So I have recently read several of Dean Karnazes' books, and last week was checking out his online profile (web page, Runner's World blog etc.) when I came upon his March 11th entry where he discusses the record setting time for the Marine Corps Marathon to fill to capacity. Coincidentally, this was going to be the first marathon to which I was going to commit to traveling.
If I may here is the quote that most got my attention:
....The “Oprah Effect,” as it’s been called, has drawn leagues of mid-packers into marathoning just to add another achievement to their mantel. They’re not real runners, it's been said......Is the fact that more and more people are running marathons, but at a slower pace, a bad thing?
I have had the fortune of running in many half marathon or longer races and have, over the past year, kept myself registered for a race continuously. By being registered, I always felt there was a larger reason to maintain my running schedule apart from my own well being. I figured, if I put money down on a race, I was going to be holding the medal and wearing the shirt the day after as a badge of achievement. In fact, over the past couple of months, I tried to compete in as many races as I could before the weather turned. In two of the races I got my worst times ever, while in two I earned back to back PR's. So I was feeling like this was the way to go. Although I no longer worry about not finishing, I don't always give my best effort (or my best effort isn't always very good).
So coming across Dean's statment gave me reason to pause. Am I just a mid packer who is keeping competative athletes from getting into races? I would have dismissed this very idea if it hadn't been for a kind person who was working a water table at the last race I entered. She and I were talking after I finished and she was amazed at the number of people who entered the race just to walk to the finish. She was a competative runner. She wasn't there to finish or PR, she was there to win. She believed that there was no reason to enter unless you planned on winning at least your bracket.
Now, I have only been running a short time, but I have never entered a race with the intention of not finishing, but I also held no illusion that I would win bracket or otherwise. In fact, as I have increased in age and moved from one bracket to another, I have found myself more outpaced by others in my new age group. I can only assume that as you get older, fewer people enter the sport and more drop out.
After this year, I was considering how I wanted to continue to approach running. I felt very motivated to try and push farther and harder. Reading Dean Karnazes' book continued this feeling, but at the same time I felt very content to finish. But now I'm feeling that I must be part of this mid-packers' syndrome trying to get a new medal for my mantle. Unlike Karnazes, I like my medals and am proud of them all, even the PW's I earned while recovering. Each one feels like a testament to my hard work, dedication, and lonely time on the trail. I was considering pushing onward to more marathon length races, and am considering an ultra or a tri. I am currently cycling to work 20 miles a day three days a week in the hopes that I could get conditioned for a sprint tri or longer.
Although I can't be sure, I don't believe I've ever entered an event where my being there has prevented someone else from running, but if the Marine Corps Marathon is an indicator, selling out in 2:41 is an unbelievable speed. Even if I wanted to run in it, I never would have gotten a slot, and how many competitors are now kicked out of the competition becuase they couldn't get registered. In fact, I look at running local races as a way of helping to support local communitites of runners and know that they have never closed due to capacity.
Should I be content to just run? I got into longer distances becuase I wanted to see what my body could do and I get excited by the prospect of running a race, even if I have no chance of winning. Should I change my mindset to get away from simply getting a PR and focus on moving up in the pack to win my bracket? Entering the sport, so late in my 30's does have its disadvantages. I think I'm gonna keep getting medals, maybe be slightly more selective, and keep plucking away at my PR's. Maybe I will get those low enough where the PR's are in line with the front of the pack instead of the middle or back. Who knows.
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