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Relax Boston Standards? (Read 411 times)

    I wish they would relax the qualifying requirements for the Olympics, that way mom could watch me in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 as I go for the gold.


    No more marathons

      I wish they would relax the qualifying requirements for the Olympics, that way mom could watch me in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 as I go for the gold.

      Good onel.  I could beat Usain Bolt if I had a 75 meter head start.  (maybe)

      Boston 2014 - a 33 year journey

      Lordy,  I hope there are tapes. 

      He's a leaker!

      AmoresPerros


      Options,Account, Forums

        I wish they would relax the qualifying requirements for the Olympics, that way mom could watch me in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 as I go for the gold.

         

        Just move to a less competitive country. If no athletes meet the B standard, they can enter you anyway.

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

          What is this "Marathon Man"?  He keeps ending up on my facebook feeds too....everyday.

          heelgrad92


            I finished Boston with a BQ-4:47, but I am starting to worry about whether that will be fast enough now.  I don't expect to see a surge of people qualifying in the hot summer races, it's not something most people can just roll off the couch and accomplish, but I wonder how many more people with qualifying times will apply to get in.  If I had been able to do math a little better near the end, perhaps I could have dug and found those last 17 seconds to get below BQ-5.

            Trent


            Good Bad & The Monkey

              Hell the charity spots are harder to get than the qualifying spots at Boston.

               

              Don't let that stop you.

              Trent


              Good Bad & The Monkey

                Lets not sneer at anyone who runs Boston. I'm good with that.

                 

                Well, except the bandits. Especially calf bandit.

                 

                This.

                bhearn


                  I finished Boston with a BQ-4:47, but I am starting to worry about whether that will be fast enough now. ...  If I had been able to do math a little better near the end, perhaps I could have dug and found those last 17 seconds to get below BQ-5.

                   

                  Well probably it will be fast enough, but who knows. However, there's little practical difference between -4:47 and -5. Yes, you get to put your name in two days earlier, but in the end there will probably be some time cutoff anyway, BQ-X, and everyone faster will get in, everyone slower will not. There's no actual advantage in getting to put your name in two days early. It just makes it look more complicated.

                   

                  I wish *I* had dug a little deeper, and run the 14 seconds faster I needed for a guaranteed NY entry! Ah well. I've already run NY.

                  xhristopher


                     wish *I* had dug a little deeper, and run the 14 seconds faster I needed for a guaranteed NY entry! Ah well. I've already run NY.

                     

                    But you can qualify for NY with a half. It's much "easier" that way. Last year I qualified for Boston with 4 seconds to spare and this year I qualified for NY with 4 seconds to spare. I have no near term plans for NY though.


                    New skirt in town

                      Oh I agree about the 'exempt' bibs that clubs and corporations get are important to the race ...I just get annoyed that no one makes fun of them, but folks always dis the Charity runners.   They pay their entry fee, raise money all year and they are runners too.  But folks like to sneer at them for not 'having qualified'.   But they aren't the only ones who don't qualify.

                       

                      Totally agree with this.  I've qualified for Boston the past 8 years that I've run it, and I've also run with a charity team for 4 of those years.  I hate the sneering at charity runners, and I always feel compelled to announce that I've qualified and have my own bib number.

                       

                      That doesn't speak to the point of this thread, though.  I don't know what the answers are, but I must say that I really appreciate the fact that the BAA is taking time and thoroughly considering options before announcing what their intentions are for next year's race.  There are a lot of terrific ideas that have come out of this thread alone, and I'm sure they are weighing out many, many other options.  I'm really looking forward to next year's race.

                       

                      --Robin

                      NO  MO MELANOMA! Help me run 26.2 miles and raise $5000 for the Melanoma Foundation of NE.  Visit this page to learn more:  http://tinyurl.com/NO-MO-MELANOMA

                        Maybe everyone saw this video already but Grilk and McGillivray hint pretty heavily that they want to increase the field but that is contingent on the communities along the route.  Perhaps that is something that is true every year, but maybe the towns might be more willing for 2014.

                        Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say, It is well, it is well with my soul.


                        A Saucy Wench

                          No way, ridiculous.  Part of the appeal of Boston is that you have to earn the right to be there.  Shadow runs are a great idea, and I'm sure there are plenty of other ways to support Boston, but leave the marathon the way it is.

                           

                          Amen.

                           

                          Jeezus, I have to say Boston, for me, is the kind of marathon I would have avoided  like the plague (crowded, noisy, have to bus one of the directions, expensive) if it were not ....BOSTON.

                           

                          Take away qualifying you might as well just sell the race to Rock 'n' Roll and get it over with.

                          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

                          Julia1971


                             

                            I wish *I* had dug a little deeper, and run the 14 seconds faster I needed for a guaranteed NY entry! Ah well. I've already run NY.

                             

                            This year, qualifiers are also subject to a separate lottery of their own so entry is not guaranteed.  Sad

                             

                            ETA:  Not a lottery per se but only 2,000 qualifiers will be accepted.

                            heelgrad92


                               

                              This year, qualifiers are also subject to a separate lottery of their own so entry is not guaranteed.  Sad

                               

                              ETA:  Not a lottery per se but only 2,000 qualifiers will be accepted.

                               

                              This is a perfect example of why you don't make any changes to any marathon based on some unforeseeable event like weather or what happened in Boston.  Qualifying for New York is much more difficult than qualifying for Boston, and yet I have heard that only 1 in 6 qualifiers are going to get in.


                              Imminent Catastrophe

                                Adding a 4th wave for folks who were stopped short seems like the best solution.

                                "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.

                                 

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