Annoying things people do in road races

[Anonymous]

Runners - come in.

I ran the Army Ten Miler today (beautiful course and so well organized). Overall, it was a great day, but I was reminded how ANNOYING it is when people start in the wrong (faster) heat.

I am NOT a fast runner (9-10 minute mile), but I kept having to dodge people who 1) were much, much slower and clearly in the wrong heat or 2) could hardly get through one mile without stopping to walk (and stopping abruptly, almost causing a pileup).

What are some other annoying things people do?

[Anonymous]

stop right where they are, to walk or stop. Run to the side and THEN walk or stop, people!

run next to people. Maybe you can run right next to someone, but do NOT run 3 or more across, and do not leave like 2 feet between you and your running buddy.

choose your right heat. Be honest about your capabilities.

clog up the finish area. keep it moving, people.

OP, congrats!!! I did the Army 10 miler on a day like today, a few years ago. It's a fun but challenging race. Nice crisp day. Enjoy and relax the rest of today!

[Anonymous]

Oh where to begin.

-runners who cut right in front of you
-runners who are too close and not making any attempts to move away from you
-runners who fling their water cups without looking
-runners who spit without looking
-runners who litter

[Anonymous]

The longer the race, the more annoyed I get with every single person in my vicinity.

[Anonymous]

Impressed we got this far without arguing about earbuds

[Anonymous]

This may be an unpopular opinion, but I feel like if you are signing up for a road race, ESPECIALLY a longer one (half marathon, ten miler) you should be able to run the majority of the race (unless you have a disability / injury or some other special situation). I ran a half marathon a few years back and it was so ridiculous, I saw multiple people take off, run maybe .1 miles, then walk for a WHILE, then repeat. Why not start with a shorter race, like a 5k or 10k, where you actually will be able to run? Or, a race that accommodates power walkers/walkers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:stop right where they are, to walk or stop. Run to the side and THEN walk or stop, people!

run next to people. Maybe you can run right next to someone, but do NOT run 3 or more across, and do not leave like 2 feet between you and your running buddy.

choose your right heat. Be honest about your capabilities.

clog up the finish area. keep it moving, people.

OP, congrats!!! I did the Army 10 miler on a day like today, a few years ago. It's a fun but challenging race. Nice crisp day. Enjoy and relax the rest of today!

Thank you! The weather was indeed perfect!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Impressed we got this far without arguing about earbuds

They don’t annoy me generally, and I could not have gotten through marathons without listening to music, but some runners clearly don’t pay attention to their surroundings while wearing them.

[Anonymous]

Most of these gripes aren’t a big deal. I signed up late and did what I was supposed to do and started with the last corral. I spent the morning not trying to kill people and still managed to bob and weave (safely) my way to finishing in just over an hour.

The biggest safety issue is the complete lack of any attempt to dispose of water cups at least off the running surface. That’s a rolled ankle or a knee injury just waiting to happen. Glad I didn’t see anybody get taken out by one of those thousands of land mines.

This was my first and last time doing this race I think, unless I’m in one of the first two non elite waves.

[Anonymous]

I haven’t done road races in about 10 years. Is the juggler still around?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This may be an unpopular opinion, but I feel like if you are signing up for a road race, ESPECIALLY a longer one (half marathon, ten miler) you should be able to run the majority of the race (unless you have a disability / injury or some other special situation). I ran a half marathon a few years back and it was so ridiculous, I saw multiple people take off, run maybe .1 miles, then walk for a WHILE, then repeat. Why not start with a shorter race, like a 5k or 10k, where you actually will be able to run? Or, a race that accommodates power walkers/walkers.

Have you never heard of the run/walk method (aka, Galloway)? It's a perfectly acceptable approach to running a race. As long as they're not starting in an inappropriate corral, it's none of your business.

You need to worry about your own race, not others. Gatekeeping isn't a good look.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Most of these gripes aren’t a big deal. I signed up late and did what I was supposed to do and started with the last corral. I spent the morning not trying to kill people and still managed to bob and weave (safely) my way to finishing in just over an hour.

The biggest safety issue is the complete lack of any attempt to dispose of water cups at least off the running surface. That’s a rolled ankle or a knee injury just waiting to happen. Glad I didn’t see anybody get taken out by one of those thousands of land mines.

This was my first and last time doing this race I think, unless I’m in one of the first two non elite waves.

The cups are crushable. No one is rolling an ankle or damaging a knee on a dinky paper cup.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most of these gripes aren’t a big deal. I signed up late and did what I was supposed to do and started with the last corral. I spent the morning not trying to kill people and still managed to bob and weave (safely) my way to finishing in just over an hour.

The biggest safety issue is the complete lack of any attempt to dispose of water cups at least off the running surface. That’s a rolled ankle or a knee injury just waiting to happen. Glad I didn’t see anybody get taken out by one of those thousands of land mines.

This was my first and last time doing this race I think, unless I’m in one of the first two non elite waves.

The cups are crushable. No one is rolling an ankle or damaging a knee on a dinky paper cup.

Couple of possibilities here.

1) you aren’t aware of the volume we are talking about. It was thousands with the attendant water all over the place at all the water stations

2) you haven’t been doing this very long and have never seen somebody have a bad foot strike because of a carpet of these cups causing an injury

3) you are slow AF so it wouldn’t matter to you because your running gait is more like a fast paced walk anyways

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This may be an unpopular opinion, but I feel like if you are signing up for a road race, ESPECIALLY a longer one (half marathon, ten miler) you should be able to run the majority of the race (unless you have a disability / injury or some other special situation). I ran a half marathon a few years back and it was so ridiculous, I saw multiple people take off, run maybe .1 miles, then walk for a WHILE, then repeat. Why not start with a shorter race, like a 5k or 10k, where you actually will be able to run? Or, a race that accommodates power walkers/walkers.

Have you never heard of the run/walk method (aka, Galloway)? It's a perfectly acceptable approach to running a race. As long as they're not starting in an inappropriate corral, it's none of your business.

You need to worry about your own race, not others. Gatekeeping isn't a good look.

I am cool with people who do a run walk thing, but they should stay to the sides and announce they are stopping/walking during a crowded race to avoid collisions. Coming to a sudden stop is not safe for them or those around them .

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most of these gripes aren’t a big deal. I signed up late and did what I was supposed to do and started with the last corral. I spent the morning not trying to kill people and still managed to bob and weave (safely) my way to finishing in just over an hour.

The biggest safety issue is the complete lack of any attempt to dispose of water cups at least off the running surface. That’s a rolled ankle or a knee injury just waiting to happen. Glad I didn’t see anybody get taken out by one of those thousands of land mines.

This was my first and last time doing this race I think, unless I’m in one of the first two non elite waves.

The cups are crushable. No one is rolling an ankle or damaging a knee on a dinky paper cup.

Couple of possibilities here.

1) you aren’t aware of the volume we are talking about. It was thousands with the attendant water all over the place at all the water stations

2) you haven’t been doing this very long and have never seen somebody have a bad foot strike because of a carpet of these cups causing an injury

3) you are slow AF so it wouldn’t matter to you because your running gait is more like a fast paced walk anyways

Did you sign up for a later wave? Or arrive/start late?