Saturday, January 3, 2015

Come on man!

And this pretty much sums up the Bears season with Jay Cutler. They fired all the coaches and kept Cutler, the highest paid player in the NFL. Come on man!!
Any football fans here? There's a great pregame feature on ESPN called "Come on Man", where the commentators show boneheaded plays during the previous week and follow each clip with a resounding "Come on man!" Pretty funny, these clips provide fodder for some pretty interesting discussions regarding rules, behavior, and sportsmanship.

I have a few "Come on man!" moments for running this year. Without further ado, let's start with the cheaters. I have to do it, but let's get it out of the way. Apparently there are plenty of cheaters in the sport, but for this post, I'm going to call out the 2 women's Chicago marathon winners cheaters. That's my hometown race you're messin' with!



I called out Rita Jeptoo for alleged doping prior to his year's Chicago marathon. Looks like she's been doing it all along. And then there's Lilya Shobukhova, winner of the Chicago marathon 3 years in a row, 2009-2011, who last April was stripped of her titles. Ok, you won it once. Cheated, sure. But to come back and win it again? Why not, right? What does that feel like, knowing you took a banned substance and won? Went home with the big prize purse. Do you get to a certain point where you forget that doping is cheating? Is everyone doing it, so it seems ok? Maybe it's easier to accept as you get away with it. Help me to understand this.

Come on man!

Tabatha Hamilton at the Talladega half marathon earlier in the year

And what about that woman who ran that marathon in record time? Tabatha Hamilton? Who ran the Chickamauga marathon in 2:54? First half was 2:00 but the second half....54 minutes? I wrote a post on this last fall. I tried to find a follow up on the story but there was nothing, except that she was DQ'd and another winner, the real winner, was named. Lillian Gilmer, a Nashville attorney and marathon veteran, crossed the finish line in 3:21:33. She didn't recall ever seeing another runner, which made Hamilton's story all the more interesting. Did Hamilton really think she could get away with it? I can't help but feel sorry for her, because how do you save face after telling such a big whopper? I wonder what will happen to her now. How's she's feeling about all this? Will she run again?

Come on man!

HIgh heel drag queen race in Key West, FL
Road races may be a thing of the past in Lancaster, Ohio. As of January 1, the city passed an ordinance that states they will no longer approve race permits "nor provide support services to these events, citing increasing costs, lack of city resources, and multiple citizen complaints". The ordinance also states that "roads shall not be closed and/or blocked by non-law enforcement" personnel. This seems like an invitation to disaster. Think: running on sidewalks or running on roads alongside with cars. I won't deny that road racing has gotten a bit out of control. It isn't enough to just run...you have to be sprayed with paint, foam, or run in high heels. Why not do what other cities are doing--restricting the number of races that can be held during the year? Or limit the number of participants in a particular race. Makes sense to me...

Come on man!
At 2 pounds 12 ounces, this thing will probably cause some neck strain for finishers!
Can I do another Come on man! to the race promoters who are providing over the top medals and bling? I wrote a post on this last March when the Little Rock Marathon revealed the finisher's medal. The thing was ridiculously huge. Interestingly, the race was cancelled halfway through because of severe weather. I wonder what they did with all those medals? Anyways, they've revealed the medal for the 2015 marathon. It isn't enough to have a finishers' medal, its' an "award winning medal". Runners' World wrote an article on this phenomenon as well. I blame Disney and their over the top medals. Now everyone has to do one better than Disney....

Come on man!

Yeah right. I still ran. Was the path really closed? Or was it made up?
On the local front, the woman who claimed to be stabbed by a random man while running in the Cook County Forest Preserve MADE THE WHOLE THING UP! The story was that she was running with a friend on the path when a man jumped out of the bushes, stabbed her in the abdomen, and then ran away. She ran to a nearby home where she called police. When I heard this story, I knew something was fishy. Not that you wouldn't be accosted at this forest preserve. I run there, and there are plenty of unsavory characters around. Sadly. I even wrote a post last spring about this. But the woman's story just sounded weird. Luckily, the police thought so too. 

Come on man!


Lululemon, which makes some pretty expensive awesome running and yoga gear, tried to revolutionize running fashion this year by coming out with the Runsie--aka a running onesie. A one piece romper designed for runners, apparently it "flew off the shelves" when it came out. BTW, the back is open, so you can feel the cooling breezes. Personally, a one piece garment would just not work for me, since I need to make potty stops when I'm out on a long run. Runner's World did a hilarious video product review which you can see here. Some cynics are speculating that Lululemon is circling the drain. In 2013, there was that see-through yoga pants debaucle and the CEO's response, in which he blamed certain sized women for the problem. BTW, a search of Ebay revealed quite a few Runsies for sale from $75-$150. Supply and demand, I guess....

Come on man!

Anything I missed? Can't we all just run?




12 comments :

  1. Oh yes, the runsie. I posted about that one. I hope it has snaps in the crotch at least. I heard Shobukova had the nerve to ask for the bribe money back from the Russian Federation when she got caught for doping. For the record I've never ever been a Cutler fan. If only the Bears listened to me. Ha! Yay for real coffee!

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  2. OK I did not know until you posted the pic, but apparently I ran Talladega with the soon-to-be cheater. Her time was almost 2:20 (oh yes, it feels really good to have beat her handily). In what world did she think her marathon time would be believable? The first half of it is not believable. I agree, the medals have gotten ridiculous. I do like some effort and thought in the award but not the bulk. Darn, I missed the onesie...didn't we wear those as kids? I think I'll pass...

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    1. it was really hard to find anything about her! But that finish time speaks volumes...

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  3. Agreed, agreed and agreed!! I can't stand liars or cheaters and I've been contemplating a rant on my blog about the trend in medals. Especially this thing about offering medals for 5Ks. Really??
    I had a good laugh about that runsie. Obviously, the person who designed it does not actually run. Ha!

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    1. I've written about the 5K medal thing. I thought I'd get a lot of flak but I didn't. Actually, everyone who commented agreed. I guess those 5k runners who want medals don't read running blogs... :p

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  4. Omg that is a huge medal. I think you had it right the first time. Expensive clothes at Lululemon. Though it is great stuff. Guess you get what you pay for. However the running onesie is not my type. -L

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    1. I haven't heard from anyone who thought the runsie was for them!

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  5. Haha, yes...in total agreement with the "runsie"...who would ever wear that? As far as the LR medals go...I used to live there and ran the half before they got crazy with the medals..they were normal size then. I must admit, I think they are pretty cool :)

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  6. Hahaha that Cutler gif is amazing.
    I can't wrap my brain around any of these things, especially that woman who tried to defend her fake marathon time. Who is she kidding!?
    And I'm so glad someone else agrees with me about that medal. I think it's ridiculous looking haha.

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