Not a lot - I still get beaten by the F70-74 in most races. My target is to maintain my current pace for another 30 years and get a sex change. Then Kona - here I come.

Definitely interesting. Connecting to the central governor idea, right? Would people push themselves past the mental barrier to the point where their bodies give out? Faster times and more injuries?

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Aaron Bales
Lansing Triathlon Team

There was a woman, I think in Colorado, who became a pretty great ultrarunner with the same condition.

However, if you don't notice a small break which grows into something worse, you'll be much worse off. Additionally, sore legs means they need rest/recovery. Losing that would be detrimental. I'm guessing that woman is the exception and not the rule. Such a condition sounds like a nightmare.

...the woman was lucky to have made it this far. Being able to feel pain is evolutionary conserved for a good reason. Athletes who can block out their pain for a while might be more successful than others, but having a mutation that numbs pain in general is not a treat that will be selected amongst athletes, IMO.
Uli

This. Basically what you said ;-).

I read that the other day. If I remember correctly the woman concerned is one of only 2 people ever identified with this specific condition. It seems unlikely the woman in Colorado was the other. Perhaps some similar symptoms but different details/mechanisms.

Apparently she only came to be studied when she was getting surgery and told them she wouldn't need painkillers afterwards. They couldn't believe she didn't need pain relief and referred her for investigation. She hadn't really thought much of it.

If you have normal anxiety levels, but little pain you may be able to become cautious enough to avoid getting injured or pushing too hard in races, so the lack of pain could possibly be a benefit in racing and high intensity training sessions. If you have normal pain levels, but little anxiety that might help you avoid overtraining/injury or "choking" in races, but how much of racing success is tied to anxiety, i.e. fear of losing, of not being seen as worthy? Are there really "happy warriors" who aren't anxious when competing?

Multiple athletes that I know or have read about seem to have developed the enhanced ability to push through pain because of life experiences that undoubtedly caused them to feel a lot of anxiety or they have so much anxiety about not meeting expectations that they can endure more pain than most.

Found her: https://www.runnersworld.com/...fixing-dianes-brain/
She was epileptic and had surgery to remove the funky bit of her brain. Certainly a different mechanism than a little SNP!

Add this gene mutation to the one that Dean Karnazes has that prevents forming lactic acid so he can run basically forever. Add one from that German girl who has 20/2 vision, can see and identify a person from a mile away and see the color pixels on a TV set. You're on your way to the Six Million Dollar Man (or $35,500,000 Person today) Gonna need a new division at Ironman races.

Hmmm.... I knew a rower - really only met him a handful of times but I would say we were acquaintances and actually he was my inspiration to get into the sport. He was short even for a lightweight (5'8" maybe?) and did not have the physical characteristics one normally associates with an elite rower. The US National Team coach told him he could make the Olympic team if he hit a 2k erg (Concept 2 rowing machine) time of I think it was 6:09, and just assumed that would never happen and ceased thinking about it. Low and behold, at the speed order or selection camp or wherever, he showed up and pulled under that time and went on to get a bronze in the lightweight 4 in the Olympics. Everyone used to say ridiculous things about him like his body does not produce lactic acid, therefore he feels no pain and could do inhuman things in the boat and on the erg. The national team doctor even singled him out once in a talk to the team about how his VO2 Max was not that great yet he was able to pull amazing times anyway so people should find inspiration in that and not stress out about the physiological testing.

A few years ago a mutual friend told me a story about how after retirement from rowing this guy had been working on his house and fell off the roof or something. His arm swole up like a basketball and turned purple and green yet he seemed not to notice and insisted he was fine and continued to work on the house until his family and friends basically held an intervention and made him go to the doctor where it was determined it was broken clean-through.

I wonder if he has this mutation?

Edit - I just noticed the post above about a gene that prevents lactic acid production, maybe those rumors about him back in the day weren't so absurd?

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Ed O'Malley
www.VeloVetta.com
Founder of VeloVetta Cycling Shoes
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Lack of lactate production would be fine for Karnazes, but a large part of rowing is anaerobic, so not being able to make energy from lactate would be a huge detriment.