swimswam1003 wrote:
I registered for IMFL and plan on doing it if it happens. I have been extremely careful and social distancing to the greatest extent possible since March. (Working 100% at home, only going to supermarket maybe 2x a month, training 100% solo). So, it’s not an easy decision to make. But, i also registered for the race a year ago.
The reason I would do this race is ultimately because I feel that I can personally control much of my environment and that I can personally take precautions to not put others at risk. It’s not necessarily racing itself that concerns me (so long as proper measures are taken)....it’s all the other things associated with racing. But, for me personally, I can drive myself to the race in my own car with my own food and supplies. I am also staying at an airbnb that has direct outside entry. And, I can quarantine upon my return as I will still be working from home. These factors make me feel at least a bit more comfortable with my own decision to race. And , I am trying not to fault myself for registering for something long before I knew what would happen. But, if I couldn’t drive there and if I couldn’t socially distance/quarantine before and after the race, I wouldn’t be going. My decision to race is still selfish...don’t get me wrong. But, I at least feel confident that my decisions outside of the race have been the best they can reasonably be.
What kills me more than anything, though, is that fact that I know people that have JUST registered for races. I know several folks who recently signed up for IM Cozumel because, for some reason, they just absolutely have to race this year. To me, that’s far more selfish. It’s one thing to already have a lot of money invested in a race and to decide to race in a responsible way. It’s a whole other thing, unless you’re a pro whose livelihood depends on racing, knowing what we know now, to decide to register for a travel race just because they feel they HAVE to race this year.
I think this is just about the best reasoning for racing I have read on this site. The issue I have with so many about racing is they say "well don't race" or "make all of the old/sick people just stay at home". That is totally selfish and a terrible attitude in my opinion because those that say that are knowingly doing something risky to themselves and others but they do not seem to care about other lives they can impact. This is the reason we have over 20000 dead in the US. At the beginning of this people didn't want to stay at home for a few weeks or wear masks/social distance when we came out of the way to brief stay at home order. And now 6 months later we are no better than before.
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