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May 20, 2024 |
NatNews |
ISSUE 114 |
OFFICIALLY UNOFFICIAL OR UNOFFICIALLY OFFICIAL?
While completing any race is an achievement for an individual, finishing a marathon is often one that instills a certain amount of pride and accomplishment of a different level. Some runners, however, recently finished a marathon but aren’t considered official finishers. Many races, especially marathons, have time limits that participants must meet. What those time limits are, though, can become confusing if runners don’t fully understand them prior to and during the race. For the Boston Marathon, that cutoff time is 6 hours. However, it’s not per individual—it’s 6 hours from when the final starter crosses the start line. Those who are already past that line don’t know when the last person crosses, which created an undesired situation for multiple participants this year. In April’s annual race, almost 500 runners crossed the finish line after that 6-hour time limit, though many of them didn’t know that their results weren’t official until they checked them later online. Unsurprisingly, this caused quite a controversy. The time cutoffs are in place for a variety of reasons, many of which are logistical—after all, races require volunteers, road closures, water and hydration stations, and a variety of other people and factors required to ensure that the events are executed successfully. Dallas resident Alfonzo Gonzalez said another concern is the money it takes for any city or organization to host a race. “Races do need cutoff times due to race officials paying for employees and officers on the course,” he said. “No cutoff time would increase registration fees.” Because of such necessities, Dallas-area resident Ivan Alonzo said he believes that when an individual registers for a race, he or she should understand the need for the event having an explicit time in which people must finish. “As a participant, you need to consider the logistics required to put on said event,” he said. “If your primary goal is to complete a specific distance, then why not just do it on your own on a course of your own choosing?” Similarly, Dallas-area resident Carolyn Macduff Levanway said race cutoff times are necessary for a multitude of reasons, especially considering how many adjustments a city must make when hosting such an event and how much time and energy are required from those who help to ensure that everything runs smoothly. “It’s not possible to shut down entire streets or sections of a city all day,” she said. “Plus, you’re asking a lot of volunteers, police, medical teams, pacers, and spectators. At some point, you need a cutoff.” The question then becomes how to determine what that cutoff time is. As mentioned, many runners in Boston didn’t know when the final starter had crossed the start line and ended up missing that 6-hour mark because of their lack of awareness. In the Tokyo Marathon, cutoff times are provided to participants well in advance of the race, and runners have been pulled off of the course and not permitted to finish the marathon if they didn’t make it to certain distances in specific allocated time frames. There’s no one consistent practice used by all races, and though Alonzo is not sure there’s a simple solution, he said he believes each runner should have the same amount of time to finish a race.
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“If the allotted time is, for example, 7 hours, then everyone should have 7 hours to complete the event,” he said. “That said, I’m not sure how to do this to ensure that participants with faster expected finish times get seeded toward the front while also allowing those with slower finish times the full 7 hours. It’s not reasonable to hold events for specific times. Perhaps that means seeding people who are aiming to ‘compete’ toward the front, while those aiming to ‘complete’ are toward the back. Again, I am not sure this is the best solution, but it should be understood that there needs to be a cutoff time.” Macduff Levanway said she thinks the allotted time should be per runner when that individual personally crosses the start line. “You can’t communicate to all runners when the last person crosses the start line,” she said. “My friend was the last person to start the Boston Marathon this year, and there was no way the runners and volunteers could all be notified. It’s just easier to have individual start times.” So, should the participants in this year’s Boston Marathon who unknowingly didn’t make the cutoff be official finishers? And should runners who don’t make the cutoff but still finish in other races have official times? In Gonzalez’s opinion, what matters is if the clock is still rolling when runners in such situations complete the race. “If the timing mats are up and working when they cross the finish line, it should be official,” he said. For Macduff Levanway, it’s more of a gray area. “Technically, their times shouldn’t count,” she said. “But these runners work so hard to train and cross the finish line. I don’t feel right in saying confidently that their times shouldn’t count, especially if they are within a couple minutes of the cutoff.” It’s a bit clearer in Alonzo’s viewpoint—he said he doesn’t think runners should be considered “official” finishers if they don’t actually complete a course according to the rules and requirements, noting that when a person registers, that individual accepts that he or she must run the distance within the allotted time. “The cutoff time can also serve as the motivation needed to push, train, and prepare to do something that is out of your comfort zone,” he said. “Without it, there’s no reason to celebrate the act of completing the event.” |
DID YOU KNOW?
Lightning can be as hot as 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit—approximately 5 times as hot as the surface of the sun. |
THE LIMIT DOES NOT EXIST — IS THIS TRUE WHEN IT COMES TO ONE'S PRIME?
A well-regarded NatNews dear reader recently surfaced a discussion as to when an individual is considered in his or her “prime” in life. After extensive research in an online poll, 7 percent of respondents said this occurs in one’s 20s or early 30s, 32 percent said it’s during one’s late 30s and/or 40s, 5 percent said it’s in one’s 50s or older, and 56 percent said there is no age limit to one’s prime. As requested by many dear readers, the ages breakdown in each response is as follows: 50 percent of those who said 20s or early 30s are actually in that age group, 61 percent of respondents who answered late 30s and/or 40s are in that age range, 100 percent of the individuals who said 50s or older are at least 50, and all age groups were represented in the response claiming there no limit. Dallas-area resident Megan England said she believes that movies and social media try to tell people that their prime occurs when they are in their 20s. “We are young and good-looking and carefree,” she said. “Allegedly.” But that’s not the age range England would classify as her best so far, as she believes that occurred while she was in her 30s, a decade she left last fall when she turned 40. “I have established myself and my career,” she said. “I have begun creating economic stability for myself. I have confidence—in my career, whom I chose to surround myself with, and having adventures. And, most importantly, I have confidence in myself.” For Dallas resident Juanita James, the “prime time” years occur when one is in his or her 50s, which she believes is a time one begins to look at life differently. “You realize that there are more years behind you instead of in front of you,” she said. “You’ve learned not to take everything so seriously.” And James, who is in her 50s, said she has enjoyed some of the best years of her life in this current era as a result of newfound perspectives. “My priorities shifted,” she said. “The things I used to stress about are no longer as important as creating memories. In my mid-50s, I learned how to set boundaries and not feel guilty about it. I have a new confidence within myself that came from life lessons. I’m finally able to relax and enjoy life.” |
For Dallas-area resident Josh Odegard, there’s no limit to when a person is in his or her prime. He also said that determining such a status depends on how the term is defined. “If you mean financially, I think (hope) most people continue to get more financially stable and well-off as they age in life,” he said. “If you mean physically, that depends on the person. I’ve been physically active every year of my life, but I was probably at my peak performance and ability in my 30s.” And his 30s were the decade in which Odegard said he had the most fun—at least so far, that is. During that time in his life, there was plenty happening and keeping him entertained on a consistent basis. “I was playing much more soccer; there were more parties; I was trying lots of new things; I was making lots of new friends; and there was just more fun and partying, in general,” he said. “But I also didn’t start making friends or being social until my late 20s.” There’s a well-known idiom that claims that “age is just a number,” posing the idea that the actual years one has lived don’t determine that person’s abilities, qualities, or potential. James supports this notion and said it’s one of her favorite sayings. “Your age does not define what you can or cannot do or wear,” she said. “People will always have opinions, regardless of your age, so do whatever makes your heart happy.” Similarly, England doesn’t believe a number defines her and said she is as young or as old as she allows herself to feel. “I think when I was younger, looking down on being ‘old’ was simply because I was ignorant about what was really the secret of life,” she said. If you’re searching for that secret of life, you might also ask Odegard, who considers himself living proof that it doesn’t matter how many birthdays a person has celebrated when it comes to the youthfulness of his or her lifestyle. “I definitely believe that age is just a number,” he said, “because I can—and do—still out-party most people in their 20s!”
WEEKLY PHOTO OP Sweet Fitzgerald Cruz recently supported the Dallas Mavericks while enjoying a festive treat |
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