RUNNING IN THE LAST OLYMPIAD 389 



power of the speed within the limits of racing speeds; so that a record- 

 maker, if he were able to double his speed, would become exhausted 512 

 times more quickly. Of course, the straight line can only.be regarded 

 as an approximation to the actual conditions, and we are not justified 

 in asserting that the law of the inverse ninth power applies strictly. 

 The exhaustion time as the inverse ninth power of the average speed is 

 an average law, derived from the world's records, as made by a number of 

 different individuals at different times. It is, however, certain that 

 whether the time of exhaustion for any particular racer is as the inverse 

 ninth, eighth or other power of his speed, it is a relatively high in- 

 verse power. We may safely conclude from the records that a record- 

 making runner can not increase his speed within racing limits without 

 bringing down his time of exhaustion very rapidly. Otherwise, the 

 record times over different lengths of course would surely follow a dif- 

 ferent series. 



It further follows from this deduction that a record-making runner 

 can not afford to run at an unduly high speed for any appreciable time 

 during his race ; because, if he were to do so, he would thereby exhaust 

 himself at a yet more unduly great rate. It would seem that in order 

 to make his best time he must keep to a uniform pace, at least to a first 

 approximation. It is evident that on the last lap he will put forth all 

 his remaining effort, and spurt if he can ; because he should arrive at 

 the goal run out if he has done his utmost. If, however, he is able to 

 spurt to a marked extent on his last lap, he has held too much energy 

 in reserve, which he consumes unduly rapidly at the higher speed. Ac- 

 cording to the logic here set forth, he should have been able to reach 

 the goal more quickly by a slight uniform increase in speed over the 

 whole course. 



According, then, to the deductions that the straight line of the il- 

 lustration leads up to, an athlete of record-making quality should be 

 enabled to make his best time over his best course or courses, by being 

 paced at a uniform rate, say with an automobile. This, however, as- 

 sumes that the runner would exert himself as fully behind an automo- 

 bile as when running shoulder to shoulder with an antagonist. This 

 is, perhaps, treating an athlete like a mere automaton, instead of like a 

 human being. It seems more reasonable to suppose that an athlete's 

 best performance can only be elicited under the spur and incentive of 

 individual competition. Besides, the interest of a race to the onlookers 

 would probably be greatly diminished if instead of the struggle of a 

 number of racers were substituted the effort of a racer to keep up with a 

 motor. 



Nevertheless, the opposite proposition will be likely to meet with gen- 

 eral approval; namely, that the worst way to elicit a good performance 

 from a record-making type of runner is to incite him to an unduly high 



