2024 Advanced Training and Racing Thread (still competitive jerks) (Read 211 times)

 

 

• Sympathy is not wanted; respect is OK, but only if earned.
• I am here for all of your Parkinsons questions.
• I am here for all of your Parkinsons jokes; especially the bad ones.  My running coach and I have been trying to figure out if the new spinal implant technology for Parkinsons could potentially have a "Kipchoge" option.
• Everybody has some issue that they are balancing with running, be it age, a nagging injury that just won't heal, trying to raise children, frustrating job, training in Florida, etc.. I prefer that my Parkinsons be treated like any other issue that has to be balanced with running.
• Inspiration Porn is awful. Please don't do it.

Didn't think my respect for you could go any higher, but with this, it did. I do appreciate you informing us though either way, because as you stated, it's something that directly impacts what this board is about: running. I never thought about the inspiration porn thing in that way (first time hearing that term too) but it's really eye-opening.

I also respect this a lot because the Internet has this weird way of everyone trying to one-up each other. Directly related to running, one example of this is when people complain about legitimately hot races (e.g. 2022 NYC, numerous Bostons, etc.), you always have some jerk come in and say "well I live in [insert hot area of the world], 70 degrees is nothing!" in order to demonstrate that they actually have a harder time than you. That's a small example, but it's all over the place (diminishing others complaints with even bigger complaints is especially prevalent when anyone talks about being "depressed").

Anyway like others said, sometimes it's at least good to know what the cause is, and I'm glad to see that you're still out there running. I hope to get out there soon, and if not, will try once again to meet up with you in NYC (although it seems each weekend you are here, I am out of town!)

 I also respect this a lot because the Internet has this weird way of everyone trying to one-up each other. Directly related to running, one example of this is when people complain about legitimately hot races (e.g. 2022 NYC, numerous Bostons, etc.), you always have some jerk come in and say "well I live in [insert hot area of the world], 70 degrees is nothing!" in order to demonstrate that they actually have a harder time than you. That's a small example, but it's all over the place (diminishing others complaints with even bigger complaints is especially prevalent when anyone talks about being "depressed").

JMac, this is indeed where the competitive jerk side of me comes out, as well. Though I'm usually just thinking it in a competitive jerk sort of way; I try not to write it--maybe it's accidentally come out once or twice. Maybe a good rule of thumb with this kind of thing, in general, is to be cognizant that whether some folks deal with it a lot, others less so, it's still miserable for all of us. For this thing in particular, with the climate change, I think everyone is going to have to run through a hot race at one point or another, so there's no point in one-upping about that.

[ETA:] Another bad habit of mine is to relativize, which can be annoying in its own way, and I'm happy to be called out on it when it is.

I'm really sorry to read about your foot. It's hard to stay optimistic with news like that. Are the doctors saying anything about rehab or treatment? Or is rest the only answer they're giving you?

Re inspiration porn, it's unfortunately become the go-to proliferation of images/stories of people with disabilities or body difference, next to the standard depictions of helplessness or villainousness. My current research is dealing with the representation of disabilities in the media, and the psychology and social patterns behind it are all very interesting--usually having to do with a fear of having to experience it oneself (and it's a well-founded fear because the older we get, the more likely we are to experience a disabling condition). Were you ever to want to write a memoir, darkwave, you'd be hard-pressed to find a publisher who didn't try to play the "inspirational story" angle; though it's getting better. Thanks for sharing the guidelines of helpful/useful ways to talk about your diagnosis and your sense of humor about it. I'm really bad at making jokes about serious situations (so I don't even try), but I can definitely appreciate them.

Re budgeting, until I've paid off all my debts, including a mortgage of my own, I'm going to try and budget the amount that does not go towards paying those off. After that, I am completely on board with your mindset, RP! With the given shrewdness of saving for retirement.

Funny story about reporting your "running" winnings, darkwave. ;-) And that's cool, Hashitari! Maybe y'all need to start a pro-runner forum to figure out what all the freelance tax rules (something that confuses me every year). I hope you can get classified in time, darkwave, but either way, it seems like a cool experience and an opportunity to bring that record down lower, should it not be possible in Houston... I'm sorry to read about a flare up.

Thanks for keeping the race list updated, Fishy! And I second your vote for Philly as best race. It's definitely my favorite US race thus far.

 

Ooh - that sounds great.  Wednesday or Thursday morning would probably work (Wednesday better, since I have hopes of racing the Houston Marathon on Sunday), with 2 caveats:

 

1) the weather people are talking about a snow storm rolling in on Monday - not sure what that will mean for your travel plans.

2) I'm currently managing a sciatica flare-up.  Fortunately, a deep tissue massage last night may have fixed the cause (a knot in one of my deep hip rotator muscles).  But if that's still an issue next week, I'd have to take a rain check (and will obviously not race Houston). 

I completely understand the caveats. The only way I won't land in DC Monday is if the plane reroutes to land elsewhere (the forecast I have pulled up shows likely snow Saturday and rain Tuesday, but otherwise OK). I presume you have the same phone number.

Don't listen to RP when he promises he won't chat your ear off.

JMac - It sucks that you don't seem to be making progress, hopefully that changes with a quickness. I would have liked seeing you in NYC either way, but I didn't get a qualifier, so I won't be there one way or the other.

I forgot to put my favorite distances/races in my first post, so here goes: My favorite distance is either the HM or 50 miler (yes, I'm aware of how ridiculous that is). Favorite race is either CIM (but not a favorite race distance!) or the Wurst Race Half, that tiny little race in Texas I've done since its inception.

Keen/RP - I'm going to sign up for NYCM, but I would say it's under 50% I can actually run it. I've made absolutely zero progress with my Plantar issues no matter what I try (trying to run through it recently made it worse). MRI was not very encouraging recently as well, seems much worse than when I had it in my other foot. So most likely I'll be throwing $300 or whatever the sign up is right down the drain. But it may be the last time I'm time qualified for a long time, so I might as well try.

 

If I don't run, I certainly will be out there cheering you guys on!

Keen never earned his qualifier. It's me, unless others want to hop along to become "less than imaginary" friends even more.

I really hope your planter issue gets better. Even if it means you have peaked and now struggle to race sub 3 pace. You'll still be the competitive jerk who marked out a 10k course with two U-turns during COVID and contemplated quitting to me. You remember THAT guy? He was kind of competitive even when no one was around to compete with him.

Keen how would you know about chatting during a race? #DidntSeeYouAfterTheRaceStarted 

I guess I'd like to think if she's going for a PR/Medal she doesn't want to hear about anything other than racing. All I could do is be a metranome/bunny for her to use as a reference on race day unless of course they make her start BEFORE me in which case I go checkers or wreckers with the fastest group the race has just to photobomb her race. Maybe I could be used as a bad example of years to come and get to tell my side of the story 15 years down the road.

Darkwave can the unnamed pacers by a jacket? I think official time is the third most important part of Boston for everyone but me. All I wanted was a medal (it was a jacket until I saw the jacket). 
Feel free to let me know if you want a legal pacer. I promise not to chat your ear off.

I hopefully will not be allowed a pacer this time, but will keep you at the very top of the list should the opportunity/need ever arise.

To be clear: adaptive athletes are allowed pacers, while para-athletes in my division are not (only blind para-athletes are allowed pacers).  I'm currently entered as an adaptive athlete just to confirm that I have a place in the Boston field; the plan is that I will get classified before Boston, and at that time I will be officially entered in the para-athlete competition.

Also, as an FYI, pacers are not allowed to finish separately from their athletes.   So no getting to mile 22, deciding that you're no longer needed, and speeding up.

CK - yup, same phone #.

Hash- it would be great to have a forum encounter in Boston!

JMac  - good to see you back here.  I'm frustrated for you, as I had really hoped that the "just eff it and run" thing might turn this around.

Favorite race and race distance - I like 10 milers a lot, and the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler in particular.  The 5th Avenue Mile is also a lot of fun.

Favorite distance—probably 5k. They’re just over so fast, and recovery time is negligible. There’s a point in every race regardless of distance where I start asking “why do I do this to myself,” and a point where I start saying “when will this goddamn thing be over.” All that just whizzes by in a 5k. There are people who say the suffering in a 5k is worse than that of a marathon, but I don’t know what the hell they’re talking about. I would probably be one of those parkrun regulars if it didn’t conflict with my running group LR meetup.

 

Recovery time negligible?  When I ran 5Ks regularly, I generally needed anywhere from 3 to 7 days to recover fully.  Granted I did run some 5Ks on back to back days, but the second one was generally slower, definitely not recovered if I ran the first all out.

 

Recovery time negligible?  When I ran 5Ks regularly, I generally needed anywhere from 3 to 7 days to recover fully.  Granted I did run some 5Ks on back to back days, but the second one was generally slower, definitely not recovered if I ran the first all out.

Well, relative to longer race distances. After a hard-raced marathon, I take 3-6 days completely off (the only intentional rest days I ever take). And it's usually a solid month before I feel like myself again, and can even consider any kind of speed work. When racing a 5k on a Saturday, I typically do a medium-to-long run the next day, something that's even built into the Pfitz marathon plans. I feel like I could race a 5k every 3-4 weeks and do it fairly well. I've never tried to race more than 2 marathons per year. I'm still not sure why I do those stupid things.