I stole this from a Seattle PI blog by a runner chick. I love this idea. And if you don't think you can run a race or a half marathon or a marathon, go watch the finish line sometime. You'll be AMAZED and the variety of people crossing that line, big, small, young, old, tall, short, some in fancy gear, some in just regular gear, but every single one of them will have a smile. It might be a pained, exhausted 'i'm never doing this again' smile, but they'll be smiling :)
Sunday morning I got up at the crack of dawn to volunteer for the Tacoma City Marathon. I made the commitment to do this a couple of weeks ago because I figured I need to see inspiration first hand to stay inspired. It worked.
I worked at the finish line because I figured that would be the most exciting area. The people finishing the 5k were fun enough but the real excitement (for me anyway) came when the half marathoners were crossing the finish line. They were red and sweaty and looked exhausted. It was beautiful. One girl actually collapsed as soon as she crossed the finish. I cried a little bit on a few different occasions. I was green with envy.
I should add, that my job was to remove the timing chips from the runners' ankles. I noted how hard it looked for them to just lift up their ankles onto a crate for me. These people pushed themselves to their absolute limit. I ask you now, what is more exciting than that? I can't think of much.
Then, just when I thought it couldn't get any more interesting, here come the marathoners. I could not believe these animals just ran 26.2 miles. I mean, I talk about doing it myself but these people just did it. The runners looked like they were confident, accomplished and proud when they crossed the finish. No one looked regretful.
I had to cut my time short so I wasn't able to see all of the finishers. It was my daughter's birthday and I had to get home before she woke up. What I took with me from this experience with last me a lifetime, no doubt.
I have heard from non-runners time and time again that we "marathon training folk" are crazy. If you think about it, we are. Who in their right mind can look at complete and utter exhaustion as something exciting? Who in the world can feel butterflies in their stomach and pounding in their chest just from merely talking about crossing a finish line or signing up for a big race? Who with any brain function thinks it's fun to get up at 5 in the morning to put their body through near death experiences?
Runners do. And it's awesome.
If you are reading this, and are thinking about training for a race, or are in the midst of your training for a race, I urge you to volunteer at a finish line. See what it's like. Get a feel for the glory. If nothing else, you will know in your heart if you are made for this. Hell, you might even get a free t-shirt or jacket to take home
No comments:
Post a Comment