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September 12, 2005
Bad sis or good sis?
I called home yesterday specifically to ask how my little brother’s first cross-country meet went. My dad answered the phone. The answer was-it went pretty well. My brother had fun. He ran the fastest he ever has. He got a uniform (there weren’t enough to go around so the freshmen were given uniforms based on attendance at practice). It was a good time. Then my dad asked if I wanted to speak to my brother myself…um…well, I didn’t want to be a horrible older sister. I mean, I never specifically called home to ask how his soccer, basketball, or baseball games went…so what business did I have calling now? I didn’t want my little brother to think I like him more or am going to pay more attention to him b/c he runs.
In my defense, in my mind this race is kind of more important than his previous sports b/c he is on the HS team rather than recreational teams. I just see that as more important no matter what sport he is playing. (Spare me the comments on sports for sports sake! I definitely believe in all that too, but sometimes there IS an element of competition involved!) But yeah, I have to admit I was pretty interested in it b/c I am intrigued b/c it is running. I can completely see how parents would pressure (or the very least, encourage) their kids to play specific sports. I feel guilty for caring so much how his cross-country season is going and how much he likes it. How is that for a complex series of emotions (normally caring about what is going on in your siblings’ lives is a GREAT thing). Sigghhh, why is nothing simple with me?? Me thinks I am overanalyzing this.[Note, I did end up speaking to my brother yesterday.]
No running today. I biked about a mile each way to the gym and reintroduced myself to the weights (I am going to be so sore tomorrow), my balance exercises (standing with one leg on a squooshy balance disc), and some core exercises.
They are also starting a marathon in my hometown. It's in May 2006. It has an associated 15K and 5K race with it (the latter two races have been around for years). I asked my Dad if he was doing the 15K and I suggested that my brother do the 5K and I would do the marathon. He replied it is WAY too early for him to be thinking about May, and he also reminded me of what I thought of immediately after I e-mailed him: the 15K is the hardest (and prettiest) course I have ever run on. The hills are beyond crazy. Running a marathon on that course would be the ultimate challenge. Which brings me to my main thought: Is it "cheating" to purposely pick a fast course to try and qualify for Boston? I know people do it all the time-but is it okay? Conversely, is it silly and just shooting yourself in the foot not to pick a fast course if you know you need every edge? Is this one of those issues that running purists argue endlessly about?
Posted by Audrey at September 12, 2005 10:32 AM
Comments
To weigh in on the whole fast course thing, having run on a very hard course for my first marathon, I would say it is not cheating at all. It is smart race selection.
However, although I wanted to qualify for Boston when I ran my first marathon, my primary aim was to run a marathon and finish. If I just wanted to qualify for Boston, I would have selected a different and much easier course.
Thus, my advice would be, don't run this really hilly marathon if you just want to qualify. However, if you just want to run the race because it's pretty and it will be a good accomplishment, go for it!
Posted by: Barb at September 12, 2005 12:16 PM
Answers:
1) You're a good sister.
2) It's not cheating one bit to pick a fast course. People do it all the time. Marathons are plenty hard without hills. No one would pick the Stowe Marathon (see Mary's post if you haven't already) if they were looking for any sort of qualifying time, unless they were very confident that they could hit said time.
Posted by: Alison at September 12, 2005 02:56 PM
Umm, cheating would be skipping miles 10-15, hiring Deena Kastor to run in your place, or breaking into the super secret athlete database and giving yourself a qualifying time. I don't see anything wrong with choosing a fast course when your goal is to get a fast time. If your goal is to run the scenic route or punish your body then run for the pretty hills...perhaps after you accomplish your first goal of achieving a qualifying time. I think marathons and other long endurance races can be for a variety of reasons for us non-pros...best time, most scenic, toughest course, personal achievement, etc. What is your current goal and what course matches it best?
Posted by: Rob at September 12, 2005 03:14 PM
Definitely not cheating. You aren't doing this to see how much you can punish yourself by picking one of the most difficult courses out there. People do it all the time, I know people who will only run "fast" courses.
I don't think that you're a bad sister. It makes sense that you would be curious about how your brother did in his first XC race. It is his first high school event and it is something that you are interested in and have in common with him.
Blondie
Posted by: Blondie at September 12, 2005 09:02 PM
Audrey,
I have a brother who is a sophomore in high school and runs XC and I'm constantly reminding myself not to be too pushy, ask too many questions, etc. (often a useless endeavor anyway, no matter what the topic, considering the one-word grunts he currently supplies as responses to almost any question, i.e. "Yeah," "Nah," "Nothin'," and "Dunno.")
I like to think that if I'm even considering whether I'm overdoing it and reflecting on the quality of our sibling relationship, I can't be TOO bad...=) I'd say the same goes for you!
Megan
Posted by: Megan at September 13, 2005 03:28 PM