Taugen wrote:
The best yet is the Mark and Dave on Queen K with the gorilla....that is classic!!
Okay, just my .02 cents worth of an opinion (and yes, just an opinion...)
Chapstick be damned... that's pretty damn weak for a DQ, especially if the spouse through it down on the ground. Again, think of the swim, and the fact that you can hang onto a kayak, and then keep going once you have caught your breath. So how is a kayak on the swim any different from ChapStick on the run??? Both are aides, but yet yield no forward advancement.
Okay, I get it, he had other faults leading to a DQ. But seriously, a ChapStick?? I personally like the idea that he should have had his wife put the ChapStick on her lips and then kissed her. Now that's thinking like an attorney!!
Okay, seriously though, where is the line drawn on "outside help"??? A kiss from a a spouse, a ChapStick from a spouse, a gel from a spouse, an Immodium from a spouse, a hug from a spouse, a slap on the butt from a spouse, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc,,,,(and on and on.....).
Ok, now the "riding along side (next to) (behind) (in front of) on a bike" during the run???? So where is the line of cheating with this? Keep in mind, the first 3 leaders of male and female ALREADY have a bike escort during the run. So, was the spouse riding too close to the run bike escort? Just asking???
I will make a few general comments. There are multiple reasons why there are lead bikers on the run. It varies from race to race how many. I won't get into that discussion unless you really want to but they do serve a legitimate purpose.
Now this past year the procedure actually changed. The lead bikers are supposed to stay behind the athletes. I say supposed to because often time lead bikers get very into the race and don't do what they are told. The rule likely changed because myself and a few other athletes were getting annoyed that not only were pros being paced and spoke up about it, but they were often breaking the wind for the athletes and remaining way to close especially in headwind type sections.
Anecdotally, I will say that I travel to races almost exclusively by myself. At Challenge Atlantic City in 2014, after passing Chris Boudreaux for 3rd, I picked up his lead pacer. This was a first year race and at this section of the course it was very congested on a narrower bike path type boardwalk with tourists having no idea a race was going on. Within 30 seconds of making the pass I was told to stand down and given a 4 minute penalty, 5 minutes by the time the official got her iPhone out, after slowing down and dismounting her bike. She was not wearing a helmet btw. I totally melted and started balling my eyes out at mile 16 of the run. I lost the podium, would have likely finished 2nd or even 1st and only secured a 5th because I had like a 20 minute gap at the time to 6th.
Now I mention this because in this instance the eventual winner had his GF all over the course giving splits but I became a little more educated in the process and learned a bunch. Fwiw In this case I was slightly behind the lead rider and he was kind of forging a path thru the crowd of people. I won't go into any further, some day I will, but till this day the appropriate USAT response should have been IMO to tell the lead rider to ride further ahead. It shouldn't be my responsibility to waste energy directing them to do it.
Circling back to this example, there is not a good reason why this person should have had their wife next to them. The rules could probably be simpler and made more clear, but given it takes three yellows for the DQ this racer must have either been caught for other violations like littering or whatever but regardless there were other infractions. Don't fall victim to reporting as clearly they are just trying to drive eyeballs.
A coach, friend and family member can give splits but they have to stay stationary. That is generally the excepted position IME. People out there who don't think pacing matters, go do a long run by yourself, then go do one with a friend or have your wife/husband ride sag next to you. There is a reason people do it, because mentally it is a lot easier to do it.
His mistake is he should have taken Lionel's approach and paid someone faster to pace him by giving them a boatload of cash, entry, accom etc. I don't like this idea either and I don't like that Lionel got away with it last year but it seems to be within the rules.
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