If you’re going to compete on a running track as an adult, ideally you need some ability and the courage to expose your abilities in an arena where there’s no place to hide. Whether you race well or are having a nightmare, spectators are witnessing it at close quarters.
To do so when you have virtually no such ability requires something else. Arguably you need even more courage to put yourself to a test that you know you aren’t equal to, but it needs to be balanced with an element of masochistic stupidity. I speak from experience.
At my very best I was a truly mediocre track runner. A schooldays experience of setting off at the start of an inter-schools 1500 metres race, and within 50 metres realising the others were running at a pace that matched my 400 metres PB is something that sears itself into the memory. Realising that you’d started a race as a competitor, but within 30 seconds have become a spectator, as you struggle round alone for 3 seemingly endless laps is a pretty demoralising experience. Or maybe character building?
I returned to risk humiliation on the track fairly regularly during my years with Tonbridge AC and having found my level as a “B” string runner in the second team, it ended up being a whole lot of fun. At that level, your preferred event may be the 5000 metres, but you can be certain that lack of numbers in your team will mean that you’ll be called upon to compete in some events to which you may be singularly unsuited. Despite never claiming to be anything other than a very average long distance runner, during those years competing for Tonbridge, in addition to 5000m, 3000m steeplechase or 1500m, I’d sometimes have to do a 400 metres hurdles or even a sprint if numbers were really short. I was generally spared the 110 metres hurdles as the height of the hurdles was roughly the same as my personal best for the high jump. Then there were the field events of course. With the team manager’s encouraging words of “just have a go to score a point for the team” ringing in my ears, I threw the javelin, discus, hammer!!!, shot putt, did the high jump, long jump, triple jump and even pole vault (not always all on the same afternoon you understand). If you were willing to perform badly at enough events, it was possible to achieve a fair number of points for the team. Being a good loser has its advantages.
The veterans athletics leagues give those who wish to continue their track and field exploits into later life the opportunity to do so, generally in a lower key and more relaxed setting. Age grading helps greatly, and everybody recognises that just rising to the challenge of turning up and having a go is an achievement in itself. So I guess it shows that as long as you don’t get into the wrong race too often, there is space on the track for everyone.
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