clyde rant (maybe you can relate) (Page 2)

"There will invariably be people who do not accept you. And in that case you must be your own badass self, without apology." --Katie Goodman

This quote motivates me so much I put it in my sig line.  It's a fact of life, dude.  All you can control is how you respond to them.  Continue to be your own badass self.

After reading what a lot of people had to say I realize that this is really a local issue.  Due to where I moved to I was far more exposed this year to those type of people than I was last season.  People up here in the northeast are well known for lack of hospitality.  I read some threads on slowtwitch and clearly the vibe I got was what some people were trying to send.  I guess I had a "crisis of faith" at a very inconvenient time.  It's tough when you go to a race alone and aren't quite sure if you made a good decision and everything at that race tells you that you made a bad call.  

Some people, it's clear, don't care what other people do or say however I can't say that's 100% true 100% of the time, at least for me.  I think some of this is perception but I don't think it's untrue.  I believe that those of us who don't fit the typical triathlete size/shape threaten those who do.  Maybe their finisher's medal is worth less to them if people they feel are undeserving get one too.  I know I have to work far harder than a lot of other people to avoid DFL when they are just mailing it in from the MOP.  

Does the RD care if I don't come back?  That's an easy one... nope.  He'll sell out and that is what matters.  Fortunately I see here that there are plenty of places to race and spend my money where I'll be able to enjoy the race that I was hoping to get this time.  

I think the best way to sum it up would be:  imagine you're a kid going to Disneyland for the first time and when you walk through the gates the guy at the ticket counter gives you a bad look.  You keep going and run into Mickey who promptly kicks you in the groin.  Hey it was only 2 people 1 ticket guy and 1 guy in a costume....  It wouldn't matter if you had the best experience ever after that point your trip would be tainted as would your experience related to all things Disney.  No matter how much your friends told you that Disneyworld was the best place on Earth you might decide to try out 6 Flags.  That's how I feel about M-dot.  They may put on the best races ever but it will always be less than the best.  The magic is gone.  That I think is the worst part.    

Sure I'll race again and maybe next year I'll go long again.  I really hope that I get to see a lot more people out there who are working just as hard as I am.

Thanks Everyone,    

Chris 

Chris,

Personally, I would skip that race next year.  There's no reason to support something that clearly isn't interested in having you back.  However, it is my experience that those types of races few and far between.  In nearly every race, there have been other racers cheering me on during the last run trying to motivate me to the finish line.  Perhaps it's because even though I'm feeling OK, I always look like I'm going to die at the end of a race.  My favorite part of the race is when I'm finishing and people are yelling for me to push my ginormous butt through the finish line.  Well, they don't actually say ginormous but that's what my brain is telling me they're saying.

 My advice is to just smile and move on if you come across that attitude again.  In my experiences as a 6'1" 243 lb 38 y.o. duathlete-soon-to-be-triathlete, I have run into the same type of ignorance that has been expressed on this message board.  However, I've learned to handle it a lot better than my younger days.  Like many here have said, I use it for motivation.  For example, my co-workers used to talk trash about me and my chosen sport.  I invited a couple of the guys to join my group on a metric century and during the ride, I politely waited at the SAG stop for 15 minutes while they recovered.  This is something I would never do because I don't like to wait around too much but the satisfaction of telling them to take their time because I would wait was too compelling.  I haven't heard a negative thing from them since.  Another time, I was chatting with the guys in my age group while we waited for the results to be posted.  One guy pulls me aside and asks why I didn't compete in the Clydes group since I had a much better chance of placing there.  That's like saying, you'll never compare to the rest of us so you should go with THAT other group.  I'm pretty sure there was no real malice in that question but it did force me to internally question why anyone would ask such a stupid and offensive question.  I chalked it up to him feeling comfortable enough around me to ask it; which made it okay in my mind.  I politely informed him that I do this sport for me and not plaques.  Besides, I honestly don't believe I would place any better in Clydes unless there were fewer competitors but he didn't need to know that.  In my younger days, I would have taken a much greater offense to both of those situations and reacted a lot differently.

Just keep doing your own thing and and try forget about the background noise.  I find that multisport athletes are some of the most supportive people out there when you compare them to similar groups like certain groups of Type-A cyclists.  Perhaps it's because, as my wife puts it, I look like a mean biker-dude and people think I'm going to shank them if they look at me wrong but from the top-down, people have treated me very well in this sport and I'm very proud to be a part of the community. 

 Good luck to you.

I thought that all those stares were looks of jealousy.  I have my own energy/water stores in my fat rolls, and don't need to worry as much about refueling and hydrating during the race!

I actually stare in disbelief when I pass someone who looks like a runner.  I'm thinking, "How can you be that thin and go so slow?"

People up here in the northeast are well known for lack of hospitality.

I know that is the stereotype, but "lack of hospitality" does not equal being openly rude.  I've been fat in the north and south, and received a lot more nasty comments in the latter. What exactly was the "attitude" that you were given?  Was it something that needed interpretation, or was it open nastiness?  Because people can act aloof because they are nervous/busy themselves.

I have to say that the level of fat hatred I see even on this board (in the Tri Talk section) is pretty frigging appalling, and it is even more appalling that no one bothers to call anyone out on it. But anyone who races and is surprised to see an overweight competitor (heck, anyone who hasn't been smoked by someone who has 75 pounds on them) is just showing a total lack of experience. 

And don't read slowtwitch.  Remember, normal person+anonymity+audience = total douchebag

^{Well, it seems to be accepted without a blink, so I am not surprised.  Stay blissfully ignorant if you wish.}

Not to hijack this thread. but my last post was attempt to draw out what you mean by your comment.  Could you direct me to some threads where you feel this happens? It has not been my experience (with five months of regular posting on this board as one who may be one of the largest athletes who started training at 360 pounds) that there is any significant level of discrimination or hatred (which is a really strong word in my world).  I hang out here because we are not sl--tw--ch, where I have seen posts and signatures that are more in line with your comment.

There is a guy on BT who is a clyde....and not because he is 6'5" and 200.5 pounds heavily clothed if you know what i mean.  The morning of his ironman he was trying to get into transition to  set up his bike and the volunteer said to him "Sorry sir athletes only" To which he replyed "How about someone who paid the entry fee and trained for the race?"  She let him in of course and he moved on with his day and finished his race. 

Sometimes stuff leaves a bad taste in your mouth and that is all there is to it.  Its hard to let that stuff go sometimes. One thing I have realized over time is that everyone comes to the race along a different path and everyone has their own amazing story.  Unfortunately there are people out there who need to make other people feel bad about themselves in order to feel good about themselves.  THey are not worth the effort.  Do the races that make you happy and you will be healthier all around for it