I Carry a Stepladder for my Soapbox

After having a few brews with my cousin last night at a local establishment I came home and noticed a post on Facebook that hit me pretty hard.  It read, "You haven't lived until you've been told that "if you're to get cancer, this is the one to get." Going on round 4 of Hodgkin Lymphoma. Yep - the SOB is back with a vengeful bite. Damn you cancer".  This came from a beautiful young woman who I've yet had the chance to meet but has impacted my life tremendously, and is in fact not only why I rolled my ass out of bed to run on a muggy Friday morning but the reason that keeps me running.  Simply put, cancer sucks.  


So as I stand high on my soapbox this morning I could state the obvious...what I will endure over the next year in training and races will be no match for what a cancer patient has to push through.  In that I will find strength to keep running but most importantly to raise awareness.  

Our lives are too often full of quantity over quality.  Our lives are too often ran at a speed that we miss what is right in front of our eyes.  And in all this we too often settle for less.  I've found that running for charity and being exposed to those effected has helped me to embrace opportunities and to know that I won't live life with an orthotic.  What I mean by this is that life should be a normal fit, it should be natural, it shouldn't need an "orthotic" to make things right.


Tomorrow morning I will be back out on the B&A Trail running with Team in Training, it's been way too long.

Know when to say when

Very similar to knowing when to have that last beer sometimes you have to know when to take those last few strides.  On tap for my Sunday Funday was an eighteen miler at one of my favorite places to run, Rosaryville State Park. 

I enjoy running in the heat.  I have always thought if you train in the most severe conditions it makes normal everyday running much easier.  After two prior days of record setting heat with highs in the 100's, Sunday's weather would be very similar.  After a decent first loop I decided not to ruin the rest of my day and cut the second loop short, I finished with roughly 14 miles.

Did I learn anything new from this hot and steamy run?  I learned that with excess heat and humidity and a whole lot of sweat that a pair of extra large running shorts seem to become more than twice the normal size and length.  Other than that I didn't learn much that I didn't already know.  What I loved was the humbling experience and understanding my limits.

Here's a random thought...Too often I live by the credo "I'm doing the best I can with what I got" but what I will start living by is "I'm doing great because what I have is the best".

What you can learn from a stuffed bear

Today's post has virtually nothing to do with running but more so about mindful insight.  This afternoon I took Zoe to see Winnie the Pooh.  It had been more years than I could remember since I had watched this film as a child.  However, having a chance to see this as an adult and a father was remarkable.  The simplicity of Pooh's quotes are what get me the most and if I must link any of this to running it would be that his quotes are a stripped down honest view on life and friendship.  This is certainly comparable to running which, arguably, is about the most stripped down sport you can find.

In regards to running, I am planning on 18 miles this Sunday at Rosaryville.  This should be fun with the heat wave we are enduring.  Other stuff to start nailing down - 1. A training plan 2. My fall schedule

peace

The Rock Begins to Roll

Here you have it, I am attempting to run my very first 100 mile race. As long as there are no hiccups in registration I will be running the Vermont 100 next July. This blog will be as much as an experiment as will be my training. I've found over the years that writing has become a form of therapy for me, this next year I will need as much as I can get. With all honesty I couldn't be more excited about a challenge and yet have never been so frightened. Peace.