Why Do I Race?
Race Recap of NYRR’s R-U-N 5K

Lee Metta
Lee Metta
Jul 28, 2017 · 4 min read

Last night I ran in the New York Road Runner’s R-U-N 5K in Central Park. This race is an interesting one in that it’s an evening race, with a start time of 7:00 pm, rather than an early morning start. My office in New Jersey is only 8 miles from Central Park, so it’s easy to get in after work, pick up my bib, kill an hour or two, and then race.

It was a good race, but like many NYRR races, it was crowded. The crowds usually thin over the course of a longer race, but with the shorter distance of a 5K, it was pretty tight throughout. There were 4,839 finishers.

As usual, NYRR did a nice job running the race. Bib pickup at the NYRR Run Center was easy (although they were out of most men’s T-shirt sizes because they had already moved most of the shirts to the finish line — I had to wait until after the race to get mine), the first wave started on time, and they moved us through the finish area rapidly. They had water and bagels at the finish line and also ice pops!

I ran well, setting a PR for the 5K, which isn’t much of an accomplishment. I’ve only run this distance three times. Once was a color run — my first race of any kind — and the other two were Turkey trots a few weeks after a marathon. I’ve never really pushed myself for a 5K.

My coach wanted me to aim for an 8:40 pace, working to break 27 minutes. But he said if I was feeling good, go ahead and push harder. I did, and ran it in 26:03, which is an 8:24 pace. Not bad, but not much to brag about in the grand scheme of things. In the last few races, I’ve just managed to finish in the top half of runners.

So, if I’m not a competitive runner, why do I race?

So, if I’m not a competitive runner, why do I race? Why pay the money, deal with getting into (and out of) the City, tolerate crowds and so forth? Why not just go for a run on my own?

I’ve been thinking about these questions for a while now, especially after a friend of mine posted something about racing on Facebook a few months ago. He recently took up running and he and his wife just ran their first race. In his post, he explained that he enjoys running, but that he hated the race and never wants to run another. I can’t remember his reasons for why he hated it, and I have no intentions of talking him into liking it, but it made me think about why I’m motivated to race.

One of the main reasons I enjoy racing is social. I almost always run alone, which I prefer, but it’s sometimes nice to surround myself with others who enjoy my same sport. Even if I don’t run with friends or even directly interact with other runners, it is a good feeling to be surrounded by other like-minded people. The spirit of a race is always so positive and energetic and I enjoy that energy. As many others can attest, nowhere else is this better represented than the NYC marathon — the energy of 50,000 runners and millions of spectators is amazing.

In our world that is often so polarized, so contentious, and so divided, joining a few thousand other people to do something together is a breath of fresh air. It doesn’t matter who you are, what you believe, or where you come from — we’re all running together.

But there’s another reason I enjoy racing. When I truly race — not just run the course — I am deliberate about measuring out all of my energy during the course of a race, trying to make it to the finish line with nothing left. There is satisfaction in pushing myself to my physical limit and putting it all on the line.

Perhaps this feeling of putting it all on the line is the feeling that a gambler gets placing a big bet at the roulette table or the feeling that skydivers get jumping from a plane. Maybe it’s the same drive that pushes people to make risky stock market trades or other investments. Is it human nature to want to put it all on the line, to risk everything?

As a responsible adult, I don’t want to risk my life savings or my physical safety. I make bold and brave decisions as a professional, but I balance that with careful diplomacy and self-preservation as well. I don’t feel safe putting it all on the line.

I suppose that I don’t need to go to a race to push myself to my physical limits. I could just get a stopwatch and time myself running around my neighborhood. But it’s when I’m surrounded by other runners, when I’m in that safe running community, that I’m willing to put everything on the line. And that is why I race.

Mid-Life Runner

It’s better than a mid-life crisis

Lee Metta

Written by

Lee Metta

Mid-Life Runner

It’s better than a mid-life crisis

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