When They Pass You Like You’re Standing Still

At Zumbro 100 a couple of weeks ago, I had an experience that can easily send runners into negative thinking.

I got passed.

And I want to share how I cleaned up my thinking as I ran.

The 100 mile is six loops of seventeen miles, and I was on my second loop - about 23 miles in - with quiet trail all to myself.

Until I heard a pair of voices a ways behind me, chatting non-stop.

They kept talking, so I heard them getting closer. Fast.

I tried to push pace and stall the inevitable, but the voices closed in.

Until - still happily chatting - they passed me.

And my mind said, “They passed you like you’re standing still.”

Ouch.

Followed by, “You’re slow, you’re old, you’re no good at this any more, and you won’t finish.”

Instead of trying not to think lol this, I let my mind have a few minutes of tantrum and then said, “That’s enough. I have hours to go. Let’s clean this up.”

So I questioned it all.

First, I was running well - what changed?

The only thing that changed was a thought in my head about getting passed so easily.

Without that thought, I’d still be enjoying the trail and looking forward to the miles ahead. Even if they passed me.

Second, was their pace right?

Not necessarily - for me or for them. 

Especially in these early miles. I get passed a lot early on…and pass a lot of runners back on the way to the finish.

I was running what for me was a sustainable pace and there was no logical reason to change it.

Let them have their race - I’d stick to mine.

Third, what did getting passed like this mean about how I was doing?

Nothing. It didn't mean anything good or bad about my race. It was neutral.

We just happened to be in the same race, headed to the same finish line, and they happened to pass me. 

It had nothing at all to do with whether I’d finish.

And last - what if I really was too slow to finish? Would that change what I was doing? 

No, again. I wasn’t about to drop because even if I eventually DNFed, I was running my best and wanted to see what I could do.

And besides, there was a pretty good chance I could finish.

So the next time getting passed sends you into negative thinking, question that thinking.

Getting passed doesn’t mean they’re running a smarter pace or you won’t finish - it just means you have a negative thought about it that’s worth questioning.

This is part of managing your mind in a race. 

Learning how to do this gives you the ability to deal with any situation that arises in a race and stay focused.

It’s a sustainable skill that works for you in the long term, no matter what distance or race.

This is the type of thing I help my clients do.

If you’re interested, email me or use this link to schedule a free consult call to talk through how it would work for you.