Run It Fast®

So it seems that Santa was good to many of my fellow running addicts!

Here is what you said you received for Christmas:

Casey – Got a @lululemon run jacket & winter run tights + a stocking full of GU!

Jonathan Bobbitt – NewtonGravity, calf sleeves, Nuun, Electrolyte Caps, shorts, compres’n arm sleeves and 365 days of potential runs in 2012…

Monkey Trent – none 🙂

iluv4kds – we got a lot here..several new tech shirts, Yaktrax, running gloves, hand held water bottle, high tech ear buds(if those count).

Gerard Pescatore – awesome @newbalance technical shirt!

Mindy M – a Garmin405! and FitDeck cards for cross-training days. and a stocking full of gels, fuel and bars!

Simon R – garmin forerunner 205

Karen French – I got shoes!

PA Dutch Dude Abroad – Two Nike Dri Fit running tops

Caitlin – a new HRM, running gloves and a @lululemon gift card!

Lisa Gonzales – Sadly, none. 🙁 But got gift cards to REI fr my staff & bought Merrell Trail Gloves. Used them on Fri & they were great fun.

Joshua Holmes – NB MT101 trail shoes and Brooks Puregrid trail shoes.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from the Run It Fast family to you and yours this weekend and holiday season.

(Pictured above is Kiki at the Santa Hustle 5K in Indianapolis last weekend. You can follow Kiki on Twitter @CapnKeeks)

Fabrizio Colella running the Christmas Trail at River po Park ,trail di Natale nel parco del po di trino( italy ). Follow him on Twitter @CollellaFabrizio

We asked on Twitter (@runitfast) where you were running this weekend and 9 of you responded!

Slow weekend of races due to Christmas, but many of you are still going to get out there and get some training miles in.  Best of luck and Merry Christmas to you all!

Joshua Holmes – Hopefully more and more and more trail miles this weekend.

Lisa Gonzales – Hey @runitfast! Heading 4 some sweet single track today & chasing Santa on Sun. IF you were wondering where I’ll be running this wkend. 🙂

Jared Friesen – Multi-use trails by my house, 24 miles in fresh snow!

Christina Kaighen – The gorgeous Gulf beaches of Okaloosa Island. Training for #Destin50BeachUltra!

Gerard Pescatore – Wilkes-Barre / Scranton area. Down time.

Nolan Holloway – Do my running at Stone Mountain Park in GA.

Cousin Eddie – I’m working on a new route: south out of Birmingham (England) along the Grand Union Canal and back.

Jonathan Bobbitt – a little road and a bunch’a single track/sloppy trails

Christine W. – Running at least 8 miles tmrw on the “dreadmill”. 🙂

Seattle runner Tim Nelson was hit by a semi-truck while running to work back in late October. He suffered a fractured skull in two places, broken back, punctured lung, and broken arm.

Nelson’s lawyer demanded to see the dash cam from the police car.  Nelson quickly discovered that the Seattle Police Department had added insult(s) to his extensive injuries at the scene of the accident.

Via Q13 Fox in Seattle:

“It ain’t my problem,” one officer said about Nelson’s injuries.

“Why don’t you drive a car?”

“Yeah, don’t try to jog to work, dumbf—.”

One officer was identified as Doug Jorgensen.

Nelson, as we all would be, isn’t too happy about the officer’s comments:

“As citizens, we pay their salaries and we are going to hold them to a higher degree of responsibility because they are public servants. In a situation like this, when you have someone lying on the ground near death, I don’t see any reason to excuse that,” said Nelson.

Some reports state that Nelson ran against a red crossing light.  No mater the case, he should have been treated with more respect from the SPD even if he was unconscious.

Watch the video above from the police dash cam.

To make it even worse the local news kept referring to Tim as a ‘jogger’ and ‘jogging’ to work.

See -> Does Being Called a Jogger Offend You?

We asked on Twitter earlier today if the term ‘jog’ or ‘jogger’ offends you as a runner.

Here are some of the harsh, funny, and interesting responses we received from our followers:

Ana Murray – Yes! ‘Jogger’ classifies runners as slow but running has no predetermined speed – speed is relative to the person. Run on!

Troy Bratton – yes because I’ve worked my butt off to improve. Jogging is closer to walking than running…

Christian Hiteshew – b, just proves who runs and who doesn’t

Melissa – I don’t care what anyone calls me. All I care about is getting my miles in 🙂

jason candy – A…because I don’t jog…my pace is more to a runner…gray line???

Kat – I don’t even know what jogging looks like. Something you do in place? I think you run or you don’t run. There’s no middle ground.

Eddie Wooten – Either is good for you. Running, to me, suggests more effort.

Gerard Pescatore – no because, as a runner, I’m laid back

Stuart Clayton – Yes, very much so.

Kristy – I’m not offended. There are different types of people. If someone wants to go out for a jog, it’s still a great form of exercise.

BMonty – Yes, but only when it’s used in a derogatory manner. “They’re not a real runner, they’re just a lazy jogger.” That riles me.

Sebaskid:p – No, somedays you have to jog to rest from running

baxterimahounduknow – mmmmm nah… But I’m no jogger lol !

Vic Arvizu – Does it matter? It’s still faster than walking

JeremyAntonAnderson – it totally offends me to be called a jogger when I can run a sub 6 minute mile for 7 miles

Jo – No ‘runs’ are for training ‘jogs’ are for recovery. Although used to hate polar software classifying my hard efforts ‘light jogs’

elizabeth v rehmer – b)no because people that use that term do not know what they are talking about… no active person says that.

HaroldShaw – A and here is my post on it http://bit.ly/vdVwXR 🙂

Yvonne Dehn – A. Because I’ve worked hard for my ‘runner’ status. Jogging is what u do as recovery between intervals

Stewart Crouch – I jog 4 days a week and run 3 days a week.

Lisa Gonzales – No. As long as it isn’t in a news story. Bad things happen to “joggers” in the news.

More Lisa Gonzales: Oh, forgot to say it’s because I don’t give a rat’s backside about what anyone else thinks. I know what I am! #badass 😉

Frank S – #runners train for something specific. Joggers jog w/no specific race goals typically. I’ll say this, no one calls me a jogger 🙂

(Everyone tweet Frank S and tell him what a good jogger he is!!! ;))

Jonathan Bobbitt – A. But only when another “runner” asks “how far did you jog” while looking down nose condescendingly. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

(Bobbitt refuses to disclose how far he jogged this morning!!!)

Brad Dulay – Only if someone called me a jogger. If you’ve run more than a 5k you shouldnt be called a jogger

Euan Jardine – Yes!! Joggers are not runners.

Paul Nottoli – A. Jogging is what middle aged Mom’s with to much money do to look cool.

dunlapa – Nope not at all. Jogging/running same thing to me 🙂

NaomiPipes – Not offended. But I use the term runner and disclaim that I am not fast.

Sarah – No, because those that call me a jogger are non runners and they just dont understand

Stevie Ferguson™ – A because in a race, I guarantee we are *not jogging! 🙂

angela dively – yes, it does. Jogger connotates someone who has a hobby. Runner is someone who competes, even if it’s against oneself.

John Shepard – Confused as to why this would offend anyone.

Rebecca Rene – Have a marathoner friend who gets INFURIATED when called a jogger. Maybe it’s a dedication/hobbyist/purist thing? IDK

More Rebecca Rene – Hell, run, jog call it whatever as far as I care. For me, it’s about getting my butt across the finish.

Pavement Runner – “offend” is a strong word. But there is a difference, right? I would never refer to myself as a jogger

thomas ransome – jogging implies a definite lack of effort, also makes it sound pleasant, its not pleasant running hurts…in a good way!

Versa Dave – I don’t take it offense since my 11 min pace is kind of a jog anyways.

Lee Price – No, as somedays I ‘jog’ somedays I ‘run’.

John Shepard – Kind of like Underwear/Underpants. I don’t care so long as I feel good. F it.

CYU – #runners train 4something specific. Joggers jog w/no spcific race goals…..No one calls me a jogger :)” <3 this!

Crystal – yes only cause I work on my running everyday I didn’t get in Boston by jogging

Richard Lima – Those who say “jog” or “jogger don’t run at all.

Cazz Singson – Honestly?? YES!!! 🙂

TJ – YES because we all should have higher self-esteem aka confidence and believe in the power of our runs #RWRunStreak#Running #run

AND THE BEST FOR LAST…

Francis L. – YES. Joggers wear matching sweatsuits & are more concerned w looks than fitness. And runners don’t find dead bodies. Joggers do.

With that said, here is first article I saw a friend had posted on Facebook this morning, Jogger hit by Semi discovers police ridiculed him at the scene

If you want to play it safe you shouldn’t call another runner a ‘jogger’ or mention they are ‘jogging.’  However, I say if you know the runner then have fun and be sure to compliment him or her on their ‘jogging.’

You can follow Run It Fast on Twitter @runitfast

Those of us that were lucky enough to survive the Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon or Half Marathon (Full Story) earlier this month received an email from Competitor (company that puts the race on) today offering us $50 off the entry fee for Rock ‘n’ Roll Arizona that takes place on January 15, 2011.

1. Offer was made via email today, Dec 13, for a race on January 15, 2012.  Very tough and short window for runners to plan and arrange travel/training.
2. $135 – $50 is still $85 to run Rock ‘n’ Roll Arizona. Add in travel (gas, plane, rental car) and hotel and you are going to be down $500-$1,000 to run a race you didn’t want to run in the first place (or else you would have already signed up for it.)  $50 off is a small percentage of the cost it would actually take to run the race.
3. Almost all RNR LV runners that plan to run RNR AZ have already signed up and paid full price for it.
4. Offer was likely made knowing that very few could accept it.  That way Competitor can say, ‘Hey, we tried to make up for our mistakes at Las Vegas.”
5. Competitor/Rock ‘n’ Roll is not going to get the benefit of the doubt from anyone anymore.
6. Most runners I’ve talked to seem to agree. Insincere offer. Some deleted it immediately as they broke out the SMH!
7. Some believe it’s a way to fill a race that hasn’t sold out yet.
8. While some runners have sworn to me they will never run another RNR event even if it was free.
9. Runners by and large are whiners or running divas, but what went down in Vegas was absurd. After the merge, every runner’s safety and health was in peril unless you were an elite or at the head of the pack for either race.
10. The offer would have had legs if it had been for $50 off of any RNR race in 2012.

Competitor is right to offer something to try to smooth over what went down on December 4, 2011, but this offer is coming across to runners as an offer that most are unable to accept for a variety of reasons.

What happened that night in Vegas for sure didn’t stay in Vegas.  Competitor’s reputation, which was already mud among marathon veterans, is at an all-time low with almost all runners that were in Vegas.

40,000 runners ran that night. Those 40,000 runners have lots of running friends. Word of mouth is believable due to the heavy amount of complaints coming from an array of runners and stories on the news and in print.

The Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Facebook page has been an endless ticker of negativity and hatred towards Competitor.

The CEO of Competitor, Peter Englehart, called me late last week and he did seem sincere in listening and wanting to find out everything that went wrong in Las Vegas so they could make changes for 2012.

I bet you can’t MERGE this offer with any other discount codes!!

Agree or disagree? Leave a comment below with your thoughts.

How bad was Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas? Nightmare on the Strip: Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon and Half Marathon Full of Sin

Dirty Rumors from the Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon

2011 Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon & Half Marathon Medals

[photo of runners trapped inside the Mandalay Bay. via A Trail Runner’s Blog]

Mental Floss compiled a list of  11 Ways to Cheat While Running a Marathon.  Instead of teasing it as advice we’ll call them for what they are…CHEATERS!

Here is a look at that list:

10 Biggest Marathon Cheaters/Ways to Cheat a Marathon (Full Article on Mental Floss)

1. Do Not Run Most of It: Rosie Ruiz (Boston, 1980)
2. Get Someone Else to Run it for You: Xiamen Students (China, 2010)
3. Have Your Manager Give You a Ride: Fred Lorz (St. Louis, 1904)
4. Skip Miles 13-23: Anthony Gaskell (London, 2010)
5. Blow off the Checkpoints: Roberto Madrazo (Berlin, 2007)
6. Grab a Bus: Rob Sloan (Kielder, 2011)
7. Skip Ahead to the Part With the Prize Money: Martin Franklin (New York, 2001)
8. Hop on a Bicycle: The Montreal Biker (2011)
9. Hop in a News Van: Dane Patterson (Arizona, 2009)
10. (and 11.) Split the Course With Your Brother (and Use PEDs): The Motsoeneng Brothers (South Africa, 1999)

Read detailed descriptions of the atrocity each runner committed to cheat a marathon at Mental Floss (LINK)!

I’d add attaching your timing/computer chip/D(B) tag to another runner’s leg or shoe to the list above.

I think we will always think of Rosie Ruiz when it comes to marathon cheating even if the sport has a 100 more cheating scandals over the next 20 years.  She is like the gold standard when it comes to cheating a marathon.

Perhaps marathons across the country should all retire her bib number (W50), not out of a sign of respect, but as a reminder to how awful it is to cheat a marathon.

No, that is not Rosie and former President George W. Bush after the 1980 Boston Marathon. That is Rosie and the legit overall winner Bill Rodgers.

Pop Quiz: Who was the actual and legitimate female winner at the 1980 Boston Marathon?

The answer is Jacqueline Gareau with a time of 2:34:58.

Jackie also won the 1979 National Capital Marathon in Ottawa, Canada in 2:47:58 and the 1988 Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth, Minnesota with a time of 2:43:27.

Here is the beautiful, colorful, yet simple finisher’s medal from the 35th Annual Rocket City Marathon that took place in Huntsville, Alabama on December 12, 2011.

The Rocket City Marathon is an extremely well run marathon that is put on by elite ultramarathoner Dink Taylor and his wife.

Timothy Agee ran it fast, finishing with a time of 3:18:44. Congrats to Tim on a new PR!!

MORE PHOTOS OF MARATHON/ULTRA MEDALS AND BUCKLES

[Medal photo submitted by Timothy Agee. Follow him on Twitter @timagee]

Sweet finisher’s medal from the Latin Music Miami Beach 1/2 Marathon that was held on December 11, 2011.  (A Rock ‘n’ Roll/Competitor event.)

This was the third half marathon run by Shawna Block.  She finished with a time of 2:23:51.  She has lost 48 pounds since she started running and is an inspiration to many that it can be done.

MORE PHOTOS OF MARATHON/ULTRA MEDALS AND BUCKLES

[Medal photo submitted by Shawna. Follow her on Twitter @ssulax33]

We asked on Twitter (@runitfast) where you were running this weekend and 17 of you responded!

Good luck to everyone running this weekend, especially all of you that are running your first 1/2, full, or any distance race.  Run It Fast!!!!

Joshua Holmes– @bayou – Charlie Reagan Memorial 5K in Milan “Go Bulldogs!!!”

Naomi Pipes – @NaomiPipes – Running the #YMCAJingleBellRun in Houston on Sunday 🙂

Laura Raeder – @LauraRaeder – Tuscon Marathon

David D – @bigcat48 – I’ll be in Grafton, IL at The Pere Marquette Endurance Trail 7.5 miler. Not a marathon, but may feel like one after I’m done! 🙂

Gerard Pescatore – @GPescatore – Nice, leisurely 5 miler on the beautiful Wissahickon trail in Philly

Fabrizio Colella – @Colellafabrizio – n italy special trail the hills of the piedmont barbera wine

Stephen G – @stepheng73 – Jingle Bell Run in downtown Houston.

Shawna – @ssulax33 – RnR Miami Half on Sunday! #LMMB

Lizzi Liz – @lizziliz38 – Weston FL Run for Tomorrow Half Marathon

Lisa Gonzales – @runlikeacoyote – 20 miler tomorrow and 10 miler on Monday, both on the hills close to home! Fun!

Kidney Racer – @kidneyracer – I’ve got 16 miles on the docket for Saturday morn. Likely going to happen alongside a chilly Lake Michigan in Milwaukee, Wis.

Kevin Erb – @kevinerb – Gingerbread Pursuit (4-miler) in #FortWayne tomorrow morning. Supposed to be quite nipply! http://ht.ly/7UlFf

Jeanie Olinger – @DovesFireMin – running my second post injury 5K – “faster than the pastor” for missions

David Flax – @reddsman – Jingle Bell 5K in Baltimore.

Claudia Keller – @socialmedialex– Sunday, Silvesterlauf, a 8.6km run in the heart of #Zürich (& raising money 4 #jrz www.jrz.ch, donations welcome!)

Kiki – @CapnKeeks – I’m running in the Reindeer Romp 4K in Louisville, KY.

Tianna Marshall – @TrunsLA – Holiday Half in Pomona!

Tim Bledsoe – @TimBledsoe – Running the Holiday Half marathon near Adidas HQ in Portland, OR

Petra Amrein – @peachA22 – anywhere my chicken legs will take me! #reallytri-ing