Comments on: Why on Earth Would Anyone Want to Run a Marathon in 90 Degrees?!

By: rick hellard

rick hellard — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 22:14:21 +0000

I agree completley with your classifications and your reasonings.

Very well said.

By: P.O.M.

P.O.M. — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 19:44:24 +0000

Anyone who “blames” a runner or wonders WHY, is obviously NOT a runner.

By: maxdog

maxdog — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 16:01:39 +0000

Sorry 21stcenturymom, but it takes more then enough water, even enough water on 90deg heat index days won’t get it done if the preparation and ability and many other factors aren’t there. I ran and ‘finished’ Chicago last week and it wasn’t fun…I ran and completed the coarse (my 6yr old wanted the medal) for many of the reasons Mark listed above even though for this one I wasn’t ready…or as ready as I could’ve, should’ve been…but hey that is life and the sport.

If we don’t pay the price before race day we will pay on race day.

By the way, much of what has been written and said about Chicago and the closing of the race and the water I don’t believe to be accurate…that race was a pending human disaster and it needed to be dealt with swiftly or more would have died. And NO amount of water would have fixed it.

By: 21stCenturyMom

21stCenturyMom — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 18:48:29 +0000

Excellent points! I know a guy who runs at least 1 marathon a month and he DNF’d in Chicago (as did quite a few elites) because to them it was no big deal – just another race. For people who have trained for their first race, raised money for cause and traveled from out of town this is THE race – the big one. They want to do it. All they need is enough water and they can, too.

By: Mark Iocchelli

Mark Iocchelli — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 15:19:48 +0000

Good point!

By: Nancy Toby

Nancy Toby — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 13:35:11 +0000

Well said!!

There’s also the very practical “no excuses” attitude that you run on the day of the race and in the conditions that actually occur on race day, just like everyone else out there – you don’t run the race you wish for. You deal with the course and weather conditions as they are – which is what makes your times that day directly comparable to everyone else’s who ran.