Running Marathons

This is from my newsletter back in October:

16 years ago I ran my first marathon in Chicago.  It was a day that changed my life.  Drank my first Sam Adams Cherry Wheat at the expo.  Bought the race photo ahead of time.  Ran the first 16 miles with Aziz Uras, a fellow Dead Runner from Chicago.  Ran the last 5 miles with Nancy, who was my best friend for an hour and a half and who I've never seen since.  My long run had been 22 miles.  Hers had been 20.  At 23 miles her sister and one of my best friends, Mike Schwartz met us and ran the last 3 miles with us.  I could see the FINISH LINE in my head long before I got there.  I knew I was going to finish, and I knew my life would never be the same.

 

And it wasn't.  Now I could run 26.2 miles.  Limits were no longer something that got in my way.  Since then, I've seen the world, met hundreds of new friends, learned more and more about myself and what I can do.  

 

I'm a "normal" guy--not a "gifted athlete."  But being a marathon runner has opened up the world to me.  

 

If you're running your first marathon, or your first half (you can bump up to 26.2 next year) you'll discover things about yourself too!  You'll find out that your limits are gone!  Your attitude will change.  Someone might tell you that you can't do something, and you'll respond, "Right.  Stand the f**** back and watch this!"  Awesome people run marathons, and you're one of those people!