DNF

4 watchers

Head4theTrees Jul 2017 8:23pm, 3 Jul 2017 First-time poster!!	0 Head4theTrees Yesterday I was DNF in a cross country 21 miler that I had done the training for. I had done the course before but took some wrong turns and ended up rock bottom disheartened because I had done over 12 miles but was only at 11 miles because of the extra I had mistakenly done. I didn't think I was a quitter but something made me give up. It wasn't physical. Spent the day completely regretting it but it's too late.
.B. Jul 2017 8:49pm, 3 Jul 2017 32,087 posts	0 .B. Welcome to Fetch H4TT Deciding not to finish one race doesn't make you a quitter, it's just a hobby afterall, we're meant to enjoy it. Lots of us have had bad runs and races, probably all of us, put it down to experience. It didn't go as planned, you still got 12 miles training in. If it's useful, think about what might have helped in your training e.g. course recceing/navigation practice, and put that in place for next time.
Pompey Paul Jul 2017 8:58pm, 3 Jul 2017 5,451 posts	0 Pompey Paul Welcome to Fetch H4TT. A DNF happens for all sorts of reasons. Learn from it and you are now a stronger runner already
Pompey Paul Jul 2017 9:00pm, 3 Jul 2017 5,453 posts	0 Pompey Paul P.S. I was a DNF last month on a 100 miler at mile 54. I learnt something for next time.
Surrey Phil Jul 2017 8:28am, 4 Jul 2017 1,993 posts	0 Surrey Phil Each year, we always get one person who doesn't finish our 10k. For us, it's making sure that they're safe and well. For the participant, there's always more events and a chance to bury the ghost.
♪♫ Synge ♪♫ Jul 2017 9:52am, 4 Jul 2017 20,858 posts	0 ♪♫ Synge ♪♫ I entered the Yorkshire Marathon last year and ran out of steam completely at around mile 20. I knew it would take me around two hours to walk the rest of the way and, as I had family waiting for me at the finish, decided to withdraw and get a lift back to York. Navigating around the finish zone trying to meet up with family, when every other runner there was wearing a finisher's medal, was really tough. I am reminded of Martin Yelling's attempt to run the South West Coastal Path last year. The conclusion seems to be that, if you succeed in every challenge you set yourself, you may be making your challenges too easy.
DMZ Jul 2017 10:15am, 4 Jul 2017 52 posts	0 DMZ I think many of us can get into a distinct mental state whilst racing, which has the potential to be intensely emotional. Personally I get a fantastic high after a good performance, and I know that it can sometimes flip over to something negative if things don't go right. Racing is, I believe, a mental game as much as anything else, we can put a lot of pressure on ourselves and that is part of the experience. I just try to be aware of that and live with the consequences, good or bad. Hopefully it will continue to be mainly positive experiences, but the frustrations are also an important part of life for me.
DeeGee Jul 2017 10:54am, 4 Jul 2017 17,725 posts	0 DeeGee As I see it, with a long distance race, if you're not mentally in the game, it's a long old time to be out on your feet. I have binned a few races recently, simply because I wasn't feeling the love. Including one where I'd travelled to the other end of Europe to take part - that stemmed from a major logistical error on race day. It probably takes a fair bit of mental strength to make that call, and it is a bummer to bounce back from for that reason. You're not a quitter, you made a decision on race day that actually will pay dividends a few months down the line, more so than forcing yourself to grind out a poor result and the funk that would ensue knowing that you'd trained for better.