Why we need government intervention to help slow runners and penalize fast ones

[bencrozier]

I think it is completely unfair that some people can run faster than me and that the government should intervene and “tax” any runners who beat me to the finish line.  It isn't fair that they should be able to run faster than me just because they train harder, have a better diet, or have more desire to win than I do.  Aren't we all created equal?  Shouldn't everyone be able to run just as fast as everybody else?  Shouldn't we take some of the speed from the fast runners and give it to the slower runners?  I think someone like Sasha should be penalized the most because he has been able to go out and train and get faster while I've been “less fortunate” because I have wanted to watch TV and not train in the freezing cold.  Sasha is just lucky.  That is why he runs fast!

[Neil Price]

This reads suspicously like an annoying email I got recently.  Probably just a coincidence.   

[bencrozier]

Uh, I didn't send out any "annoying emails" to anybody.  I have no idea why you would say that!  Is that your way of creating a straw-man argument against my last post? lol

[Neil Price]

My apologies.  What you're implying is completely reasonable.  Carry on.

Regards,
Comparing Apples to Oranges 

[Steve P]

What you're suggesting doesn't sound feasible. I think instead they should take the prize winnings from fast people like Sasha and spread it among all the runners, especially walkers. That'll teach Sasha not to run so fast.

[bencrozier]

Ok, I can see where I'm making an unrealistic "apples to oranges" comparison.  My energy would be better spent demanding that the government force the NBA and NFL to allow short, skinny, white runners like me to play and make the big bucks! 

[Neil Price]

I don't know about you but if the sinister federal government made me pay 3% more, on the margin, for every dollar I win above 250k then I would refuse to run fast.  Why bother?  Its just gonna go to welfare queens, lazy people and frivolous things like roads, hospitals and schools.  I'd run just fast enough so that I didn't fall in the upper bracket of finishers.  This is science.

[Eric Day]

I believe that what Ben is saying is the basis of socialism ... 

[bencrozier]

3% Naw. I think 40% or more would be way better.  Sorta like the taxes I'm paying right now.  We need to make sure the government has as much of our money as we can give them because they do SUCH a great job of running things efficiently.  Everybody knows that kids that come from private schools aren't nearly as educated as those who come out of public schools..... and our roads and hospitals are flawlesslessly run by the omniscient government.

[Sasha Pachev]

Steve:

They already do that with raffles. That works to a point -  keeps me from coming to some races, but I am only that smart. I still train and still race for some reason.

[Steve P]

Sasha,

I can't say I feel quite the same way as you on all things related to running and prize money, but I definitely agree on raffle prizes. It is such a bizarre practice to me.

Though I will admit that I usually stick around and try to get one if I can, because I am on a tight budget. But I would have rather paid a smaller entry fee.

By the way, I would imagine there's some intangible rewards you also find in training and racing that keep you going?

-Steve

[Neil Price]

3% Naw. I think 40% or more would be way better.  Sorta like the taxes I'm paying right now.  We need to make sure the government has as much of our money as we can give them because they do SUCH a great job of running things efficiently.  Everybody knows that kids that come from private schools aren't nearly as educated as those who come out of public schools..... and our roads and hospitals are flawlesslessly run by the omniscient government.

This is brilliant. LOL. Next, please explain how running is really just a deep-seated plot to euthanize the elderly. 

[bencrozier]

Another straw man argument, eh?  I'm disappointed.    Of course, runner who put on a lot of miles do start to resemble straw men.... perhaps that's the source of your confusion. lol

[Neil Price]

I'm not advocating anything, its your thread.  I'm just admiring your brilliant deductive skills and thought you could apply them in another context.  C'mon man, step it up!  I'm sure that if you twisted your analogy a bit further you could make it fit.   

[Sasha Pachev]

Steve:

Yes, there is an intangible reward. Which I can get in a time trial. I find the raffles that reward random luck above performance offensive. So do my children. I asked my 10 year old son Benjamin - how would you feel if you ran 19:59 5 K, got a ribbon for winning your age division, and a prize worth $100 in the raffle? His answer - "I would wonder why I just did not jog it at 8:00 pace".  I could not have put it better myself - this is exactly how I feel. Even if I end up winning something valuable in the raffle myself. That actually makes it worse! It insults my training effort, it insults laying everything on the line in the race. It tells me I am an idiot for doing my very honest best. The message I get - we do not care how hard you train, we do not care how hard you race. We just want you there to help us pay for the party.

I understand when a race director gives nothing for an good performance because he honestly has nothing to give. But when there are a lot of valuable raffle prizes, he does have something to give. Thus a failure to give now begins to reveal an attitude. Which I find too much to bear. Because I see a high intrinsic value of running better I find it too much to bear to witness a large group of people completely miss the boat. Thus I'd rather run a time trial than a race with this kind of raffle.