Runners on what they would change about Toronto races

It's fantastic to see the sport of running is alive and well in Toronto. The passion? It's there too. In fact, I was going to start off this second post about what runners would change about road races with a call to arms, but one of the runners who wrote back to me wrote this. I think I'll let it speak for itself before we get to the answers.

Take it away, Mark.

...What I don't think the wider community understands when they get irritated with us is that for many runners, the race has huge importance to them and their families. When they honk at some woman struggling through a full marathon they may be honking at someone who has taken up or intensified her running because she wants to feel whole and alive after losing a breast-or a husband. When there aren't people cheering on runners they're not cheering on the runner who has taken up running to feel alive and in control after surviving abuse as a child. These are the stories of many of those who run in our races. Just as we wouldn't grouse about the Labour Day Parade, or the Santa Claus Parade, etc., we shouldn't grouse about (at least a limited number of) these events. We should in fact be honouring and celebrating those who through running have taken control over their bodies and their lives and who are in many cases raising tons of money for local charities to give back in tangible ways to our community.  

Hand them a section of an orange and call the names on their bibs. Applaud. Wave signs. Volunteer to hand out water or pick up the cups. Runners may not be the soldiers who go off to battle for us but they're deserving of our respect and a place in the community on its streets, at least for a few hours on the odd Sunday morning.

That about sums up a lot. Well said.

After the Sporting Life 10K fiasco, I had a number of runners answer a call from the race sponsor for feedback. I asked them to give me thoughts about what they thought about Toronto's races. Five of them have kindly responded, and agreed to let me post their answers here with their identities. Their answers are amazing. Here they are: Mark, Andrea, Stan, Aaron and Mike. Race directors take note.

Below are answers from the last three questions.

Runners tell Toronto why races matter and what needs fixing

Why do races matter? It's clear that we're passionate about them in Toronto, and that runners deserve better than we've seen delivered of late: The finish-line fiasco at the Sporting Life 10K a week ago and water issues a week prior brought that to light.

I've been outspoken about bad races because as a runner, I felt the need to express what many of us were thinking but not many are saying in a more public manner. We often see organizers or running press gloss over fine details -- they focus on the elite, record setting numbers and sometimes forget that it's the many thousands of us who run and pay for the promise of a good road race. We are, at times, the after thought.

For me, races are one of those carrots that take me through my annual training rites, giving purpose to the miles aside from the pleasure I get from running (and believe me, I get plenty).  It's a 30K race that has me slog through January snowstorms, a May marathon that has me giving away sleep on Sundays. Races provide opportunities for me -- like other solo runners -- to gather with my broader community from time to time, see old friends and meet new ones. There are exceptional races, both big and small, and they are the community 'gathering place' of our running world.

What do other runners think? Am I alone? No, as it turns out.

Why we race

Ottawa Marathon race strategy guide and course outline

In a week, I'm headed to our nation's capital to run the Ottawa Marathon, the second time I'm doing that race. So it's about time that we put together an Ottawa Marathon race strategy guide and elevation profile so we can go over the course and potential tactics to take on the 42.2K race.

One thing I do realize, I never wrote up a race report last year which I regret since I typically use them to help me write these race guides. (Here's my Garmin data from last year's race)

Enter fellow marathoner and Ottawa run blogger Pat over at The Courage of Lungs. He's run the race four times so I'd consider him a true course expert. I asked Pat to contribute to this race guide and he obliged (thanks Pat!) with awesome section-by-section recap -- also helped me identify the different neighbourhoods.

Course description: The Ottawa Marathon course (see PDF) is a winding tour of Ottawa, constructed from some out and back portions. It takes you through various neighbourhoods where you can see the canal, vantage points of our Parliament buildings. You run into neighbouring Gatineau in Quebec, then on to Sussex Dr. where you will past the Prime Minister's official residence and the Governor General's. On to tony New Edinburgh, then back on Sussex. You complete the marathon along the canal, a quasi out-and-back

Behind Sporting Life 10K's white ribbons and why we're so mad

I wish I didn't have more to say about the Sporting Life 10K. In fact, in the seven years I've run it (my first was in 2005), I've had little to say other than race reports. This year, I've recapped water issues, finish-line fiascos in my post from earlier this week. Then the race director goes and blames runners.

The response to the blog posts this week show the passion among the runners here in Toronto -- many I know, many I haven't yet met. The comments here and the conversations I'm having with runners on the streets have zeroed in on one thing. Toronto should and must have better races. I wrote with the same scrutiny about the Scotiabank bag-check issue in 2011 and it proved one thing -- we can become a great running city, but our showcase events must show why we're up to the task. We're on the tip of something -- the sport is growing, becoming more inclusive and while we aspire to make this city on par with the DCs, New Yorks and Chicagos of the world, our ambition isn't matched by what we're showing the world with our biggest events.

In the conversations I've had, similar talking points have come up. Our races must be better, not just for pride, but also for safety issues. Water stations are key to our safety, especially in long distance races. Finish-line safety is just as important. I'll let the videos in my last post speak for themselves.

One more thing. I've been contacted by Sporting Life (the sponsor, not the race director) and they'd like to form an advisory board made of up some runners. If you're interested (I'm not, I strive to be an independent voice for the community), leave a message in the comments, DM me on Twitter or email me at yumkerun@gmail.com and I'll send some of your names to them. They want it to be transparent and I hope they will be.

OKAY. So, this post is about ribbons. It's just another thing and that makes me sad.

A few of us noticed that the medals that came with the race came with this oddly white ribbon. Most races that have medals have an array of colours and branding.

Done the #SL10K for camp Oochigeas for kids with cancer! Awesome cause and fun race, check out @campooch ! twitter.com/thecraigarnold…
— Craig Arnold (@thecraigarnold) May 12, 2013

I received a few pictures taken on May 4 that explain the white ribbons for the May 12 10K race..

May 5... er, May 12. Doh..

Take a look at the date. Yes, May 5, 2013 for Sporting Life 10K. Except it was one week early for a race run on May 12. So you can imagine what the race crew had to do -- yes, replace all the ribbons with white ones. These ones ended up in the picture below.

Jay Glassman on inexperienced runners and race etiquette

Some of you by now have read the jaw-dropping interview that Jay Glassman gave Canadian Running after the finish-line fiasco at the Sporting Life 10K.

Jay Glassman (YouTube)

His response -- particularly after Sporting Life the sponsor and Camp Oochigeas made comments on my previous post, promising that they'd look to improve the race -- seemed like a slap in the face. He essentially blames runners for the fiasco.

Read the full Canadian Running piece for context, but here's what he said in a nutshell.

I figure pictures do it all justice, so let me present to you, race advice on etiquette from Jay Glassman

LESSON 1: After the race, 'run it out'
“We had people in the chute trying to keep people moving, but we also had a lot inexperienced runners stopping. They don’t know they’re supposed to run it out.”




LESSON 2: Don't stop after races, even if you bump into a crowd  (That's Jay there, bottom left)
“Some of the runners became quite rude to both myself and my marshals in the chute when we asked them to continue moving through. It wasn’t that they were being stopped or held somewhere because of us, it was because they were stopping themselves.”