Forums >Racing>2 die running Philly Marathon
Fight The Future
This person thinks the solution is to limit caffeine and not speed up the last mile:
http://articles.nydailynews.com/2011-11-01/news/30347967_1_lewis-g-maharam-sudden-death-caffeine
I wish it was that simple. In my last race, I couldn't resist cranking it as much as I could for the last downhill kilometer. (but I was ready to slow down if I got chest pain).
I wonder if autopsies have actually found high levels of caffeine in marathon death people?
Good Bad & The Monkey
It is a race. You are supposed to run hard and fast. And if you can at the end, that is what you do.
Where is the good empiric research evidence linking caffeine with sudden marathon death?
(hint: don't waste much time looking for it)
I'm running somewhere tomorrow. It's going to be beautiful. I can't wait.
Poor baby
It is a race. You are supposed to run hard and fast. And if you can at the end, that is what you do. Where is the good empiric research evidence linking caffeine with sudden marathon death? (hint: don't waste much time looking for it)
that's what I thought, too
It is a race. You are supposed to run hard and fast.
Yesterday I did one without the other.
Options,Account, Forums
But you're a lunatic. Which yesterday last weekend only goes to confirm.
It's a 5k. It hurt like hell...then I tried to pick it up. The end.
Very sad news, I ran the half in Philly and had no idea this happened.
Bart Yasso was calling the race, by the way. I wonder what he had to say about these deaths.
Have you qualified for Boston? I want to interview you!
Message me!
www.miloandthecalf.com
He has posted in facebook and tweetered about it a few times. Bugged him a lot, but he hasn't publicly theorized that I've seen.
Imminent Catastrophe
Non-runner dies while not running
"Able to function despite imminent catastrophe"
"To obtain the air that angels breathe you must come to Tahoe"--Mark Twain
"The most common question from potential entrants is 'I do not know if I can do this' to which I usually answer, 'that's the whole point'.--Paul Charteris, Tarawera Ultramarathon RD.
√ Javelina Jundred Jalloween 2015
Cruel Jewel 50 mile May 2016
Western States 100 June 2016
(I shouldn't be getting into this debate... I shouldn't be getting into this debate... I shouldn't be getting into this debate....)
I agree but not because of the sensitivity of the subject, just because your argument makes no sense.
Your heart rate monitor offers no protection against cardiac abnormalities and you have no idea whether either of the deceased was wearing one. It is doubtful that after several hours of running at marathon pace either of them could have gotten their heart rates up enough to cause alarm, even if a high heart rate at the end of a race was cause for alarm in the first place. Trying to redefine the words "race" and "challenge" doesn't change these basic truths. Running beyond your time tested limits is pretty much the definition of a race for most people--it is where you establish your limits.
If you have an un-diagnosed heart condition then running a marathon is a risky thing to do, but so is shoveling snow or sitting on the couch watching football. Here's to the ones who live every last minute of their lives.
Runners run
Here's to the ones who live every last minute of their lives.
+1
Here's an article about one of the runners who died on Sunday. I ran the marathon there, but didn't hear about this until after I was at home.
http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/Philadelphia-marathon-claims-area-man-2280690.php
Well said. You can train your ass off and be in incredible cardio shape, but when that weakness finally gives, you're going down. It's just your time.
Sad that he died, seems he was a good man, but at least he went out on his terms, doing something that was important to him. We should all be so "lucky".
Gulp. Wish I hadn't seen his picture. Ran the first mile with him....he was wearing a shirt from the American Zofingen, a pretty tough race we'd both done, and we talked about that.
He was running near, maybe a little ahead, of the 3:10 pace group. Near the end of the race, I guess I passed him as he was getting aid.....there were people huddled around somebody with about 300 yards to go. That's not a completely unusual sight towards the end of a marathon, and I was pretty focused on finishing, so I didn't think much about it. It wasn't 'til later in the afternoon when I was ego-surfing searching for results that I learned of the two deaths....Sad.
My condolences to the families of the deceased.
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Removing oneself from the tragedy and trying to look at the issue of death during a race is difficult. First of all, death during a race is a very rare occurrence. I'm sure we could look up activities such as driving or riding a bike and get some comparisons, but I'm not sure it's particularly useful.
In retrospect, are some of these deaths avoidable? The article by the running doctor mentions not sprinting when close to the finish line and not exceeding a certain threshold of caffeine consumption. My recollection of a pamphlet I read at a recent marathon was that if you are not used to sprinting at the end of your training runs, then don't do it during the race. I suppose that makes sense as far as not adding something you didn't do during training. But is that the cause or potential cause of some of these heart attacks? Maybe. I recall running faster at the end of my races, but I certainly wouldn't call that "sprinting"... more like picking up the pace.
I recall reading Competitor magazine a while back and they mentioned a study in which they did an analysis of those who suffered heart attacks during races. Caffeine consumption appeared elevated in a significant percentage of the victims (clearly, not all heart attack victims died). It's tough to make a relationship based on this study alone though. If the question had been, how many of you ate carbs before the race and 100% of them said they did, would you be tempted to say that carbs are a potential cause of heart attacks during a race? (I'm being facetious here). I just think that a deeper analysis needs to be made regarding caffeine consumption. Personally, I avoid caffeine for reasons other than its impact on running (one cup of coffee in the morning will have me tossing and turning all night).
Here's a rehash of the article:
http://www.aims-association.org/articles/IMMDA_Sudden_death_and_how_to_avoid_it_3.20.10.pdf