By Coach Adolfo Salgueiro
A couple of weeks ago, I was running a local 10K, and approaching Mile 3, I noticed a runner ahead of me, maybe in his early 40s. He caught my eye because of his weird running form. As I got closer, I saw that his left shoelace was undone. So, as I reached him, I did what a normal runner would do: âHey, your shoelaces are undoneâ.
As I passed him, he replied with some level of exasperation: âYeah, I know! Thatâs why I am opening my leg to the left, so I donât trip.â I shrugged my shoulders and kept running my race. My job was done. The guy thanked me, and that was that. I guess he must not have kissed the ground, since I didnât see or hear any emergency vehicles on the road.
There are so many wrong things with the scene. I completed the race in a tad over one hour, so it is not like this runner was going for any earth-shattering world records. And even if he was going for a PR, this was not helping. How could someone decide the risk of tripping and falling on the asphalt with 2000 runners behind was not worth 30 seconds of your finishing time? How much saved time is worth getting injured, as you decided to change your mechanics to adjust your unlaced shoe?
I was wondering what kind of runner does not perform the most basic checks on their equipment before a race. And thus, here you are reading a blog post on the subject.
The scope of this post is not to teach you how to tie your shoes properly. There are too many ways to get into the top 10 here. And by now you should know how to tie your shoes.
Unless you have the finish line in plain sight, the right way to approach this situation is to the side, stop, redo shoelaces properly, both shoes, and then resume activity.
At the bare minimum, you should verify you have tied a double knot. And if the remaining lace is too long and is jumping all over the place, which will eventually make it looser, take the extra string and place it between the shoeâs tongue and laces. That will keep it secure for the duration of your run.
For every single run, not just a race, it is your responsibility to perform a basic check on all your equipment. How about these situations:
âș Imagine a shortstop with broken leather straps in his gloveâs pocket when he is fielding a line drive and the winning run is on third base.
âș Imagine a referee at a soccer game checking the overtime in a championship match to find the watch has run out of battery.
âș Imagine a swimmer in the middle of a 400 combined with her swimming goggles hanging from her neck.
âș Imagine yourself in your goal race, pushing for a PR, and your shoelaces are undone.
And as we talk about shoelaces, understand that this is a generic reference to all your running equipment. All of it.
âș The time to realize your shortsâ elastic band wonât hold is not when you are 5 miles away from your car.
âș The time to realize you donât have enough safety pins to attach your bib for tomorrowâs race is not right before you go to bed.
âș The time to figure out the sole of your shoe is separating is not when you still have 10 miles to go in your marathon.
âș The time to figure out that gel is expired is not when it is in your mouth just when you are counting on those extra calories.
âș The time to discover your headlamp has run out of battery is not in the middle of your night run.
We must own it. It is our responsibility to ensure that all our equipment is in good condition to perform the task at hand. And if it is not, assume that the only one to blame is yourself. Learn from it and make sure it never happens again.
Any stories you would like to share about basic equipment failures? Please do so in the comment box below.