Need a counterpoint: who's *against* Marathon bandit runners?

[Dave Levy]

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Dave Levy
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Editor-at-larging stuff about Boston here;

Writing short thoughts here; and

Throwing things randomly here.

[Jarret Izzo]

Ah, you see the op ed (supporting bandits) in the Heights this morning?

Here's a 2012 article repenting for bandit running and exploring the ethics of it (a little much, but...)

http://m.runnersworld.com/runners-stories/i-bandit?page=single

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[Dave Levy]

Oooh, and it's Peter Sagal.

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[Sarah Matthews]

I remember that article. Oh the bandit debate!

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[Jarret Izzo]

I've only read a little bit about the Boston bandit crackdown. Unlike Sagel's RW piece, there seems like there was some intent to deceive. (Going through the trouble of fake bibs, after all). I've run friends in from the last couple miles in other cities' races and it was super obvious I wasn't official, and felt fine about it. They were much less poignant than this year's Boston Marathon, though. That's the biggest argument *against*: emotion. The second biggest deal is dealing with crowds (Sagel touches on this) and the related (overly?) heightened, security concerns. The third biggest is runner culture, as I observe externally. For such an open, egalitarian sport it's pretty showy: "I do it, here's my PR, post my status with my time or GTFO."

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[Dave Levy]

Any other runners/non-runners want to weigh in? Good points all around. Would love to wrap this into a post.

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[Sarah Matthews]

Honestly, as a runner, I am torn. I think the jump to crucify these people via social media is a bit much. It was practically impossible to get into the marathon this year (believe me, I tried), even for those qualifying. If you really want to run, bandit running is a means to an end. However, what these people did was wrong. Very wrong. But there are always bandits who run the Boston Marathon and while it is dangerous/disruptive from the race organizer viewpoint, the Boston Marathon has a history of tolerating them. So much so that they hold them to the later wave so as not to disturb any of the faster runners. But, from a runner's perspective, I can see the frustration of these people just copying someone's bib to sneak in as a bandit "undetected." People pay the entry fee, train hard to qualify, or raise thousands of dollars just to get the chance to run the race. To then basically steal someone's ticket into the race in order to avoid getting kicked out, is shady. I've had friends who've bandit the Boston Marathon AND raised money for a charity. This doesn't bother me. But not every bandit does this. I think it just depends on why you chose to bandit. Everyone has a story and a reason for why they chose to run without an official entry. But of course, safety is a HUGE concern. I get it. For me, anyone who is crazy enough to want to run a marathon that badly that they bandit, more power to them. Just don't take my finisher's medal.

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[Dave Levy]

Have something up but I'm all for adding to this if others have ideas: http://welovebeantown.com/2014/04/29/points-and-counterpoints-banditgate-2014/

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