Last weekend, I had an epiphany. I was running the Hell of Half Marathon in Exeter, CA. It was an extremely heated road race where every 2 miles you had to be soaked down in water. With the combination of the heat and the 2 massive hill climbs, Hell of Half is one of the toughest half-marathons in California. As I approached Mile 6 i was feeling pretty good. I was zoned out and concentrating on every mile. As i was running i took a curious glance behind me. I realized that i was way ahead of most everyone. Now, ive worked and trained really hard for this race and i wanted to place in this race so i could carry the title to qualifying events. My body was in tune with my mind and all the work was paying off. I looked up ahead of me and i knew i could win this race...but in that moment, for some reason, I didnt really care about winning. As i was running i started to ask myself, Why am i running 13 miles? Why did i push myself so hard to want to place in this race? Is it really that important to me? I started to think about the people in the very back of the race. For some of them, this was probably their first half-marathon and by now they are probably regretting signing up for this race. I know i have once before when i thought i was tough enough to run 32 mile races. I would get to mile 20 and almost call it quits, but then i would hear this voice in the back of my head Youre a quitter arent you? At the 32 mile finish mark i raised my glass to a beer and said F$%# no im not! But most people arent like that and i know thats what separates me from everyone else. Its Saturday 7:30am. Im at mile 6 of a scorching Hell of a Half. Im leading the race and all im thinking about is the people behind me. Some of them are probably dropping out or worse seeking medical attention...and today Im feeling great. I suddenly stopped. It occurred to me that i wasnt brought here to win this race. I started heading back towards the other racers, passing by some other strong runners (again, looking at me like im crazy) As i head back towards the end of the pack i could see 40 or 50 so runners struggling. I lined myself next to some of them and started talking to them. I was letting them know that they were doing a good job and not to give up. I gave out all my endurance items and water that i had on me and cheered them on. When someone started to stop or fall-down i picked them up and said keep going! you can do this! youre family is waiting for you at the finish line! not much further! I finished the race and received my finishers medal. I even helped put the finisher medals on some of the first timers. We were all smiling and patting each other on the back and congratulating each other. And then i knew the answer to all my questions at mile 6....this was why i pushed myself so hard....to push others.
Posted on: Thu, 21 Aug 2014 05:11:34 +0000