A couple weeks ago, I entered Geoff Roes' contest on IRunFar. The rules were to submit a short essay answering the simplest and most difficult question in my athletic career: Why do you run? I have been asked this on countless occasions: by my unsuspecting, curious lab partners; by other runners hoping to find common grounds; and many times by myself. This question allowed me to consider experiences and feelings as to what draws me out the door at any hour of the day. It was an insightful exercise and definitely made me appreciate all the little things that culminate into my pursuit and passion for running. While I somehow made the final three cut, I actually entered the contest with no intention of winning anything; just simply to share my thoughts and unveil some deeper meaning for myself, so, voila! The results of the contest can be found HERE.
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| A Rad Group of totally awesome friends I have made in SLO. PC Tera Dube |
Why I Run.
My footsteps crunching through the
dirt creates a sort of rhythmic pattern of sounds. I focus on that for a little
bit; duh dum duh dum… The tunnel of light guiding me forward casts creeping,
shadows looming behind trees. They whisper to me in a language I cannot
understand, but at the same time, it’s as if I’m one of them, gliding along.
For the first time in 16 hours, I am alone. There are no monsieurs grunting a
bonsoir, no fanatic fans practically falling off a balcony screaming ALLEZ, and
no lights anywhere around me. I can only guess by the way the ground is sloping
up that I am nearing that last climb. My ipod has died. I am already 23 miles
farther than I have ever run in my life with about 8-10 left, praying I don’t
get lost. Coming around a turn, I gaze upon an unending trail of star-like
headlamps stretching up, up, up like a zipper. This is all I remember from the
last nine hours of my first 100k race- the CCC in France.
Most 20
year olds prefer to stay out all night or spend all of Sunday in the library. So
why do I wake up at 4:30 am to run for 6hrs with a group of folks, who, most of
which, are twice my age? I do it for moments when everything clicks and I get
at least 3ft of air bounding over rocks, roots and wildflowers. For the
sunrises, sunsets, and that bewitching golden hour. For that tingling, numbing
sensation and when the tears come pouring out, unwarranted in the last mile of
a race. For the smiles, high fives, and stories received from the dude that I
just bonded with while suffering in the heat during miles 20-27. For the moments that
are so full of pain and anguish and despair, my ego gets a serious reality check. But
mostly for the candid routine of tying my shoes, because it’s not so much of
why I do it, how I do it, etc, but that it makes me who I am.  |
| Run With Us by Strava (HERE) also highlights these feelings... PC &VC Luis Pena |
I love your essay! It is very descriptive and well written, and congrats on the CCC finish. I'm hoping more of the 103 entries from the iRunFar contest will be posted on people's blogs, as it sounds like Geoff had tons of great responses.
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