, too many miles, and then he runs 1:03, of course it's hyped. People like you hyped it by saying it wouldn't happen lol. Then it happens and it's all of a sudden not a big deal. You guys kill me lol.

The problem with the Ultra runners is that the best ultra runners in the world are at best excellent college level track athletes.

Jim Walmsley is a 13:52 5000m runner, 29:08 10000m, and 1:04 half marathon.

All the best Marathon runners have sub 13 5k and sub 28 min 10k.

The day I see an Ultra runner with sub 28 min 10k. I will take it seriously.

Starno wrote:

The problem with the Ultra runners is that the best ultra runners in the world are at best excellent college level track athletes.

Jim Walmsley is a 13:52 5000m runner, 29:08 10000m, and 1:04 half marathon.

All the best Marathon runners have sub 13 5k and sub 28 min 10k.

The day I see an Ultra runner with sub 28 min 10k. I will take it seriously.

Usain Bold would say: "The day I see an 10k runner running a 9.9 over 100 meters I will take him seriously."

What a bunch of bull. Ultrarunning is a different form of running just like 100 meters, 10k or Marathons. Different runners will be good at different distances.

Going out hard and blowing up doesn't take guts nor cajones.

No Walmsley fanboy wrote:

Usain Bold would say: "The day I see an 10k runner running a 9.9 over 100 meters I will take him seriously."

That is a pretty bad analogy, even by Letsrun standards.

Thats so funny. Good joke.

No Walmsley fanboy wrote:

Walmsley is the opposite of confident.

If he would be confident, he would not run 175 mile weeks.

Basically Hoka is milking him. Walmsley sells shoes and that's why they are paying him the big bucks. They are even paying letsrun to keep the hype going.

https://www.letsrun.com/events/hoka-one-one-takes-on-marathon-trials/

Uh, how exactly do you think sponsorship/endorsement works ?

Are you new to earth ?

USA was represented by Galen Rupp, Jared Ward, and Meb in 2016.

In College, Rupp was 13:46 (5k) and Jim Walmsley was 13:52 (5k).

Ward ran a 1:04 half in 2016.

Meb ran a 1:02:39 half in 2015. And a 2:16 marathon in the olympics.

Nobody is arguing that Walmsley is going to go after Kipchoge...but he is certainly in the realm of the best American Marathoners today without specialized marathon training.

wikipedia_says wrote:

USA was represented by Galen Rupp, Jared Ward, and Meb in 2016.

In College, Rupp was 13:46 (5k) and Jim Walmsley was 13:52 (5k).

Ward ran a 1:04 half in 2016.

Meb ran a 1:02:39 half in 2015. And a 2:16 marathon in the olympics.

Nobody is arguing that Walmsley is going to go after Kipchoge...but he is certainly in the realm of the best American Marathoners today without specialized marathon training.

Dude, Rupp ran 13:37 IN HIGH SCHOOL.

I doubt anyone on this site can beat him at 26.2 and beyond. Discuss

Is it a bit egotistical to say what it takes for someone to be taken seriously? I know that’s very critical of me, but please bear with. There is so much more positive to be seen, and ‘taken seriously’ in this story.

Any distance runner (and hey, maybe even some middle-distance runners, sprinters and pole vaulters) is on bit of a journey of self discovery. Yes, people also crave external recognition, but distance runners have a deserved reputation for internalized obsession with self-improvement. For some, that will lead to a great mile time, for others at 26.2, and just maybe some only find their greatest on route to 100mi.

Who cares if anyone else understands or approves? It’s personal.

And if some person finds him/herself crossing over imagined boundaries of sport, then so what? That’s their journey. I’m just as curious to see what Jim Walmsley can do in a marathon as so many have been to see Jordan or Bo Jackson play baseball. They are all great athletes. They probably can’t jump to the top as they make the cross, but it’s fun to see how high they will go. And I’d say pretty gutsy that they go for the jump at all.

And BTW, nothing here takes away from those who have stuck to just one path to reach their personal peak. They too may be great.

Let’s just be inspired folks. From Ward to Walmsley, these people are welcome examples of how we live in lucky times.

Walmsley is already in Fauble’s head. Fauble has been hiding/not posting his most recent workouts over that last couple weeks. All these recent articles about him are calculated, Jim is playing mind games on them. You better believe Jim is going from the gun. He’s going to put the guys in situation where they’re going to be forced to go, either honor his move or sit back and hope he blows. Walmsley has nothing to lose, if he blows up he knows he has ultrarunning to lean on, especially with races following in Comrades and UTMB.

If they don’t honor his move they potentially risk their spot. If they go, he puts them in a precarious position which might cost them late. It’s all mind games and Jim is leading the orchestra.

facts facts wrote:

Fauble has been hiding/not posting his most recent workouts over that last couple weeks.

Their plan this weekend was 15 miles at marathon effort on Lake Mary Road.

zzzz wrote:

Just for fun, number of results found for a search on Google:

Stephen Curry 85,800,000

Lance Armstrong 25,500,000

Laird Hamilton 8,620,000

Eliud Kipchoge 4,830,000

Mikaela Shiffrin 3,880,000

Galen Rupp 1,630,000

Jim Walmsley 1,060,000

Jakob Ingebrigtsen 410,000

Meb Keflezighi 295,000

(Mebrahtom Keflezighi 316,000)

Matthew Centrowitz 115,000

Scott Fauble 68,400

This doesn't work for people who have common names like Ryan Hall (649 million, but the first page has only one mention of the runner on it).

Frank Shorter 61,200,000

Keep dreaming.