As you know, I ran a marathon this past Sunday. After the race, the organizers invited feedback, and offered a chance to win an entry to next year's race as an incentive for leaving a comment.

Most of the comments were positive, but as is the case with all online platforms, the complainers and critics come out of the woodwork.

I'm pasting a couple of examples below (sic):

#1

If you are a back at the pack runner, don’t expect your medal, food or a finish line picture.
This was my first official 10k.. I also chose to raise money for the Jurvinski Cancer Center, where both my parents were patients. The before race was good.. I enjoyed the race itself.. Cried on the way to the finish line thinking about my dad.. And crossed.. Checked my watch.. Had a PB.. Then found out they ran out of medals.. I borrowed one to take a picture.. Went to get food.. Bananas were green, soup was cold.. And the pizza which the 5k runners got a full slice, we got a bite of pizza.. There were no gluten/dairy free options.. Expect green bananas.
Left for lunch..
Looked at the pictures today.. Not one.. I went to the race with 4 other people.. They didn’t get one either.. I crossed the finish line with one other person.. I saw the person taking pictures.. Still not one.. Not of the other lady either..
If there is another race on that weekend next year… I’ll go to it instead.

#2

I did the “Run the Hammer” challenge: 5k, 10k and a Half Marathon. It was advertised that I would get each distance medal and a “UNIQUE ‘HAMMER’ MEDAL”. I did not receive a 10k medal, as they signed people up on race day and did not have enough medals for all. I am a slower runner, and therefore, they ran out before I finished. Why didn’t they make the race day sign-ups wait the 1-2 months for their medals- not those that signed up months in advance? I feel I was penalized as a slower runner. I completed the Half Marathon and went to retreve my “unique” hammer medal. It was very disapointing. It was smaller then the distance medals and not very unique or exciting. This is the first time I have done a challenge like this and I was really looking forward to my momentos. In addition, it was not easy trying to figure out the details of the chalenge. No details were posted. I was not told until I picked up my shirt and asked, that the additional shirts were not given out until the end. When I finished the Half I had to ask several people at the finish line to figure out where I was to get my shirt and medal. When I got my shirt, I found out that the sizes were unisex. When I signed up for the race, I put down a large women’s size for the race shirt. I was given the same size in unisex….therfore it is too large and I can’t wear it. It should have been clear that the challenge shirts were unisex sizes. The volunteers were good, but at many water stations they were stepping out into the road almost forcing water on runners. They created a bottleneck by being over-eager. I was happy with the fact that hot broth was served after the race- it was welcomed after three very cold and on Sunday, a wet race. This challenge had so much potential- and it is the reason I did this race. It left me very disapointed….and waiting potentially into the New Year for my 10k medal.

#3

The race itself is great. I’ve done it before, and running downhill for a large portion of the race makes it very fast. The weather did not co-operate, and was very windy and cold on the Saturday, and windy and rainy on the Sunday. The scenery is lovely.
I was disappointed in the fact that they ran out of 10k medals. I did the “Run the Hammer” challenge, and did not get a 10k medal. And I know there were a lot of people behind me who did not get medals either. I was also disappointed in the Challenge medal. It was boring. I thought being called “Run the Hammer” it would be a hammer shaped medal (or at least the claw of the hammer). It was smaller than the other medals, round and just had a very small picture of a hammer on it. Even the lanyard, it was just a dollar store lanyard…nothing special on it to designate it as a challenge medal.

#4

– Last 4-5 km were crazy windy – nobody’s fault…just be aware
– Water station on km #3 and #8 (really???). Also water was given to me in the Gatorade cup and I had to stop both times to verify this is indeed water and not Gatorade.
– Terrible food (soup was baaad – could not drink it), disgusting cold pizza and green bananas
– Swag: few protein bars, a shirt and some marketing material
– Medal: average-looking medal, expected a bit more

I was shaking my head as I read these. It's not just the pettiness (a medal is a piece of tin, folks. Move on.). It's the me-me-me attitude that is so prevalent these days. Most races, at least the small to mid-size ones, are local efforts, generally dedicated to raising money for charity and supporting the local sports community. They recruit hundreds of volunteers who work tirelessly, and put in endless hours. 

I have to question why some people run. Is the running, the accomplishment not the reward in and of itself? Do you really need a shiny object to validate your effort? 

And why does it seem like the Internet is full of six year olds?

I am absolutely swamped with work at the moment. I know, I'm thankful, there are worse problems to have, and make hay while the sun shines and all that, but life feels very chaotic at the moment....

Thanks for the love about the marathon yesterday. Legs are feeling surprisingly good today, and I will get back to normal running routine tomorrow.

The drive home was long, and the day seemed short, since the clocks went back on Sunday and now darkness is falling in the 5 o'clock hour. Ugh.