Ultramarathon Daily News | Wed, Nov 2

iRunFar: Ian Torrence writes about the importance of endurance-based workouts for ultramarathon training.

Davy takes us on a wild journey into the life of Richard Lacouse, a “scoundrel” ultrarunner from the late 19th century who led a wild life and set some pretty crazy records.

Dark running humor from Mark Remy.

Comrades sets a June date (after a few years of Covid-induced confusion) for 2023. It’ll be a down year.

If you’re on the AT in Tennessee, watch out for aggressive bears.

Trailrunner Magazine writes about the Javelina results and resulting controversy. I’ll note that in the original article (screen grab), Brady is referred to as “she” numerous times.

Interesting Twitter thread that analyses the finishers data at Javelina. (Nothing to do with the controversy, just numbers.)

Final word regarding my decision to not use “they/NB” pronouns. Hoping that after this we can get back to discussing the original point of the tweet and that’s how the sporting world is expected to use a third (or fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth?) category in a setting that’s only ever used two and how this led to some women at JJ to miss out on their chance at a Golden Ticket.
So, would you refer to this person fae/faer? This person as “Xe/Xem? Or how about this person as “bun”? Do you demand race organizers or signup companies offer these neopronouns to participants and would you expect race announcers keep track of all of these while announcing names? If you would, then we have wildly diametric views of society and we’ll have to agree to disagree respectfully. If you wouldn’t use these pronouns or expect others to accommodate them, you’ll understand why I won’t use the NB designation when referring to a female…It’s simply one step further. (For consistency sake, you’ll also have to explain why you wouldn’t use them, but I’m not expecting any cogent replies to that.) Listen, we all have our limits of what we deem common sense and appropriate and mine is simply different than yours.

Daaaaamn! Sara Alonso turning on the jets in the final kilometers of Madeira.

Damian Hall writes about the ways runners can help the planet.

Anyone in Southeastern Mass know if this new 20 mile loop will be open to organized races? Sounds beautiful.

Jonathan Albon talks about training in the endurance mecca of Norway, the upcoming Mountain Running Championships in Thailand, and why cross training is so important to his success.

Got time to help repair the Western States course after the devastation caused by the Mosquito Fire? Volunteer opportunities right this way.

For those who’ve written or messaged me in the past few days, I appreciate the notes and am trying to reply to all of them. It’d be, ahem, a lot easier if you posted publicly but I understand the reluctance.

12 Responses to "Ultramarathon Daily News | Wed, Nov 2"

Will says:

November 2, 2022 at 7:56 am

I am surprised you are fighting the neopronoun battle. If the goal is to protect the integrity of women’s sports, why not just punt on what pronouns people use? Using peoples preferred pronouns has nothing to do with runners who were assigned male at birth competing in women’s fields.

And yes, I would use xe, bun, or whatever was requested. But it’s a separate issue from which field trans and NB athletes compete in.

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1. eric schranz says:
  
  November 2, 2022 at 8:05 am
  
  Thanks for the comment Will. I haven’t mentioned the trans issue as it has nothing to do with this.
  Should those pronouns (xe, bun, etc) be options for registering for a race? Should announcers be expected to use them? And should Golden Tickets be set aside for these groups? And if not, why not?
  
  Reply
Will says:

November 2, 2022 at 8:04 am

Nicole Bitter wasn’t robbed of a golden ticket because Riley uses they/them pronouns, but rather because they were allowed to race in the woman’s field.

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Will says:

November 2, 2022 at 8:18 am

Eric, I think pronouns should have no bearing on what field you enter and should have no impact on golden tickets. If you want a race to use your preferred pronouns (in whichever field you are competing) I think that is a reasonable request. Pronouns are an issue of identity which is very fuzzy.

As an aside, I appreciate your voice in the sport, even when I don’t agree. Keep it up.

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1. eric schranz says:
  
  November 2, 2022 at 8:43 am
  
  Polite disagreement? That’s uncalled for and not permitted in online discussions! How dare you, sir!
  
  Reply
Adam Priest says:

November 2, 2022 at 9:18 am

You continue to fail to grasp basic concepts. It’s not about the pronoun itself, it’s about respect for other humans and their identity, a respect that you continue to not show. And in support of your stubbornness and closed-mindedness, you cite hypothetical situations and YouTube reels that make you uncomfortable, despite reputable sources I sent you on Twitter that went into depth on these issues.

I found a home in the trail running community and am highly, highly discouraged that you seem to be actively working against making it an inclusive community, not only by your refusal to be courteous with your terms and pronouns but actively advocating against non-binary acknowledgement in any form.

Since you cited Trail Runner Mag the other day as a reputable source, I will cite them as well so that maybe some of this will get through, and while I highly doubt you will be open minded, maybe others will take the time to read this:

“There has been a lot of trans-negativity in the news and in public spaces recently. From transphobic legislation being introduced in a record number of states, to an increase in discussions about what trans people should be allowed to do, it can be hard to find a space free of constant reminders that transphobia is out there. We want to change that, so in this article, we’ll attempt to be as trans-positive as possible, while also providing some (hopefully useful) training advice.

Before we get started, a note to any cisgender people who may be reading: as a cis person, it can be really easy to think of conversations about trans people as purely hypothetical discussions about the science of mental health, hormones, chromosomes, socialization, and whatever else pops up in the social media scroll. But these discussions affect real people. What may feel like a casual debate about whether trans people should be allowed to participate as their affirmed gender in sports, to many trans people, is really a discussion about whether trans people have a right to exist as their full selves in that space. It can be incredibly jarring and hurtful to trans people to see you casually trying to decide what rights we should have, even if you are being as respectful as possible.

So when you engage in a discussion about trans issues, please remember that you are talking about actual people’s lives. Think about what it would feel like for people to ask the same questions about you or someone you love. And make an effort to listen to what we as trans people have to say about ourselves….

Running has always been my safe space. I am most at home with myself and my body when I am running, and the first time I ran while presenting as myself, I ran close to a minute per mile faster than my normal pace, completely unintentionally. Invite yourself to include running in your transition, and give yourself the flexibility to change as a runner….

I bring a sheaf of documents to races, proving my identity and documenting years of hormone levels, because I’m terrified of the possibility of someone challenging my gender. I’ve never needed to show anyone those papers. That’s not to say that the running community is perfect. We need to do more to support nonbinary runners who are not comfortable identifying as male or female, binary trans runners who can’t or don’t want to medically transition, runners for whom current policies are financially prohibitive, and many others. While you have every right to feel fear, anger, or frustration, we as runners share a common goal of seeking happiness through running. There are plenty of trolls on the internet, but there are also many allies in person. Let’s be very clear: the only thing that’s unfair is that we even have to worry about this in the first place. We are allowed to be athletes, at any level, just like anyone else.”

source: https://www.trailrunnermag.com/training/trail-tips-training/training-for-transgender-athletes/

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Matt says:

November 2, 2022 at 4:39 pm

Gotta love a good slippery slope argument! Literally no one in trail running is asking for xe / bun / fae and you know it.

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olga says:

November 2, 2022 at 7:26 pm

Eric, thank you so much for pointing to the Trail running magazine article. It’s a great voice of sport, and explaining how and what happened, who’s responsible for the confusion (on the spot, as it happened, so to all who claims there was none, it’s unrealistic to say so), and I am (pleasantly) surprised they actually did such a detailed report. Again, the “issue” (or whatever we want to call it) was NOT that non-binary (as well as transgender, although this particular race and place had none reported, so lets set it aside) persons exist, and what they need to be called. Most by now agree on those things to whatever extend. Nobody is not inclusive, or upset. What happened transpired because this particular sport’s managing/governing/tracking bodies are not prepared for “proper” (for the lack of a better word) tracing/placing. When the pre-race field does not list a person and a competition on Ultrasignup (if a follower is to simply click on M/F field to look at), and then the tracking system does not place those persons into a top-traced F/M, while having them in NB – a different category (complicated by being in black ink, same as male category), and then the person finishes and gets announced as a highly placed in a certain field (or an age group, or whatnot), it is confusing. Even top runners are not aware of every single awesome runner in the country (and Riley is an AMAZING capable runner, admittedly and undeniably), even as some female ran by and said hi, once they learn Riley is “them”, non-binary, they proceed with their own race plan – that could, potentially, be adjusted (whichever way, harder running, or even easier to not kill oneself for nothing, or simply for mental/emotional space for predicted outcome). Again, to all who “fight for justice”, from my personal standpoint, Eric’s articles brought to question the hiatus that was caused by the surprise and a lack of knowing how and why and when. Jamil accepted responsibility, and I am thankful it’s not swept under the rug. Only by talking about it can it be solved in the future. Maybe once the non-binary person registers and picks a “sex” under which one competes, that’s what should be on display? New rules involving that put in place? Then, even as there are disagreements, the race can always point towards printed rules. And have them highlighted on the front page, not elsewhere nobody looks at.

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Luke B says:

November 2, 2022 at 7:30 pm

Eric – I appreciate your dedication to the sport and your willingness to stand up for what you believe in, especially during a time when dissenting opinions are not only frowned upon, but often grounds for ostracism. I struggle to “take sides” in these discussions because each side takes such great pains to demonize anyone with opposing views (e.g., not supporting the “right” of a trans-person to compete in a chosen gender category de facto makes you “transphobic” and indicates you oppose that person’s “right to exist as their full selves”, while supporting “inclusion” means all but welcoming the end of women’s sports as we know it). I don’t know the answer, but I’m glad to see people acting with respect for one another while discussing the question.

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Mike P says:

November 2, 2022 at 7:55 pm

Eric- I read through your Monday headlines, and you did what you usually do. Try to present your commentary as “fair and balanced” (as you see it in your own mind), while at the same time slipping in a little easter egg to show how you really feel. This pattern of yours is plainly obvious in a lot of your posts on controversial issues.

Clearly this quote from Monday’s post is extremely cringe-worthy and practically jumps of the page at any fair and open-minded reader:

“so I’ll refer to her how I feel is appropriate”.

Can you not see how speaking THAT way IS the problem? It’s problematic for you to claim amenability to “polite disagreement” when a statement such as that clearly tips your sense of entitlement over others’ identities. It’s obvious to everyone that follows this site how you really feel.

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charlie says:

November 2, 2022 at 8:23 pm

“so I’ll refer to her how I feel is appropriate”
I really think this will be a statement you regret. It highlights that your issue has nothing to do with saving women’s sports and everything to do with you and your fears. I’m still not entirely sure why you are a voice in trail running/MUT etc., but i guess you have chosen this hill to die on.

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eric schranz says:

November 4, 2022 at 10:15 am

An update: In the few days since I’ve posted this, I have received about 30 emails in support of the position I’ve taken. These have been from elite runners, average runners, men, women, coaches and RDs. Unfortunately, they’re all reluctant to share their position publicly for risk of public backlash and I respect those wishes. I have not received any emails challenging my position.

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