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Why are 5K so popular and prevalent ? (Read 1186 times)

     

    Doug B is Clydesdale  190+?  I should get in there, I seem to be bottoming at 190-192.

     Clydesdale is usually considered 200+ lbs. 

     

    IMHO should be sliding scale based on height instead of lbs alone.  a 6' 3"  200 lb is not as "heavy as a 5' 7" 200 pounder.

     

    I really like the athena category (Not sure of weight limit) as would not want to offend woman by calling them a horse like guys, lets call them a warrior princess!

    "It's supposed to be hard. If it wasn't hard, everyone would do it. The hard... is what makes it Great!

      If they weigh me in trainers and I have a couple of tastycakes I do crack 200

       

      "Athena" is a good category name.  Probably better than Cruiserweight, heavyweight, and superheavyweight. 

       

      It does seem though 10Ks are shrinking and 5K's are growing, so are marathons (growing). 

      AmoresPerros


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         Clydesdale is usually considered 200+ lbs. 

         

        IMHO should be sliding scale based on height instead of lbs alone.  a 6' 3"  200 lb is not as "heavy as a 5' 7" 200 pounder.

         

        I really like the athena category (Not sure of weight limit) as would not want to offend woman by calling them a horse like guys, lets call them a warrior princess!

         I have seen 150lbs used for Athena limit.

         

        In Delaware in the running races, they call them Clydesdales (m) and Fillies (f), apparently.

        It's a 5k. It hurt like hell...then I tried to pick it up. The end.

        Teresadfp


        One day at a time

          150 pounds??  That's the weight the doctor told me I should be, and am!  I'm 5'-9" tall.  I don't feel big, lol.


          Right on Hereford...

             I totally agree with you.  For me the 4.5 - 5 miles a day is "good enough" for me to get into 5k shape.  I dont expect myself to run a 5k in under 18 minutes anytime ever. 

             

             

            Why set limits on yourself already? Your average pace on your daily runs is a lot faster than mine, and I'm trying to break 18 minutes this year. At least don't rule it out before you've even raced a 5k!

               Clydesdale is usually considered 200+ lbs. 

               

              Minimum weight limits for Clydesdales and Fillies are not standardized. Depending on the race, Clydesdales divisions can start as low as 165 lbs and Fillies as low as 135 lbs.

               

              For instance, the Chicago Area Running Association has established:

              • Clydesdale weight divisions of 170-184, 185-199, 200-224, and 225+
              • Fillies weight divisions of 135-144, 145-154, 155-169, and 170+

                Why set limits on yourself already? Your average pace on your daily runs is a lot faster than mine, and I'm trying to break 18 minutes this year. At least don't rule it out before you've even raced a 5k!

                 

                I think it speaks to precicely the reason why 5k's are so popular and I don't see why all the debate.  The 5k is popular because anyone can run one.  It's an event where serious runners and twice-a-month joggers and the nearly totally sedentary and 10-year-old girls and new moms and dads pushing jogging strollers and...just about anyone else can all participate.

                 

                And from an RD's perpective if you want cheap, simple logistics and the ability to attract numbers, it's tough to beat a 5k.

                 

                Serious runners like them because "it's only 5k" and so the recovery is minimal and you can race them often.  Non-runners like them because "it's only 5k" and just about anyone can finish that.  And lots of people in betwen like them because "it's only 5k."

                Runners run

                   IMHO should be sliding scale based on height instead of lbs alone.  a 6' 3"  200 lb is not as "heavy as a 5' 7" 200 pounder.

                   

                  I really like the athena category (Not sure of weight limit) as would not want to offend woman by calling them a horse like guys, lets call them a warrior princess!

                   

                  call me an ox or a hippo if you want.  I don't care what they call the division.  I just wish they actually had them.  I know of no race within 50 miles of the Milwaukee area that uses them other than the Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon which uses 195 pounds. 

                   

                  I would agree with you on the height thing if there was much evidence to back it up but it appears to me that assuming they have the same training, a guy 5'8" and 210 pounds is about the same as a guy 6'8" and 210 pounds.  I don't often see either one of them in the top of their age group.  I know of no elite marathon runners over 170 pounds no matter what height.  Maybe there are some but I have not heard of them. 

                   

                   

                   

                   


                  A Saucy Wench


                    Anyways, none of the above is meant as an argument or counter.

                    I like 10K, and they seem to be getting to be something of a rare bird, harder and harder to find. The 5K dominates in my area.


                     

                    Seems to be regional. There are a lot of 10K's here, but no 10 milers or other intermediate distances.  And while there are a fair number of 5K funruns, finding one that is actually meant to be raced is pretty tough around here.  "Why should the slower people start at the back, we shouldnt have to go farther just because we are slow" is a fairly common attitude.

                     

                    I find 10K more pleasant than 5K

                     

                    As for Athena/Clydesdale - I did my first triathlon and naively registered as an Athena.  If I had stuck to my age group I would have been about midpack.  As an Athena I was near the bottom.   Seriously fast, tall athletic women.  And some slightly chubby very muscular athletic women.   In the Clydesdale category, my ex-boss competed as a 6'3" 5% bodyfat highly competitive guy.

                    I have become Death, the destroyer of electronic gadgets

                     

                    "When I got too tired to run anymore I just pretended I wasnt tired and kept running anyway" - dd, age 7

                      As shown in Running USA's Annual Report of the State of the Sport, the number of road race finishers more than doubled in 20 years from 3,770,000 in 1987 to 8,875,000 in 2007....and of the 5.1 million increase, 70% were women.

                       

                      Prior to the dramatic growth in the number of road racers, known as the Second Running Boom, the 10k was the most popular and available race distance. That began to change in the late 1980s with a shift from 10k to 8k in popularity. The transition continued from 8k to 5k during the 1990s. Today, the 5k dominates the road racing scene....Running USA's report shows 7900 5k races with 3,423,000 finishers in 2007 compared to 1,130,000 finishers in 1930 10k races.

                       

                      IMHO, the transition from 10k to 5k was simply a result of "supply and demand". Much of the growth in the number of road racers has been in a category that I call "recreational racers" as opposed to "serious racers". Racing (or at least finishing) the 5k distance requires less preparation (read "time and effort") than longer distances, which makes it easier for the recreational racer to participate. And those who sponsor and conduct the races were more than willing to accomodate the trend since the shorter distances require fewer resources, cost less to produce, and impose less disruption on non-running communities.

                       

                      I do think that the shift has been detrimental to the training regimens of serious racers, especially marathoners. For a look at the difference it made to one runner (me), see the Supplemental Personal Data at the end of Ultimate Speed Workout.

                       

                      BTW, a similar trend has been on-going for the last few years at the other end of the spectrum....marathon vs. half marathon. The number of half marathon finishers increased by 75% from 1998 to 2007 while the number of marathon finishers increased by less than half that amount. And the trend seems to be increasing....the number of HM finishers increased by 10% from 2006 to 2007 while the number of marathon finishers remained the same. The growth in popularity of the HM is comparable to that of the 5k; it just started about 10 years later.

                         

                        Minimum weight limits for Clydesdales and Fillies are not standardized. Depending on the race, Clydesdales divisions can start as low as 165 lbs and Fillies as low as 135 lbs.

                         

                        For instance, the Chicago Area Running Association has established:

                        • Clydesdale weight divisions of 170-184, 185-199, 200-224, and 225+
                        • Fillies weight divisions of 135-144, 145-154, 155-169, and 170+

                         

                         

                        LOL!  That's amazing.  I haven't been 165lbs since 5th grade. 

                          BTW, a similar trend has been on-going for the last few years at the other end of the spectrum....marathon vs. half marathon. The number of half marathon finishers increased by 75% from 1998 to 2007 while the number of marathon finishers increased by less than half that amount. And the trend seems to be increasing....the number of HM finishers increased by 10% from 2006 to 2007 while the number of marathon finishers remained the same. The growth in popularity of the HM is comparable to that of the 5k; it just started about 10 years later.

                           

                           

                          That is what we see a lot here in Ohio,  Cleveland marathon had almost 4000 Half marathoners and only 2200 Full finishers.  First half of course is packed but the second half gets sparse when 2/3rd of field make a right turn for home.

                           

                          I don't know if i would train for only a half marathon unless like in the past has been a steeping stone to a full...13.1 miles is a far way to run only half of something.  if / when I ever decide to stop running marathons I do not think I would ever run a half again....Maybe 15k/10 milers max?? 

                           

                          On 10k front it is very difficult to find 10ks and outside of the Clev marathon 10K, which gets 2000+ runners most fields are pretty small 150 - 200 runners.

                          "It's supposed to be hard. If it wasn't hard, everyone would do it. The hard... is what makes it Great!


                          Beginner all over again

                            Quote from MilkTruck on 6-4-2009 at 9:07 AM:

                            "what's behind the falling number of 10K and growing 5K".

                            maximizing profit for the charity. 

                            .

                            I think so too.


                            During the 1980's more runners completed a 10k race then any other road race distance.


                            I was running 10K's in the earlier 80s

                            I just started walking/running again (little 20-year break there)

                            and was Shocked @@ there are no 10K's around.  It was such a surprise to me.

                            I ran my first 5K (ever) last month

                             


                            Lazy idiot

                               

                               

                              I don't know if i would train for only a half marathon unless like in the past has been a steeping stone to a full...13.1 miles is a far way to run only half of something.  if / when I ever decide to stop running marathons I do not think I would ever run a half again....Maybe 15k/10 milers max?? 

                               

                              This isn't the first time I've heard something like this, and I'll confess that I don't really get it.  Would it change your mind if they called it something different, instead of half of something?  I mean, the marathon is really just a half-50-miler (more or less) if you think about it that way, so...

                               

                              It's a race distance, and one that's reasonably prevelant.   Reason enough for me to do one.

                               

                              Tick tock

                              Slo


                                 

                                This isn't the first time I've heard something like this, and I'll confess that I don't really get it.  Would it change your mind if they called it something different, instead of half of something?  I mean, the marathon is really just a half-50-miler (more or less) if you think about it that way, so...

                                 

                                It's a race distance, and one that's reasonably prevelant.   Reason enough for me to do one.

                                 

                                 

                                I agree Drew

                                 

                                I just did a 20k and found that distance to be quite enjoyable. We have 2 "Classic Distance" races in this area that are 13.1 miles. I'll will be doing more of these in the future.

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