Sunday, April 4, 2010

A New Beginning

It is time to say goodbye to 2009 once and for all. 2009 had many heartbreaks and hardships in it. That is not to say that I did not have some great victories. Through it all, I learned a lot of lessons. God has been faithful. I have had to patiently watch as He transformed me. I am not the same person I was when 2009 started. My family is not the same either. We endured hardship in job losses and in injuries. We endured biopsies and cancer scares. We fought hard against people who violated our trust. In the end we have come out victorious. 2009 is in the books and 2010 is well under way. I know that there will be challenges, but I also know that we can face them.

2010 started off with my 11 year old daughter running her first half marathon with a time of 2:46. We then took a trip to Disney where the family got to ride roller coasters in the sleet and I became a certified running coach. After that, my wife and her Remission Run committee put on one of the best 5k's I have ever been to. Finally, next week I start a new job back in the industry that I had been a part of for 19 years.

Life is good. It took patience to make it through 2009. So far 2010 was worth the wait.

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

End of an Era

So, it is time to start writing again. Just a quick update on my St. George Marathon. My good friend Mike and I traveled to St. George the first week of October. This was to be my “A” race for the season. It was also my last scheduled race for the season. I new going into this race that if I were going to hit my target, I was going to have to go into the race completely focused and give everything I had in me. I spent three days before the race decompressing and just relaxing in the beautiful city of St. George. The morning of the race, Mike and I arrived at the start line on top of the mountain sometime around 4:30 AM. We quickly settled around one of the many bonfires set up to keep the runners warm. Though we really hadn’t discussed it, the plan was for each of us to run our own race. We both had a target of 3:20, but since I had done a majority of my training alone, I wanted to do this alone. The race started at 6:45 AM. I quickly settled into my groove. This truly was one of the most amazing races I have ever run. The sun rise coming up over the mountains was perfect. Though the crowds were small, they were enthusiastic. The volunteers were the best I have seen. I stayed on pace feeling really great until about mile 24 or 25. It was there that the fatigue of running down hill for three hours was starting to get to me. I slowed my pace a little but was still on target to finish in under 3:20. Then at mile 25.7, I collapsed. My body would not cooperate with me any more. I could not stand up, I could not walk, all I could do was sit on the street. Medical volunteers rushed out to me. They were all very nice, but all wanted me to quit. I explained to them that I could see the finish line and was not about to quit. I sat on the ground for about three minutes and then asked them to help me up. They said the only way they would allow me to continue was if I could stand and walk on my own. I stood and then started taking steps. Soon I was moving towards the finish line again. My time, a personal best of 3:23. I did not make my target, but I left with a sense of accomplishment knowing that I had given everything in my body to the race and there was nothing left to give. Will I ever have a 3:20 marathon? I don’t know and that really is not important anymore. The more important thing is to enjoy my running and rediscover the true pleasure of giving everything I have and leaving it all on the course no matter what course it is.