The Running Thread - 2018

[Dis_Yoda]

Oops....

My wife and I are going to Paris next week, scheduled to come back the following Thursday. But, since we're already there....I just changed everything around and we're going to London for a few days at the end, as a surprise for my wife. Why not, right?

May will not be a good month for running...

I think Paris/London are great reasons to not run.

 

[Miranda]

Rather than give up running in favor of fitness classes wouldn't someone just sign up for less races a year? And most 10k's, for example, would be close to the cost of fitness classes you pay monthly for.

I think that's what they are saying... it's not the gimmick type races that are causing a decline in participation in regular races, people are signing up for fewer races because they are spending money on fitness classes.

I am definitely running way fewer races this year than I have in previous years. In 2015, I ran 13 races. In 2016, I ran 17. In 2017, I was injured for like 4 months and still ran 10. This year, I have run 1 and I only have plans right now to do 4 others: my May HM, a June 5K or 15K (haven't decided which to do yet) that is a fundraiser that my friend is the race director for, Beach to Beacon 10K in August, and Wineglass HM in September.

Although cost of fitness classes only has partly to do with it... cost of my other hobby (dog agility) is another factor, as is just time in general. Before I started doing more trialing in agility, I had more time to do races. Also running so many races, most of them short because they were part of a couple of local series, even though I love them, makes it hard to fit them in around training for longer races. I don't really like doing the race at a long run pace, then going back out to finish a long run without having fun at the end with my friends. But cost is definitely a factor... between Orangetheory and my yoga studio, I could do probably at least six 5-10K's or a couple of HM's a month.

 

[jennamfeo]

C.V. Wood: The most nefarious Disney villain of them all

HA! Great link, too.

Question/Opinions? Mostly for the ladies but would like guys opinions too. Do you take a (female) runner seriously when they run in a skirt, Sparkle or otherwise? Someone made a comment to me that a "serious" runner wouldn't be caught running in a skirt, that they are just for fun/recreational runners and have no place in "real" races. They weren't directing it at me, just looking at race pictures but now I am wondering if that is what people are thinking of me when I run in a skirt? I know I shouldn't care what other people think but it has me questioning wearing my new black Sparkle Skirt for my marathon next weekend. I had planned on running in my Oiselle shorts which have great pockets but bought a new Sparkle Skirt in a smaller size so I would have even better pockets because I carry a bunch of crap when I run!

How about the fact that Yuki ran a Half Marathon in a dang Panda costume a week before he won Boston?! People are just so annoying. I will always wear a Sparkle skirt to a race. You know what makes me a serious runner? The 30 miles I have been putting in for weeks at a time now.

London Bridge actually was falling down. It used to have houses and shops on it and was considered a major fire hazard during medieval times as all houses were made of wood. The houses and bridge were destroyed many times over the years. The reason it was "falling down" was due to disrepair. The bridge spanned from the Strand to Blackfriars which was not the nicest part of the city. There was also a tour levied to cross the bridge and many merchants and persons tried to get around that and were shot. The other thing was any time someone was executed for treason, there heads were placed on pikes on London bridge. The bridge was rebuilt many times over the years and is still in London today. However, most people think tower bridge is London bridge. But London bridge is just a plain old bridge, with tons of history.

Dang. Well, we also have a bridge from London in my town. I don't know which one it is, but it got moved here brick by brick. Haha.

EDIT: I'm not trying to say that the T-Rex runners arent serious runners, because they might be, I just cant take a person in a T-Rex costume seriously.

I got passed by a person in a T-Rex costume at a race once and almost had to re-consider my life choices at that point.

 

[jennamfeo]

ATTQOTD: I feel like the queue's at WDW are better than at Disneyland. Maybe because they didn't really know what to expect when they were building Disneyland, so they made up for it at WDW.. But I remember that Peter Pan's queue at WDW was awesome, EE was really interactive, I think we went to Toy Story right at the end of the day so we didn't have to wait on that one but it looked okay. I cannot for the life of me remember what ToT's queue is like. But Haunted Mansion at WDW was better than at DL.

 

[Miranda]

Question/Opinions? Mostly for the ladies but would like guys opinions too. Do you take a (female) runner seriously when they run in a skirt, Sparkle or otherwise? Someone made a comment to me that a "serious" runner wouldn't be caught running in a skirt, that they are just for fun/recreational runners and have no place in "real" races. They weren't directing it at me, just looking at race pictures but now I am wondering if that is what people are thinking of me when I run in a skirt? I know I shouldn't care what other people think but it has me questioning wearing my new black Sparkle Skirt for my marathon next weekend. I had planned on running in my Oiselle shorts which have great pockets but bought a new Sparkle Skirt in a smaller size so I would have even better pockets because I carry a bunch of crap when I run!

Here is what I would say to them... well, I like to communicate in gifs, but I don't know if I'm allowed to post it on family friendly Disney boards, but let's just pretend that I posted a gif here of Peter Quill from Guardians of the Galaxy doing that thing where he puts up his middle finger and says he didn't know how the machine worked.

 

[Miranda]

I got passed by a person in a T-Rex costume at a race once and almost had to re-consider my life choices at that point.

Last year at Beach to Beacon, my friend got passed by a lighthouse. Seriously, someone was running inside a giant lighthouse on wheels costume. She posted a picture of it going past her on Facebook and said, "You know you are slow when a lighthouse passes you."

 

[rteetz]

ATTQOTD: I feel like the queue's at WDW are better than at Disneyland. Maybe because they didn't really know what to expect when they were building Disneyland, so they made up for it at WDW.. But I remember that Peter Pan's queue at WDW was awesome, EE was really interactive, I think we went to Toy Story right at the end of the day so we didn't have to wait on that one but it looked okay. I cannot for the life of me remember what ToT's queue is like. But Haunted Mansion at WDW was better than at DL.

I think part of that too is the space. WDW has a lot more space for elaborate queues whereas DL does not have the space to do such.

ToT you walk into the hotel lobby and it looks old and abandoned with fake cobwebs and such. Then you go into the pre show room where they enter you into the twilight zone and tell you the backstory of the hotel. Then you go into the boiler room before entering the ride vehicle.

 

[Keels]

Question/Opinions? Mostly for the ladies but would like guys opinions too. Do you take a (female) runner seriously when they run in a skirt, Sparkle or otherwise? Someone made a comment to me that a "serious" runner wouldn't be caught running in a skirt, that they are just for fun/recreational runners and have no place in "real" races. They weren't directing it at me, just looking at race pictures but now I am wondering if that is what people are thinking of me when I run in a skirt? I know I shouldn't care what other people think but it has me questioning wearing my new black Sparkle Skirt for my marathon next weekend. I had planned on running in my Oiselle shorts which have great pockets but bought a new Sparkle Skirt in a smaller size so I would have even better pockets because I carry a bunch of crap when I run!

My only response is that people are a-holes and wear what you want.

Lululemon makes millions of dollars selling athletic skirts, so obviously all types of people wear them, “serious” or not.

 

[jennamfeo]

ToT you walk into the hotel lobby and it looks old and abandoned with fake cobwebs and such. Then you go into the pre show room where they enter you into the twilight zone and tell you the backstory of the hotel. Then you go into the boiler room before entering the ride vehicle.

Oh yeahhhhh. That sounds pretty similar to Disneyland ToT before they changed it to Guardians of the Galaxy, which I haven't been on yet.

 

[Jules76126]

Dang. Well, we also have a bridge from London in my town. I don't know which one it is, but it got moved here brick by brick. Haha.

You do have a London bridge. Yours dates from 1831 - 1967, which is pretty cool. The current bridge is from 1967. If you ever go to London, you should total walk over it so you can say you have been on 2 London bridges. BA and MA in British History, lots of useless knowledge over here.

 

[Slogger]

ATTQOTD: I remember as a kid thinking the queue and build up to ride Space Mountain at WDW was fantastic. Weird futuristic displays and music, everything was dark, and at the end on the moving walkway to go out of the building they had an RCA camera pointed at the walkway and you could see yourself on TV when you passed by. That was a big deal to a kid like me in the late 1970s.

ATTQOTD about what to wear: People should enjoy themselves and as long as it's not offensive or threatening, wear what they want. Bring on the skirts!

 

[jennamfeo]

You do have a London bridge. Yours dates from 1831 - 1967, which is pretty cool. The current bridge is from 1967. If you ever go to London, you should total walk over it so you can say you have been on 2 London bridges. BA and MA in British History, lots of useless knowledge over here.

You seemed like you knew what you are talking about so I wasn't even about to argue. Hahahaha. I only know what my city tells me. And it's a tourist attraction so they will say ANYTHING. LOL. My husband and I have been to London and I don't know why we didn't think to walk over *the* London Bridge. Darn, I guess we have to go back now!

 

[PCFriar80]

I see a lot of people choosing Toy Story Mania. The old queue was fine but not my favorite. It just seemed like a bright colored area to wait. I’m interested to see what the new queue looks like though.

I think they need to bring talking Mr. Potato Head back to the new queue. The most recent queue was "spuddering" without him!

 

[rteetz]

I think they need to bring talking Mr. Potato Head back to the new queue. The most recent queue was "spuddering" without him!

Yeah they are most likely bringing him back but nothing has been said for sure.

 

[Sanchez]

Question/Opinions? Mostly for the ladies but would like guys opinions too. Do you take a (female) runner seriously when they run in a skirt, Sparkle or otherwise? Someone made a comment to me that a "serious" runner wouldn't be caught running in a skirt, that they are just for fun/recreational runners and have no place in "real" races. They weren't directing it at me, just looking at race pictures but now I am wondering if that is what people are thinking of me when I run in a skirt? I know I shouldn't care what other people think but it has me questioning wearing my new black Sparkle Skirt for my marathon next weekend. I had planned on running in my Oiselle shorts which have great pockets but bought a new Sparkle Skirt in a smaller size so I would have even better pockets because I carry a bunch of crap when I run!

I take my finishing times/results a little too seriously. I am trying to relax and get more enjoyment out of running but I am too competitive (as if people really care about racing results for old dudes.) However, my personal shortcomings are directed at me and do not extend to what others are doing. People run and compete for all sorts of reasons and there is plenty of room for elites to walkers and it does not affect me as to how they choose to run, walk or sachet on the course. There is no room for people who believe that only serious runners (as they define it) should be permitted to compete.

I will say that there are two things that bother me - and certainly not significant enough to ruin my day. First, when people do not understand and practice basic running etiquette. Stopping in the middle of the course to take a drink, forming a human chain with friends, starting in an incorrect corral, spitting amongst a crowd of runners, and pushing a stroller in a crowded race among other things. The second is the "look at me" crowd. I know that I shouldn't care about this but I am really put off by those who feel compelled to post every glorious achievement on social media. But what really chaps my undercarriage are those who finish the race and then choose to cool down by running back on the course so us poor slobs still running witness their heroic accomplishment. "Look at me! I finished and you are still running!"

I will take my pills and settle down now.

 

[Keels]

I pick EE because I believe that the Thirsty River bar is part of the standby queue, so duh.

 

[KingLlama]

I got passed by a person in a T-Rex costume at a race once and almost had to re-consider my life choices at that point.

I felt the same way after finishing so far back in a race that they'd already put away all the water and bananas from the chute at the finish.

My only response is that people are a-holes and wear what you want.

That was the theme of my Prom, ironically.

 

[DIS-OH]

ATTQOTD: Love the Haunties Mansion que!

 

[Barca33Runner]

Question/Opinions? Mostly for the ladies but would like guys opinions too. Do you take a (female) runner seriously when they run in a skirt, Sparkle or otherwise? Someone made a comment to me that a "serious" runner wouldn't be caught running in a skirt, that they are just for fun/recreational runners and have no place in "real" races. They weren't directing it at me, just looking at race pictures but now I am wondering if that is what people are thinking of me when I run in a skirt? I know I shouldn't care what other people think but it has me questioning wearing my new black Sparkle Skirt for my marathon next weekend. I had planned on running in my Oiselle shorts which have great pockets but bought a new Sparkle Skirt in a smaller size so I would have even better pockets because I carry a bunch of crap when I run!

This happens in all walks of life with basically anything people are interested in... "You don't know who the third-string catcher of their AA affiliate is? You're not a real fan." "You don't have the bootleg from their first show in their hometown from 1992? Band-wagoners like you are why I don't like them anymore." "You're not challenging for a podium or age group award? Why are you even running?" and, specifically overheard at my first rD race, "You're only running the Half?" (There was no second part, but it was strongly implied from the look of disgust)

There is so much elitism in everything that I've stopped paying attention to it. There will always be people out there who feel their devotion/commitment to something is more important than yours and that their way of doing things is the only right way to do it. I'm always respectful of others and within that framework I'll run how I want to run and wear what I want to wear.

 

[jennamfeo]

This happens in all walks of life with basically anything people are interested in... "You don't know who the third-string catcher of their AA affiliate is? You're not a real fan." "You don't have the bootleg from their first show in their hometown from 1992? Band-wagoners like you are why I don't like them anymore." "You're not challenging for a podium or age group award? Why are you even running?" and, specifically overheard at my first rD race, "You're only running the Half?" (There was no second part, but it was strongly implied from the look of disgust)

There is so much elitism in everything that I've stopped paying attention to it. There will always be people out there who feel their devotion/commitment to something is more important than yours and that their way of doing things is the only right way to do it. I'm always respectful of others and within that framework I'll run how I want to run and wear what I want to wear.