Where’s the line between the two? Top 5% FOP? Or top 10%? 20% Overall or AG?
I think if you’re in contention for a win or placing, you’re in the front of the pack. I can finish in the top ten in some sprints, but that doesn’t mean I’m even close to finishing with the top 5.
I tend to think of it as the bell curve with 25% being FOP, 50% being MOP, and 25% being BOP.
good question.
is top 10% overall at races FOP? I think most would say yes…
yet, I dont think coming in 100th out of 1,000 racers in a tri or marathon for instance is FOP, but more like MOP. i usually shoot for top five in my ag, regardless of kind of race or # of participants.
You guys are thinking too hard on this…
Exactly.
I have never seen in race results MOP, FOP, FLOP or SHMOP. These are categories that one use to pigeonhole and categorize. Categorization is a cognitive process that allows us to construct an organized perception of the world. But as noted, this specific categorization is meaningless.
Triathlon is an individual sport. Some race to finish, or to do better. Others, to win or qualify. EOP, MOP, FOP who cares?
ITP (in the pack) is what’s important. Better than those lazy sods who watch TV instead.
I’ve been wondering this myself. I know I can’t ever truly be FOP, but maybe it’s within the realm of possibility that I could be a MOFO packer.
“Triathlon is an individual sport.”
Ironman is an individual sport and, furthermore, it is NOT A RACE, IT IS A VERY LONG AEROBIC TIME TRIAL!!! I have done 2 so far and still have not fully understood this very important point. T I have not yet been able to run the entire marathon. I am hoping to do the True Texan IM in the fall - with only 23 participants perhaps then I can finally appreciate the solo TT nature of the event.
I always thought that it was split evenly into thirds. Top 33% is FOP, middle 33% is MOP, and, well you get the idea.
1st place=FOP
Last Place=BOP
Everything else=MOP
.
I always thought that it was split evenly into thirds. Top 33% is FOP, middle 33% is MOP, and, well you get the idea.
I thought it was like this too. Maybe so I could call myself a FOPer.
Although, I really don’t think it matters that much. It’s just a way to judge yourself against others, or maybe a goal (be a solid MOPer or FOPer) for a particular race. It definitely depends on the race.
I’m usually in the top 10% sometimes top 5%. I’d never call myself FOP. Maybe FOMOP. I think you need to be regularly battling for 1st to 3rd overall to say you are FOP. The term implies that sometimes you are leading the race.
Agreed. I’m also usually in the top 5-10% OA and would hardly consider myself FOP. Front of MOP maybe. The guys ahead of me are still in a different league. If I were to categorize using percentages i would say the top 1-3% would be considered FOP.
1st place=FOP
Last Place=BOP
Everything else=MOP
I like this one, it takes the terms into their literal sense. and it’s pretty funny
I think you need to be regularly battling for 1st to 3rd overall to say you are FOP. The term implies that sometimes you are leading the race.
But what about when you are racing against pros? Unless you are a pro you won’t be able to be battling for the first few places. I was under the impression that FOP was reserved for age groupers and pros were left to do their own thing. If it was top few places or the lead in the race we wouldn’t be able to call most of the winning ag FOP’s.
Use the word Potential instead of Pack. Now, you have your personal goal ranges set. Were you Front of your Potential, or Middle of your Potential, or Back in your Potential range of performance times? Keep in mind your Potential can be as broad as your overall performance Potential given optimal training, or your Potential for the current race given your current training. I’ve had races where I thought I trained better than I performed…and vice versa. So, it just depends upon your perspective, and what is important to you.
“Ironman is an individual sport and, furthermore, it is NOT A RACE, IT IS A VERY LONG AEROBIC TIME TRIAL!!!”
-
Since when is Ironman a sport? I thought it was the name of the longest recognized triathlon. Perhaps the confusion rests with the fact that it is also a brand and a private business. However, last time I checked it involved swimming-cycling- running in that order and is by definition a triathlon.
-
Time-trial? Maybe, for some. However, it is a mass start, which means in theory you are “racing” head to head with everyone else in the field. I will admit that there is a small, percenatge of the field in an Ironman triathlon that are really racing, but they are none-the-less, really racing. It matters to them where they place and how fast they go. I will fully admit that I was in this group. That being said, no matter where you finish one of these races, there is a significant feeling of accomplishment.
Fleck
i agree that it’s absolutely a race … it’s just i’m not racing to win … well, i would like to win, but i’m really racing to beat the clock, the course, myself, and most likely that guy who’s been running just ahead of me that i can’t seem to reel in … and thank god that ironman-distance races are not the only things that get to be called triathlons.
as far as MOP/FOP, to me the term PACK implies that you’re not really on the pointy end anyway. i mean, if you’re in contention to win, you’re not really running with the pack, are you? so i go with the 1/3, 1/3, 1/3 divisions, or possibly 1/4, 1/2, 1/4 … as in general the middle 50% times are all pretty closely grouped, with big differences between those reeeaaallly fast, and those struggling to finish.
you were so proud of that quote that you had to reply to an 11-year-old thread just to share it?
through process of elimination where ever I am at is NOT FOP. Does that help?