Running road races as transgressive event mobilities

Bibliographic Data

ID3977655
AuthorsJulie Cidell (0000-0003-4714-0273, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, corresponding author)
Year2014
Volume15
Issue5
Pages571-583
Publication date2014-07-04
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueSocial & Cultural Geography (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1464-9365 • E-ISSN: 1470-1197
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/14649365.2014.908236
OpenAlexW2039042529
LanguageEN
Citations received25
References cited26

Running is a unique form of mobility because while it involves traveling over distance, it is not usually done as a means of transportation. Although running can and does take place almost anywhere, bringing together hundreds or thousands of runners at a time via an event known as a road race enables a different, transgressive occupation of space that no one runner could accomplish on his or her own. In this paper, based on participant observation, I argue that the transgressive but sanctioned nature of the mobilities that road races allow, by temporarily taking over a space devoted to motorized vehicles and turning it into a space for pedestrians, defines these events as unique moments that are only possible through the collective nature of this usually solitary form of mobility and that allow for the pleasure of being transgressive without the risks that transgression normally entails. The paper further argues for considering 'event mobilities' as more than traveling in order to participate in an event, because some kinds of mobility are only possible in the context of an event.Las carreras como eventos de movilidad transgresoresCorrer es una forma única de la movilidad porque si bien se trata de viajar a través de la distancia, no se hace generalmente como medio de transporte. Aunque correr puede y se lleve a cabo en cualquier parte, reunir a cientos o miles de corredores a la vez a través de un evento conocido como carrera permite una ocupación del espacio diferente y transgresora que un solo corredor no podría lograr por su propia cuenta. En este trabajo, basado en la observación de participantes, se argumenta que la transgresora aunque sancionada naturaleza de las movilidades que las carreras permiten, mediante la ocupación temporal de un espacio dedicado a los vehículos motorizados y su transformación en un espacio para peatones, define estos eventos como momentos únicos que sólo son posibles a través de la naturaleza colectiva de esta forma movilidad generalmente solitaria, y que permiten disponer del placer de ser transgresores, sin los riesgos que la transgresión normalmente conlleva. La investigación considera además 'los eventos de movilidad' como algo más que viajar para participar en un evento, debido a que algunos tipos de movilidad sólo son posibles en el contexto de un evento.Les courses sur route en tant qu'événement transgressif de mobilitéLa course est une forme unique de mobilité car même si elle implique le déplacement sur une distance, elle n'est pas habituellement effectuée en tant que mode de transport. Bien que la course puisse se dérouler et se déroule pratiquement n'importe où, le rassemblement de centaines ou de milliers de coureurs en un temps donné à travers un événement connu en tant que course sur route donne le droit à une occupation différente et transgressive de l'espace qu'aucun coureur ne pourrait accomplir seul(e). Dans cet article, basé sur l'observation des participants, je soutiens que la nature transgressive mais sanctionnée des mobilités que permet la course sur route, en envahissant temporairement un espace dédié aux véhicules motorisés et en le transformant en espace piétonnier, circonscrit ces événements comme des moments uniques qui ne sont possibles qu'à travers la nature transgressive de cette forme de mobilité généralement solitaire et qui autorise le plaisir d'être transgressif sans les risques que la transgression comporte normalement. L'article plaide aussi pour la considération des « événements à mobilité », d'avantage en tant que moyen de déplacement afin de participer à un événement, car certaines formes de mobilité ne sont possibles que dans le contexte d'un événement.Keywords:: mobilitiesrunningtransgressioneventsroad racesKeywords:: mobilitéscourseévénementstransgressioncourses sur routeKeywords:: movilidadescorrereventostransgresióncarreras AcknowledgementsThe author thanks Jennie Germann Molz and multiple anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments on the draft of this paper.Notes1. While I have also participated as a runner in two different half marathons, my energies were devoted to completing these races and not to taking fieldnotes. I will make brief reference to these experiences, but they are not the focus of this article.2. This is not always the case in a road race; the Newport Half Marathon in Newport, RI, for example, cannot close the course to cars because there are no alternative routes around the peninsula. Orange cones designate one lane of a two-lane road for runners, while the other lane must be shared by cars going both directions.3. In contrast, the lack of volunteers or police along the Newport course meant that drivers were crossing the course at will, regardless of approaching runners. Some even swore at runners and demanded they get off the road, turning runners into the transgressors.4. The failure of the Newport organizers to keep cars from entering the race course resulted in a great deal of confusion on the part of both runners and drivers, especially when drivers started swearing at runners for occupying road space. Runners did not expect to be actually transgressing the rules of the road but assumed their presence on the road was sanctioned by other users, as is usually the case with a road race. Being placed in the role of transgressor by drivers therefore made this race occasionally dangerous and much less enjoyable

Archaeology · Art · Context (archaeology · Event (particle physics · Humanities · Mobilities · Pleasure · Social science · Sociology · Transgressive · Adventure Sports and Sensation Seeking · Computer Science · Geographies of human-animal interactions · History · Psychology · Sport and Mega-Event Impacts

Tools

Open DOISci-Hub