Forums >Racing>question about overall, masters, and age group placing
delicate flower
First master > first AG
You're going up against (realistically) an age group spanning 25 years with masters. AG is limited to 5 and 10 years. It is much harder to be the first masters. Great job, btw.
<3
You placed Xth overall. You were Zth male. You were 2nd male over 40 years old. "I won the award for 1st Masters Male." Congratulations!
You placed Xth overall.
You were Zth male.
You were 2nd male over 40 years old.
"I won the award for 1st Masters Male."
Congratulations!
This
And you can quote me as saying I was mis-quoted. Groucho Marx
Rob
Last year, I received a medal in the mail for 3rd in my age group in a marathon; it arrived a few weeks after the marathon. I re-checked the results, which showed that I was actually the 6th finisher in my age group (as I had thought). I e-mailed the race, pointed out their error, and offered to send it back. They wrote me back and very nicely explained that three of the finishers ahead of me were "Professional, Elite, or Recruited" athletes, and therefore ineligible for age group awards. This seems silly, but I still have the medal.
Me: "I received the 3rd place medal for my age group."
Last year, I received a medal in the mail for 3rd in my age group in a marathon; it arrived a few weeks after the marathon. I re-checked the results, which showed that I was actually the 6th finisher in my age group (as I had thought). I e-mailed the race, pointed out their error, and offered to send it back. They wrote me back and very nicely explained that three of the finishers ahead of me were "Professional, Elite, or Recruited" athletes, and therefore ineligible for age group awards. This seems silly, but I still have the medal. Me: "I received the 3rd place medal for my age group."
You should be in politics.
Dave
For sure.
The good thing is that nobody I know really gives a crap about my running enough to ask and if they give a crap, they already get it.
For sure. The good thing is that nobody I know really gives a crap about my running enough to ask and if they give a crap, they already get it.
Right. I've already made too many non-runners' heads explode explaining how I qualified for Boston but didn't get into Boston. Explaining how I didn't place in my age group but won an award for placing in my age group would be taking it too far.
Me too. And then, even this time, trying to explain why it will be April 2019 rather than 2018. Sigh. I did post that age group thing on facebook. Most of my family and friends just laughed and told me to take the award and run!
Still kicking
I've been in this position a lot. I Very often win my age group, am very competitive as a master, and still salty enough to eek out an overall from time to time. I take whatever they give me, and display it proudly, and brag about it accordingly. True story: two years ago I entered an 8K race. The RD was new at it, and didn't know the concept of double dipping. And it was a prize money race. The overall winner took his first place cash, and his age group cash, and left. When they got to my age group, I won the masters cash ($100) and my age group cash ($50). I went up to the podium, and told them to give the age group money to the 2nd place guy (a good friend of mine), because it wasn't fair to double dip. My friend and the RD would have nothing to do with that, and gave me the money. After everything was said and done and all the festivities were over, I talked to the RD, and he said they only realized their mistake after the winner double dipped and left. And they wanted to make sure everyone else in the race got treated the same way. Not only did the double dippers get to keep their money, but within a few days after the race, they sent money to the age group winners that should have gotten it. First class folks, great race. But the following year, they got it right... and I only went home with $50
I'm also on Athlinks and Strava
The only awards I stick around for are food, money or beer (or if they're really weird and showing a picture of them might make someone smile).
As far as "reporting" to other folks (which is mostly just online running freaks - no one else asks or cares) I just say where I was overall and as a master. If some 50+ beats me (and they do all the time), then I was second old dude. What the race gives as awards I don't count or care really.
Come all you no-hopers, you jokers and roguesWe're on the road to nowhere, let's find out where it goes
When somebody asks me how I did, I respond as such:
I came in xx overall
I came in xx in my AG
I came in xx male
That's it. I think it's pretty simple.
Mmmm Bop
So you can “qualify” for Boston....but then be told that you weren’t actually fast enough to be allowed to run the race.
They should just raise the standard and make it harder to qualify so that if you run a certain time then you’re guaranteed entry instead of all the unnecessary drama every year.
5k - 17:53 (4/19) 10k - 37:53 (11/18) Half - 1:23:18 (4/19) Full - 2:50:43 (4/19)
How much faster do you have to be to qualify? Usually like 5 minutes?
History of cutoff times, since they started using this system:
2012 1:14
2013 0
2014 1:38
2015 1:02
2016 2:28
2017 2:09
2018 3:23
The big jump this year was a pretty big surprise (and obviously disappointment) to a lot of people.
I don't have a major beef with how they do it. They want to let the fastest qualifiers in, but they also want to fill the race up. If they just moved the standards by 5 minutes, everyone who qualified would get in, but they would presumably have fewer participants. It's certainly frustrating to run a marathon and not know what you need, but I don't have a better system. Maybe move it by 5 min, all qualifiers get in, then they have a 2nd round of registrations for people within BQ+5? It would end up with basically the same effect, but psychologically maybe you get more people happy they got added rather than upset they got excluded.
Runs in the rain
I am trying to qualify for the Boston and want to try to be 5 minutes faster than the qualifying time to be sure. 3:23 is a big jump in the cutoff time. If it increases much past 5 minutes then they should change the qualifying times. I'm not sure how the NYC marathon works, I though it was open to all, then heard about a lottery, and then saw someone on runningAHEAD saying they qualified with their time. As to double dipping on prize rewards I must say I did not consider that aspect since the races I have run did not have many cash rewards. In my last HM they gave $100 for first overall and loaves of bread or nut butter from the race sponsors were the other rewards,
Long distance runner, what you standin' there for?Get up, get out, get out of the door!
The Limping Jogger
BQ-5 should be the mindset.
NYCM has an aged based guaranteed entry system. They tightened it up in 2012. For example, I could get in with a 3:10 marathon / 1:30 HM as a master in 2011 but it shifted to 2:55 / 1:23 as they pushed more to the lottery. Over the years they have relaxed the times a bit. In my opinion; the HM time is still easier to obtain for a master.
Sample for 2018:
Age*
Marathon
Half-marathon
18-34
2:53:00
1:21:00
35-39
2:55:00
1:23:00
40-44
2:58:00
1:25:00
45-49
3:05:00
1:28:00
Going back to the OP's question. OA winners are excluded from other awards so you get bumped up... well apart from a local 5k where I was awarded the OA win and AG win, which pissed off the guy behind me... LOL.
"Only a few more laps to go and then the action will begin, unless this is the action, which it is."