I thought that my example of marathon runners would be a perfect illustration.
I think it's a wonderful example. I had no idea that women had closed the marathon gap so much since I used to keep up with such things.
I used to live on Prytania St. in uptown New Orleans, and there was a 10K run every year that passed right by my front door, so I'd go out and sit on the steps and cheer for the runners.
The street was closed off, no traffic, so the first thing I'd see, way off in the distance, was the African male runners, you know, the ones from places like Kenya. They were always first. They would pass by without breaking a sweat. Then the elite white males, puffing a little bit. Then the great sweaty crowd, huffing and puffing. Then the fast wheelchair guys, the ones with huge muscles in their arms. Then the walkers. Finally the slow ones in wheelchairs. I used to love to watch it.
It was always a treat to see elite female runners kicking the booty of most of the males and not breaking a sweat.
The difference between the elites and the ordinary runners is easy to spot. I also see them at the local college track. The sprinters and the 10K runners are usually black. For some reason that I can't put my finger on, though, the milers tend to be white. Why is that?
Something about muscle mix and bone length, I think. The milers are taller, too. |
