Can you believe April is slipping away? I kind of can’t. But it is, and you know what that means. It’s time to open the runfessional. It’s always a good idea to cleanse those souls and soles, am I right? Let’s get started.
I understand in the world of running that if you don’t finish a race, it doesn’t feel right to get a finisher’s medal. That said, I runfess I thought it was downright cruel when a friend of mine set out to run a 50 miler and was pulled from the course because she failed to make a time cutoff somewhere along the way. Wait that’s not the cruel part. Apparently they gave out the finisher’s mugs before the race. So when she was pulled from the course, they….wait for it…..they freaking took a hammer to her mug and SMASHED it in front of her very eyes. Sheesh! Isn’t that mean? How about not giving her one until she finished?? She sort of taped the mug shards together and is keeping them as a memento of the race anyway. I also runfess I’m not sure if I’d want a reminder of a DNF race. Would you?
You all know how much I’ve loved “walking with the Caveman” since way back in the beginning of the pandemic. I did not bother to count the exact mileage we’ve covered but it’s been roughly 4 miles per day. Multiply that by 365 days, actually we’ve been at it longer than that but let’s just go with it, and you get 1460 miles. I runfess all of those miles were walked in the shoes I wore to run the Tokyo and London Marathons back in 2019. I won’t even venture to guess how many total miles these puppies have on them now, but what they do have is a hole in the toe. I’m not sure why my very worn out shoes give me pleasure but they do.
I runfess that since pulling some ticks off of Ozzy, I’m super paranoid about attracting ticks of my own when I’m out on my trail runs. I may be opting to wear a hat vs a headband or visor for this very reason. The sneaky buggers are known to attack from tree foliage overhead. Yikes.
Think my 2020 Tokyo Olympics souvenir chopsticks are worth any money yet??
There are now less than 100 days until the Tokyo Olympics. That’s like nothing. I’ve seen minimal if any promotion of it. I runfess I have my doubts as to whether the Tokyo Olympics will actually take place this summer. I’ll bet they aren’t sure either.
Ok your turn. What have you to runfess?
I’m also linking up with Darlene, Michelle, Renee, Jenn and Zenaida, for Fit Five Friday. Join us!
Wow! That IS just mean – smashing a finisher’s mug? I know trail race directors usually have a warped sense of humor, but that is just cruel. I hope your friend does another ultra.
What race was that? I thought the ultrarunner community was so supportive. Sounds pretty heartless. Your poor friend!
Wow, that is pretty brutal. I guess the race cares more about the “cache” than the runners? Or something. Wow on your shoes — I’d say you wore them out. It’s weird how little news there has been about the Olympics. What are the athletes doing? I feel so sorry for them.
I “favorite-shoe-fess” that I still have my Mizuno Wave Inspire 8’s…from my first marathon. I don’t run in them any longer, but I wear them, on rare occasions, for walking. They still feel SO perfect on my high-maintenance feet LOL I should just have them bronzed and put in their own display case. That coffee mug incident sounds like something the Barkley Marathon would do!
The ultra community has a warped sense of humor. Ever hear of Barkleys Marathons? Tells you right there how insane they are. Ha! I would definitely have glued that sucker together and used it as a little motivation to show them next year they can’t break any more mugs!
We had a tick crawl on our living room wall in Alabama. We moved immediately after.
XO
What?? They smashed her mug?! That’s terrible! Totally agree- don’t give it out until after the race if its only supposed to be for finishers. I haven’t really heard anything about the Olympics either!
That’s really horrible, I would not do an ultra that did that, or any race. Really cruel. She has my sympathy as someone who always has to worry about cut-offs. And our back of the packers should not be taunted like that.
wow that is just insane! I”ve never heard of such a thing. I know people get pulled off of a course for time etc which I understand but wow. Where was this? Kudos to you and caveman for getting in all those miles together
OK I don’t even know what to say about the mug smashing…that’s just cruel and unnecessary.
I love that you and your husband logged all of those miles together! I hope those shoes will get a special place of honor somewhere in the Pain Cave. Between the marathons and the walking, they have definitely served you well!
Ultra runners are usually so laid back & nice — I’m really kind of shocked they did that, and no, I would not keep the mug. Who wants a reminder of that? I guess maybe she thinks the best revenge is success, and it will motivate her?
I’ve never worn a hole in my running shoes, and yes, I walk in old ones too. Like for years. But our daily walks are generally short. And my hiking shoes? I’ve had them for decades!
Ewww on the ticks. I did not know that. Thankfully so far we’ve never found a tick on Bandit, but Lola was the same until she got older, and now he’s older. Lyme is so rampant here, it’s usually a matter of when, not if. 🙁
Whoa! That’s hard core. I think it would have been cathartic to let her hit it with a hammer. I probably wouldn’t want that memento but… I still occasionally wear my 2012 NYC Marathon shirt. Someone was prescient because it says “marathoner” not “finisher” on it!
Wow, I can’t believe they smashed it…in front of her. I think that would make me feel even worse about not finishing. I think that’s just awful, especially in a community known for supporting one another. I wouldn’t glue it back together unless I planned on chucking it at the race directors head. Lol.
Your poor friend! She sounds pretty resilient though (based on the fact that she taped the shards together and is saving the mug as a souvenir.)
I would say that the Tokyo Olympics are almost definitely happening, BUT if they don’t, the good news would be I think your chopsticks could end up being worth a lot of money!
That is a crazy story about your friend! I have never heard that before…yowsa!
I have worn a hole on that toe part before too! I think my feet are too wide…
Yikes, tick season! I hate those buggers…
Interesting thought about the Olympics.
They smashed the mug???? OMG!!!! That’s awful!
I wouldn’t want a DNF momento, but still!
The Tokyo Olympics are a bit of a weird flex. I don’t know how that’s going to go, but I guess we will just have to wait and see.
OMG your poor friend! That is just so mean – I’m actually shocked that any race would do that. A DNF is bad enough but then smashing the mug in front of her? Yikes.
That is absolutely cruel smashing the mug, and very wasteful, which seems the opposite intent of ultraracing, I would think…
I need to learn more about ticks on the trails and how to detect them…yikes!
I, too, think it is horrible that they smashed the mug right in front of her. Now, my question is, was she having to carry it from the beginning of the race? If so, no wander she was a DNF. They really should have given them out at the finish line. I’m glad it didn’t stop her for running/training for ultras.
That’s a lot of miles on those shoes. Great job on all of the walking you and your hubby did together. I don’t normally get holes in the toes, but the sides blow out. LOL
Ticks. Yuck. Tippy, my dog, gets them a lot in the Spring. She takes medicine that will kill them if they bite her, but that doesn’t keep them from getting on her to begin with. It makes me itch just thinking about them.
Yikes. On the smashed mug.
My cats get ticks. I’ve never gotten one. But I do wear compression calf sleeves and a hat on the trails. I need to remember the insect repellent
I runfess that I love it when I retire a pair of shoes. I recently hit 500 miles on my everyday running shoes which is as long as I will keep them, and it was just so satisfying to come home from the final run and put them straight in the trash. Those particular shoes were completely trashed, but if the shoes are in good enough condition they can have a second life as my dog walking shoes.
Wow that is crazy about the mug. And ticks— shiver— I hate ticks. I am good with bugs in general but not ticks. And now it seems they are everywhere. We need a Lyme vaccine! I mean c’mon, there are 4 veterinary ones available for our dogs!
That is just awful what the did with the mug! Honestly how will the events at the Olympics take place? Just curious how the organizers will make it happen. I am excited to watch the events.
I’m with you on the toe holes. It’s like the shoes are doing their own work to go with ours of pounding the ground. Hope you stay tick free
How rude of those race organizers.
I’ve decided I”m going to see the Poster House olympic exhibit even if Tokyo doesn’t happen. I’m not a huge Olympics person but way back in normal times I was so excited for these since I love Japan so much