Two Predictions on Jim Walmsley

The problem is not Walmsley himself but his delusional fanboys who think he is the new running GOD.

What's your prediction for Galen Rupp at Comrades? Oh wait.

please name any olympian wanting to run comrades?

dangjustdoit wrote:

please name any olympian wanting to run comrades?

Um, Zola Budd, Colleen De Reuck, Catriona Jennings, Jasmin Nunige?

Jim Walmsley Superfan wrote:

What's your prediction for Galen Rupp at Comrades? Oh wait.

I'm sure one of our best runners wants to go run an event that literally no one but the people in your tiny bubble care about.

clueless prognosticator wrote:

dangjustdoit wrote:

please name any olympian wanting to run comrades?

Um, Zola Budd, Colleen De Reuck, Catriona Jennings, Jasmin Nunige?

What, no love for Alberto?

I have no problem with Jim, he seems like a nice guy. I'm sure this is the same with most runners and people who visit this board.

What most people have a problem with is the ultra fanboy club and the image they portray to the rest of the running world. Ultras are their little thing, their safe space, because most runners don't want to do it (for several obvious reasons) and its a thing that basically anyone with two legs and the ability to go out and run for a few hours a day can do.

The ultra crew sees Jim as their savior who is moving down to OWN the real runners! The reality of the situation is that Jim was a really good runner at shorter distances who decided to move to ultras, which is something basically no one else has done.

The ultra crowd can't stand knowing that if all professional track and road runners decided to move up, they would all get clowned in about 5 seconds.

Comrades is one of the most prestigious races in the world. As noted above, many Olympians do it including Rupp's coach back in the day. You're the one in a bubble.

Han Solo wrote:

The ultra crowd can't stand knowing that if all professional track and road runners decided to move up, they would all get clowned in about 5 seconds.

What a ridiculous statement. They can be fundamentally different sports. UTMB is a 106 mile race with 33,000ft of gain. Not all elite marathoners are equipped to handle that. Many could not handle the training load, many could not handle the technicality of the terrain and single track, many could not handle the pounding of the downhills.

Nobody would argue that any Ultra Runner is better than the elites of the marathon scene. But Trail and Mountain racing is really no longer a taste of distance running. It's a test of who's body was blessed to be able to survive those sort of nutritional and environmental rigors.

Could the elite Marathoners run a pavement race like Commrades and clean up? For sure. But the Ultra Scene is way more complex than that.