We Are Not Joggers, part II

So, like so many others, I sent off my letter to Pearl Izumi. And, if they respond, I'll let my reader(s) know whether or not it is the same form letter they have been sending out, or if it is a new draft. For the record, I told the group I run with on Saturdays about the ad, and no one was supportive. They aren't fast runners (with a couple of exceptions), but that doesn't make their effort any less significant. As Bill Rodgers said "I can't even imagine what it's like to run for 5 or 6 hours."

To whom it may concern,
I am writing to express my concern with, and dislike for, your recent ad campaign ("We Are Not Joggers"). Although I suspect that you are hoping to spur people on to discovering their inner "runner" (so to speak), I feel that your approach is needlessly hostile, and comes across as demeaning and condescending.

For example, the ad campaign states that running on a treadmill is merely joging. I suspect that Christine Clark would disagree with that assessment. (In case the name does not ring any bells, she won the women's US Olympic Time Trials in 2000, and did almost all of her training on a treadmill.) For some of us, especially those with young children, the choices are often running on a treadmill, running well after dark, or worse, not running at all. I hate running (excuse me, "jogging") on the treadmill, but it sure beats the alternatives.

You also stated that anything you do at the helm of a tricked-out baby stroller is jogging. Aside from the fact that it is actually pretty difficult to push 50+ pounds of toddler and stroller along a road or path (even on a gentrified stretch of pedestrian walkway), you're only a short step away from saying that Dick Hoyt (of Team Hoyt) is merely a jogger. I'd love to be half the "jogger" that he is; anyone who can push a wheelchair and manage a 2:40:47 marathon deserves to be called something better than "jogger".

And running with an MP3 player makes me a "jogger"? Aside from the fact that it's on my treadmill runs (which apparently make me a jogger in your eyes anyway), if it takes music to get me through a 10 mile run on a glorified hamster pad, I'll use it. I may not use it on my runs outside, and you'll never see me wear one on a race, but apparently that doesn't matter.

Although I may not be the fastest runner, I do go through about 4 or 5 pairs of shoes per year. And, as I add more marathons to the schedule, that number is only going to increase. But, in no small part to the "We Are Not Joggers" campaign, I suspect that a pair of your shoes will not be part of that lineup.

Sincerely,
Richard Grady

Anyway, on a running note, I did a time trial yesterday (disappointing only because I didn't start it as a time trial until I was 3-4 minutes in, and I never quite sped up enough to make up for that slow start), and a nice, relaxed 7 miles this morning. With any luck, I'll get in 12 tomorrow, and since my quad is almost back to normal, I should get in hills or a speed workout next week.