So I was having this conversation with a friend this weekend based on a letter written to an editor about someone not being a serious athlete. The guy’s opinion was because the person did a marathon in more than 5 hours the other guy wasn’t serious about a marathon. My questions to you all is…Is there a point where you all that are sooo fast look at us that are soooo slow and think we shouldn’t be there? That we really shouldn’t bother and are an embarrassment? That because we aren’t fast we don’t take it serious when we are training? I know I did a ironman last year and it took me 15.5 hours. I’ve never been so serious about anything athletic in my life and it still took me that long.
Some of these people need to get off their high horse and get a real life. Who gives a f*ck what some of them may “think”, if you can even call it that.
What’s a better society to live in - one in which most of the population is physically active in some recreational way or one that is full of mostly over weight couch potatoes but has a few elites winning Olympic medals to prove “we’re the best”.
I’m not a serious athlete. I do this for fun. Winning is sometimes (most times) more fun than losing but racing is always more fun than not racing- even when I suck (like now).
<<Some of these people need to get off their high horse and get a real life. Who gives a f*ck what some of them may “think”, if you can even call it that.
What’s a better society to live in - one in which most of the population is physically active in some recreational way or one that is full of mostly over weight couch potatoes but has a few elites winning Olympic medals to prove “we’re the best”.>>
Its about fun. I can/will never beat some of my freinds. My goal is to break 12hrs this year. I get killed in 5 and 10k’s. I have only been doing this for 4 years and at 44 I will never catch up to those aerobic engines that have been doing this for 20 yrs. I am a participant,not an athlete. That being said,it is just as annoying to have those who are slow(like myself)never giving the credit to people more talented.
The problem is that in any group there will be elitists. whether it be socio-economic, athletic, etc. Even in my tri club there are people who will drop you on a ride or run and let you fend for yourself. I thought that being part of a club was to help support each other, maybe I’m confused. The fact is that no matter what other triathletes say, you are an Ironman and noone can take that away from you. Sure there are people who finished faster than you did, but there are also beat you beat and even people who didn’t finish. Chances are that there was a pro tritahlete that had a bad day and didn’t even finish. Bottom line, you’re an athlete. Do it for your own reasons and let the elitists talk themselves blue in the face. Keep Tri-ing.
Do fast people want you to stop doing triathlon if you are slow? I doubt it seriously. I am middle of the pack, and the only affect BOPers have on me is to make my placing look better. If only fast people came, then the definition of fast would just move higher. Plus, numbers bring cost efficiency that benefits everyone.
Second, do fast people believe you take the sport seriously. I would say, not by their definition of serious. The faster you get, the more you have to give up from the rest of your life to get even faster. I might consider myself serious if I train intelligently every day, but I am really only doing a fraction of what I COULD do if I gave up everything else. So, very fast people are probably equating serious as meaning “the highest priority in your life at this time,” which would probably include 30+ hours a week of training related activity. I’m not serious by that definition.
An Ironman in 15.5 is a lot tougher than a marathon in 5, so I wouldn’t equate the commitment level of the two.
Screw “serious” or “not serious”. . .anyone who implies you don’t rate to be there because you are slower than molasses is a first class JACKASS. I run marathons somewhere south of the 3:00 mark. My wife finished her one and only marathon, Myrtle Beach, in 7:02. I defy anyone to tell her she didn’t belong there because she missed the cutoff by 2 minutes. She trained her ass off, to the point of injuring herself in the process. She finished that race in pain, yet triumphant in accomplishing something. Serious? You bet your ass. You trained for and finished an IM. That alone is a fact worthy of respect. And in the end. . .as someone else noted. . .who cares what some jackass deems worthy or not. Thankfully, my experience is that people with this sort of jackass attitude are few and far between in our sport.
There was a thread here not long ago linking to a story about some guy who trained and finished an event after a serious medical issue. . .the point of the story was. . .“don’t judge a book by its cover”. . .better know the whole story before you jump half-assed into a jackass conclusion.
Hmmmmm, come to think of it, that applies to a lot of the current threads going on.
Bottom line, you and the 5 hour marathon guy have every right to be shown simple respect for your achievements.
Seriousness is a personal matter and has nothing to do with one’s relative performance or time. There are people with extra talent or who are milking past accomplishments who can go fast in some events who are not serious. There are other people who are very serious who are putting in truly epic performances but finishing in the back of the pack.
In terms of elites (which is different than “serious”) athletes, I don’t think they give those who finish behind them much thought as long as they don’t get in the way. To the extent they do think about us lesser folk who finish way behind them, I’m sure elites marvel at the fortitude it takes to do something solely on work and without the help of great talent.
Elites really think a lot about those who beat them. You only succeed at the upper reaches of sport by looking up, not down. It is humbling to be a true competitor, even more so at the top. Any victory is transitory and you have to start over again every day. In a sense, the elites think just like the BOPers, there is always more work to do and always someone ahead of you.
Its a**holes in the middle (undoubtedly like the author of the letter you refer to) who draw some arbitrary lines defining an acceptable performance who do not understand the true nature of sport.
if you live the “triathlete lifestyle” then you’re a serious triathlete. it has nothing to do with speed. If doing one sport bores you, you sometimes run immediately after you bike (only a triathlete would do this because it’s so insanely stupid and painful otherwise), go swim in a lake full of snakes and crap for “sighting practice”, or are impressed with a bike’s aerodynamic qualities, you’re serious.
once you’re in the sport, it’s hard to think along the same thoughts as a non-triathlete. it’s so weird and different compared to the NFL that your fat boss watches on tv. my boss was talking about it the other day and said that I wasn’t “good”. How could he know better? he has no clue how the events are scored or even a clue how much I work out. As far as he knows, I’ve done a couple of tris, biked once this month to work, and come to work smelling of chlorine twice this week. He’s got no clue that I ran 13 miles in a rainstorm last night and biked through 3 counties on sunday. You get so involved in your workouts, you don’t bother telling other people what you do, so they don’t know and assume they’re better than you. and if they’ve never biked 50 miles, they’ve got no reference to be impressed if you did it.
I’m a very serious triathlete, but I’ve never done an ironman. if you’ve done one, you’re beyond serious, you’re accomplished.
Triathlon and running are my hobbies. That’s all. But, I take them fairly seriously. My finish times are not the measure of my seriousness.
That letter you mention reminds me of a guy I was chatting with at a holiday party last winter. He looked like a runner, and I quickly learned that he was headed to Boston, where he figured he’d run 2:50 or so (43 years old). I complimented him and mentioned that I hoped to break 40 in a 10k some day. He openly scoffed at that, and sort of just gaped at me with an incredulous look on his face. I mentioned that well over half the people my age in any given 10k don’t break 40, so what’s the big deal.
He said, “Yeah, but none of them are runners. They’re just joggers pretending to run. I hate it when joggers tell people they’re runners.”
What an A-hole. I wished him a happy Boston trip and found someone else to talk to.
He said, “Yeah, but none of them are runners. They’re just joggers pretending to run. I hate it when joggers tell people they’re runners.”
What an A-hole. You said it.
I am a serious athlete. I am not fast, because I have very, very little talent. What makes me a serious athlete is the fact that I try to get the most out of what little talent I do have. I try hard.
There are lots of people, both faster and slower than me, who I personally don’t consider “serious” athletes. They don’t particularly care about their performance, they’re just out there to have a good time. Bloomsday is full of these people. There’s nothing wrong with that, either. I enjoy treating triathlon somewhat seriously, but I don’t think it’s a requirement.
Any discussion of “serious athlete or not” misses the point of the whole endeavor, imho. I consider myself a “competitive” triathlete, but I do it for fun - i.e. because I love it - some people will never understand this. (my Dad and his 2nd wife both recently asked me when I was going to stop doing tris, as if it’s something I won’t be able to do much longer - I’m 33, give me a f*#king break)
Who wants to be a “serious” athlete? Wouldn’t that take all the fun out of it? Part of the point of triathlon as I see it is that everyone can do one, most people just don’t have the guts to try it. If you have the guts to try, you are a triathlete. Don’t ever let anyone diminish your accomplishment by telling you that you’re not a “serious” athlete. That’s just bullshit.
If I’m correct, the article NCCB is talking about is a letter in the July issue of Runner’s World about the feature on David James Elliott in the June issue. I happen to know that he has actually done at least three marathons and the bike and run portin of a 1/2 Ironman in additon to other tris. I would argue that he is a serious athlete based on the fact that he works a 12 hour day, has a family and still gets in his workouts. Anyone questioning another’s level of commitment needs to get a life and worry about themselves.
Youre a serious triathlete when you push your girlfriend who is training for her second marathon (at which she hopes to break 5 hours) out of bed at 5am to go running because you know she will thank you later and you will be stoked to see her finish.
A serious triathlete (or any athlete) digs seeing others compete, be it a 7 hour marathon or sub-10 hour IM.
That sounds like the response this person had in the editorial. That elitist attitude. I actually was hoping to hear from someone that they feel that way also that posts on this board. Try to understand what makes them feel that way. I have a friend that just qualified for Kona. She gives me a hard time about not giving myself enough credit. She says most elite triathletes are to much of wimps to go for as long as some of us do out there. That they would just quit. But then again I would blow up if I even tried to go as fast as they do. Some ashes along the side of the road 10 miles into a bike. hehe!
Well Thank You Cathy If you follow CDA Its Ken cottrell #961 I have only ran in the past 3 weeks with 2 2hr runs. All my run training has been 3hr elipticals and water running. Will be interesting. Thanks Kenney