Saturday 1 December 2007

Nov. 19 - 24 = No Miles

No miles this week. Well, technically, there were 7 miles this week because the week started with Sunday and I ran 7 on Sunday. Right before I picked up a tree. Imagine! A 55 year old woman should probably not pick up a friggin' tree. I hurt my back, and have been taking pain meds and muscle relaxers all week. It has been a long week. I hope to get out tomorrow and run because running is my anti-depressant. I can feel the depression, like a big black cloud, starting to color my life. I normally keep it at bay with a healthy diet, running, prayer, meditation and too many other things to mention. But let me tell you , I think I can skip the rest and just run and I will be OK. But do all the rest and just don't run? I am not such a happy girl right now.

So, I bought a People magazine last night because it has an article about a medication error (Dennis Quaid's twins). Since efforts to prevent things like medication errors are how I make my living, I bought the magazine - which I won't normally purchase because I think these magazines hurt people and by buying them we are participating. Annnnyway.... There is a letter to the editor about Katie Holmes running the NY Marathon. Here is the sentence that caught my attention....

"Running a 5 1/2 hour marathon is not impressive, indicates a lack of preparation and is fundamentally disrespectful to the marathon." -- Rory Gilfillan

There was a similar sentiment expressed in Salon magazine recently -- "America's competitive spirit has been wrecked by feel-good amateurs like Oprah whose only goal is to stagger across the finish line." -- Edward McClelland

Wow! I had no idea that someone's poor performance in an event could somehow diminish the stellar accomplishments of the great athletes who are rightfully there!

Don't worry, I am not likely to stop running because of these attitudes. And I am sure my pals won't either. But what is up with this?

15 comments:

ws said...

I hope you feel better soon. Running definitely has the power to keep a lot of feelings at bay and it feels good too, so that's a nice benefit.

That "is a 5 hour marathoner worthy of being a marathon" conversation has been given a lot of attention in recent months because of what happened at Chicago. At least a few articles said that anyone who was so slow that they were impacted by the course closure was so slow they didn't deserve to finish anyway.

Those articles and conversations are BOGUS, ABSURD, RIDICULOUS and frequently written by individuals who would never commit the time to train for a marathon. The runner's who express those opinions must just be ignorant of the effort it requires for a regular ol' weekend warrior to complete a marathon.

Sorry, I have strong opinions on that subject. Again, I hope you feel better soon and have a great weekend.

Wes said...

I wouldn't worry about comments like that. People say that kind of stuff because it gives them a warm and fuzzy, like peeing their pants. They won't admit it of course. Few people admit they think they are better than everybody else :-)

J~Mom said...

I think people that write comments like that clearly don't understand. If they came with any of us on our journeys that run that pace then they would understand that a marathon at any pace is a victory for some of us. I say ffffffttttttttt. LOL

Joe said...

Keep doing the other stuff, mg, and run when your back allows. It all fits together...hope you are feeling better.

I have no time for those who sniff at a 5 hour marathon. It is quite an eliteist attitude. Ignore it and keep running...I will!!

Say, I posted a run/walk calculator at my blog last week...feel free to try it.

Marcy said...

A friend of mine recently showed that blurb to me (the People one) The first part of that quote said something like

"I ran the New York City Marathon and finished in a time of 2:36:31 Like many others that day, I earned it the hard way, logging over 100 miles a week for months. And unlike Katie Holmes, I work full time. . . . ."

Personally I think it was just a chance for him to say "Oooo oooo oooo look at how fast I am" *Rolls Eyes* Why does he care? Did her finishing in 5 and change impede on HIS time? No. So he should just STFU!

Anonymous said...

I agree with WS-Wes-J~mom-Joe & Marcy!!! No one understands the challenge of each individual and the hard earned efforts of training for their marathon. Especially for those of us who lacked confidence in our younger years to participate in any sport activity. I myself didnt start running until the age of 40 and words of ignorant individuals can never take my thunder away.
Take it easy until the back feels better. You dont want to prolong the healing time by going out too soon. It is amazing how fast our spirit drops when we can't run..
Hope you heal quickly :)

Michelle said...

Mary, I saw that letter in People magazine too (I admit, I buy the thing often) and I was so ticked off!! That person was a jerk. Although it irritated me, I realized that the person with the flaw was him (I am assuming he's a he, with a name like Rory) and that although I will never finish a marathon in 2 1/2 hours, that I am still proud of the accomplishments I have done.

And for the record, Oprah finished her marathon quite a bit faster than Katie Holmes did. Not that it matters.....

Jess said...

I agree whole heartedly with Wendy and the others.

Unknown said...

I'm glad I didn't read that. It would totally TICK ME OFF.

I'm so freaking tired of people berating others because they are less athletically giften.

Anyone who is out there running for 5.5 hrs deserves a medal and some congratulations. That is a long time to stick with something.

Yay for Katie. Yay for Oprah. Yay for all of us who set a goal and work our butts off to reach it!!

Marathoner in Training said...

I hope that you are feeling better soon, I really like your tree with the lights. I miss the snow. I think that people who write like that should shut up. If you are able to finish it, without taking a nap or a cab, then you should be congratulated.

Nancy said...

Oh my, it makes me sad that people have opinions like that.

Sorry to hear about 0 miles. Does this mean you will or won't run 8 on the 8th?? Hope you will get out there will all of us!! :D Stop by my site for a shirt and remember to let me know if you do run and post about it. Good luck.

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Fiona said...

Hi, I was reading through this - and noticed that you had removed the response of RoryG to the comments. Based on my reading of this issue at this link: http://immediateremedial.wordpress.com/2007/11/29/people-mailbag-12102007/
I think that there are a number of different views on this issue - but that it is clear that Rory was disappointed that the word "impressive" was used in relation to a young, fit woman who ran a 5.5 hour marathon just because she was a celebrity. Your readers might have had a clearer idea of what Rory meant if you left his posts up. I hope that you will reconsider re-instating RoryG's posts. You may not agree with him at the end of the day - but I think that it helps us grow and become more aware when we consider and debate points of view that we do not share. In so doing, I think that we come to understand humanity and see through the differences to what we all have in common. Wisetara did that. I hope that you can too. I wish you all the best in running and in life!

Mary Gee said...

Thanks for your comment Fiona. You will note that Rory's comments were deleted by the "author"... that would be Rory, not me. I would have loved to have seen what he wrote. But I never got the chance. I didn't mean to beat up on him... I just didn't understand how someone else's slow run could diminish a great performance by him or anyone else. And at the time, I didn't even realize that Rory was a famous runner, I just attributed his comments in the People letter to him because it was drummed into me in school that you always cite your source.