Running into It

 

I was never into competitive sports as a young man. Baseball bored me to death and I was too short to really enjoy basketball. I found that individual pursuits made me very happy though. Long hikes, bicycling, weight training, ice skating and archery were where I would gravitate towards.

When I hit 40, I decided I needed a different kind of physical activity. I had a desk job at the time and was just getting too sedentary. My best friend at the time was a runner and was about to run in the NYC Marathon. In support of this incredible effort, I decided I would cheer him on from various points on the route and attend a party afterwards to celebrate his victory. Watching those tens of thousands of people from every background you can imagine reached deep inside of me and I resolved to participate in the next year’s race.

Every day after work I would run for as long as I could endure it. At first I could barely run a few blocks. I bought books on training strategies and realized that there was quite an intense journey ahead. Each day I would try to push a little further until I got to the point where I was doing at least 6 miles a day and 13 miles every Saturday morning. Stretching and diet became very important. The shin splints at times were excruciating and Advil was always nearby.

This daily routine though became a type of cleansing ritual every day. No matter what happened during the day; here was an opportunity to shake it all off. It was so therapeutic and somewhat addicting.

Eventually my weekly mileage hit 40 miles, and then 50 miles. When I totaled all of my running logs for that year I realized I had run 830 miles just to prepare for this race!

Three days before the marathon, my maternal grandmother passed away. This woman was a huge influence on my life and we spent countless hours together. I was a disorienting blow but I decided I would still do the race and keep her with me throughout.

On race day, I just relaxed into it. I knew that I had done everything I could to properly prepare and I was just going to enjoy it. It was a wonderful, painful, exhilarating experience. So many friends and coworkers came out to cheer me on; it meant the world to me. Each neighborhood that we ran through had such a different vibe. There was a clear sense that came up in me immediately after the race. If I can do this, I can do anything.

Richard