Am I the only one who finds Boston Marathon charity runners to be incredibly lame when they brag about how they're "running Boston" (implying that they qualified when they didn't) and fail to put the charity they're (supposedly) supporting in the spotlight?
I was just meeting with a fellow who brought up running Boston this weekend, how he was all pumped having just run a PR half-marathon, how he's trained so hard for this, etc. The build-up was all about him, his running performance, IT WAS ALL ABOUT HIM, etc. My colleague who was with me was like "wow, what an accomplishment!" and he was all "yeah, thanks" and basking in his glory.
After the meeting I looked up his race results. His recent half-marathon PR was ~2:20. I mean, give me a break! That's not even a <10 minute mile. He's in no position to be bragging about PRs IN THE CONTEXT OF a race that almost every will assume you qualified for by running a "fast" marathon. I have several friends who have been trying to run Boston for years, working there asses off. To them, qualifying is their grail athletic achievement. People gloating about running Boston when they can't even run break a 4 hours is a damn joke. It cheapens the achievement for others.
Next time I meet someone who is "running Boston" without volunteering that they're "running Boston as a charity runner" and put front-and-center what charity they're supporting rather than their own fake athletic achievements, I'm going to ask what their qualifying time was. If they are charity runners, I want them to know I haven't been duped by their fake self-promotion.
Edit: Part of this rant is, I'm just sick of this Instagram-era self-promoting fakeness. Maybe it has nothing to do with Boston. If I'm completely missing something let me know.
Edit 2: If someone tells me they're running Boston for a charity, I'd offer to support their charity. I don't object to charity running per-say, but charity runners pretending (or misleading you into thinking they qualified).
I was just meeting with a fellow who brought up running Boston this weekend, how he was all pumped having just run a PR half-marathon, how he's trained so hard for this, etc. The build-up was all about him, his running performance, IT WAS ALL ABOUT HIM, etc. My colleague who was with me was like "wow, what an accomplishment!" and he was all "yeah, thanks" and basking in his glory.
After the meeting I looked up his race results. His recent half-marathon PR was ~2:20. I mean, give me a break! That's not even a <10 minute mile. He's in no position to be bragging about PRs IN THE CONTEXT OF a race that almost every will assume you qualified for by running a "fast" marathon. I have several friends who have been trying to run Boston for years, working there asses off. To them, qualifying is their grail athletic achievement. People gloating about running Boston when they can't even run break a 4 hours is a damn joke. It cheapens the achievement for others.
Next time I meet someone who is "running Boston" without volunteering that they're "running Boston as a charity runner" and put front-and-center what charity they're supporting rather than their own fake athletic achievements, I'm going to ask what their qualifying time was. If they are charity runners, I want them to know I haven't been duped by their fake self-promotion.
Edit: Part of this rant is, I'm just sick of this Instagram-era self-promoting fakeness. Maybe it has nothing to do with Boston. If I'm completely missing something let me know.
Edit 2: If someone tells me they're running Boston for a charity, I'd offer to support their charity. I don't object to charity running per-say, but charity runners pretending (or misleading you into thinking they qualified).
Last edited by:
wintershade: Apr 15, 19 11:34