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Getting into running sums it up for me on a personal level. When I ran my first marathon, I was the only person in my close friends and family that had ever ra

Getting into running sums it up for me on a personal level. When I ran my first marathon, I was the only person in my close friends and family that had ever ran one. Just running one was exceptional. At that point, you feel proud to be the runner people know personally but there's not a lot to talk about in depth. Then I got faster. I qualified for the Boston Marathon. My times put put me in the top 1-2% of anyone running them. This is a running goal that more "serious" runners associate with, at least. It's still bit broad, but it's relatable. Then I went longer. I ended up outright winning an ultramarathon as well as some other top finishes. In the region of the US I lived, there wasn't too many people doing exceptionally better at those kind of events. The community was small and inclusive enough where I felt like I fit in somewhat. Then I moved to Colorado. There are lots of professional and competitive runners. I realized I wasn't national class, but perhaps competitive locally. Again, I fit in with a small group of people. Then finally, I found some popular running message boards that focus on all types of running, but with a large emphasis on the world class. Everything I have done is dime a dozen in this realm. There is a very large "community" - but it comes with lots of negativity, jealousy, and gawking at world class athletes. There's a couple sweet spots in there where I feel a decent combination of achievement and community, but comparing myself to the whole world (and all of history) doesn't seem to do it for me.

bo1024 8y ago
I can relate to this, but I think that also if you go through it, and come out the other side, you gain some perspective and appreciation. It forces you to ask yourself why you're doing it, if you'll never be the best. You can learn to appreciate effort, dedication, and enjoyment for their own sake, and recognize this in others of all abilities. In running for example, comments on Letsrun notwithstanding, most very good runners seem to grok this after a while.
- ErikAugust 8y ago
  This is a important point to make. I’ve asked myself, “Even if you never achieved another PR again, or even raced again, would you still run?” The answer is “Yes.” I’m lucky enough to have this happen to me in a couple other disciplines so I came into it with more perspective. LetsRun also has thr NCAA Division I focus, and that is a pressure cooker environment I was never a part of, and I think shapes a certain worldview there.
hesdeadjim 8y ago
In my experience Colorado has been a great place to practice mediocrity. I hit a major plateau in climbing about four years ago after hitting 5.12d in the gym and 5.11 lead outside. No matter what I did, I could never seem to push past it and I quickly recognized that without a serious climbing-focused training program it just wasn't going to happen. Slowly but surely this lack of progress drained the fun out of the sport for me, and after a minor injury I stopped completely. Fast forward a few years, I get into mountain biking. The same thing starts to happen. I become focused on speed, distance, difficulty, and anything else quantifiable. Thankfully after my experience with climbing I was able to put the breaks on that type of thinking. Now when I go out I purposefully do not record my time, my distance, my heart rate, or anything else. No Strava. No Runkeeper. Nothing. The only measure of progress I allow myself is how much sustain I have over the course of a ride. And even that I will sometimes purposefully ruin by taking breaks I do not need. And surprise -- I am having an absolute blast, my skills and endurance have skyrocketed, I'm riding trails I never imagined I would, and it's all because I go out with the intention of having fun and not setting a new PR.
- saiya-jin 8y ago
  I can relate to this very much - all gizmos measuring various attributes seem to effectively remove the most important aspect of these sports/activities - fun, and hence in long term much of the motivation. Suddenly you have some metrics, you see that last week you improved, this week you perform like cr_p, and that guy is so much better than you. It's some sort of obscure facebook effect when sport becomes very competitive. Its all great if you're a pro and you have to improve, you have to track progress etc. But for mere mortals, it's worse than useless. I just can't imagine the mindset I would have to have to really benefit anyhow from these devices. I use some old crappy Suunto watches that barely measure altitude (for hikes/aki alpinism), compass stopped working and I used them mainly for time only. If they die I definitely won't be buying any other. On my bike, simple computer died 2 years ago, so I have no clue about speed, distance etc. Again, its great, just road and me and the bike. Being very competitive in my book is a quite negative personality trait - never happy, always comparing themselves to others. On the outside it might look great, but inside it's not. I have no need to support this behavior.

bo1024 8y ago

I can relate to this, but I think that also if you go through it, and come out the other side, you gain some perspective and appreciation. It forces you to ask yourself why you're doing it, if you'll never be the best. You can learn to appreciate effort, dedication, and enjoyment for their own sake, and recognize this in others of all abilities. In running for example, comments on Letsrun notwithstanding, most very good runners seem to grok this after a while.

ErikAugust 8y ago
This is a important point to make. I’ve asked myself, “Even if you never achieved another PR again, or even raced again, would you still run?” The answer is “Yes.” I’m lucky enough to have this happen to me in a couple other disciplines so I came into it with more perspective. LetsRun also has thr NCAA Division I focus, and that is a pressure cooker environment I was never a part of, and I think shapes a certain worldview there.

hesdeadjim 8y ago

In my experience Colorado has been a great place to practice mediocrity. I hit a major plateau in climbing about four years ago after hitting 5.12d in the gym and 5.11 lead outside. No matter what I did, I could never seem to push past it and I quickly recognized that without a serious climbing-focused training program it just wasn't going to happen. Slowly but surely this lack of progress drained the fun out of the sport for me, and after a minor injury I stopped completely. Fast forward a few years, I get into mountain biking. The same thing starts to happen. I become focused on speed, distance, difficulty, and anything else quantifiable. Thankfully after my experience with climbing I was able to put the breaks on that type of thinking. Now when I go out I purposefully do not record my time, my distance, my heart rate, or anything else. No Strava. No Runkeeper. Nothing. The only measure of progress I allow myself is how much sustain I have over the course of a ride. And even that I will sometimes purposefully ruin by taking breaks I do not need. And surprise -- I am having an absolute blast, my skills and endurance have skyrocketed, I'm riding trails I never imagined I would, and it's all because I go out with the intention of having fun and not setting a new PR.

saiya-jin 8y ago
I can relate to this very much - all gizmos measuring various attributes seem to effectively remove the most important aspect of these sports/activities - fun, and hence in long term much of the motivation. Suddenly you have some metrics, you see that last week you improved, this week you perform like cr_p, and that guy is so much better than you. It's some sort of obscure facebook effect when sport becomes very competitive. Its all great if you're a pro and you have to improve, you have to track progress etc. But for mere mortals, it's worse than useless. I just can't imagine the mindset I would have to have to really benefit anyhow from these devices. I use some old crappy Suunto watches that barely measure altitude (for hikes/aki alpinism), compass stopped working and I used them mainly for time only. If they die I definitely won't be buying any other. On my bike, simple computer died 2 years ago, so I have no clue about speed, distance etc. Again, its great, just road and me and the bike. Being very competitive in my book is a quite negative personality trait - never happy, always comparing themselves to others. On the outside it might look great, but inside it's not. I have no need to support this behavior.