That I can make a lot of money off these fools.
That I can make a lot of money off these fools.
you've got issues!
Humility & brutal honesty with myself. When timing myself on the track, especially after having overestimated my fitness level, I am continually brought back to reality and a true measure of how my training is progressing. The sobering jolt of this can be depressing or exhilirating.
This continuing experience sobers me, developing humility.
To get out of bed slowly in the morning.
. . . and that you can take a dump at 6,000 ft. without worrying about mosquitoes biting your butt.
Please see the attached link. We can help Agnes get a new heart valve by sending contributions to:
Agnes Kiplagat Fund
Wachovia Bank
Attention: Tyler Cardinal
1307 North Avenue
New Rochelle, NY 10804
http://www.thejournalnews.com/oconnor/
its taught me to help the kiplagat's
PKane Thank you.
For my own:
That NOTHING is certain
That where there are doubters, there are losers
That what one deserves and attains are entirely divorced
That the best talent in this sport is a healthy frame and a confident head.
That it is possible to run a 30 tic PR in th 10k and have your highest placement ever at your Conference meet, but it is still second, and cry like a baby after.
That you came back the next day to lift that guy over the last 500 in the 5k!
That winning feels a lot better when you don't get too used to it.
That nothing is more frustrating than being fitter than ever and not able to race.
That even the greatest sex in the world does not even come close to winning a race.
Lastly, that despite enough years of injury to make a man go mad with frustration...your time is coming. And when it does, it will all be well worth it.
PS This is a great thread. Infinitely better than the Ritz/Webb 2 mile debates and knocks on runners who are better than all of us.
I've learned that the fiercest warriors of all are time and patience.
Martin
No matter how hard you train, you're never quite good enough.
The moment you think you're good enough, you're finished.
It should teach you little runts that you're wasting your time turning yourself into scrawny little twigs. What is it getting you? A little medal here and there that you proudly display on a doorknob in your bedroom? It sure isn't getting you any women. Ha ha hahaha.
It creates a level of maturity that only people who have withstood the trial of miles will understand.
It's also the only sport in which being clinically OCD can be a good thing!
It also makes you pity those people whose only meaning in life is trying to impress others. They go about their lives trying to create a fleeting image for themselves that will soon fade away leaving only a waste of human potential.
It's taught me that I can do way more than I ever dreamed
That I'm my own worst coach
That the discipline of regular training will teach you everything you want to know about yourself; be it values, ethics, integrity, guts, courage, fears, confidence, compassion, humilty, etc.
That keeping the big picture, long view is essential
That distance runners are a unique group, community
That finding/having a good, knowledgeable coach at a young age is critical and a great gift.
That the runners from the 60s,70s accomplished far more on a lot less support, knowledge and resources. The current crop has few damn excuses to use.
That running and all it entails has had an incredible influence on the kind of human being I became.
That I was able to accomplish a great deal as a runner despite some major obstacles, I have no regrets, but it would be great to be 14 now with all the knowledge and resources available.
That giving back as a hs coach is a wonderful experience and great therapy!
That all the work runners did in the 60s and 70s to get money for their efforts may have wound up killing many people's joy and incentive and changing the sport irrevocably.
That I treasure being able to know, run with and party with many of the great runners in our sport, Pre, Ryun, Liguori, Wottle, Wolhuter, Moore, Shorter, Galloway, Khvalheim, slaney Waitz and many more>>>great memories>
It teaches the same virtues that any other discipline will teach.
Faith
Work
Patience
Temperence
Charity
Humility
Alas, we learn no faster than anyone else.
I have always been smaller than everyone else it seemed, and I learned that running was a place where that was an advantage. Then I learned that it was ok to be different, that being different made you more successful, because to win a race is to be an outlier, by definition. Then I learned that it is hard work, perseverance, dedication, and heart that makes one successful, and that you win races in October with the work you do in July. Then I learned that I could do anything, if I was willing to work hard enough.
As I have gotten older, however, it has become less about beating other people. When you run a 5k off little training and still beat thousands, you can hardly credit your work ethic. That victory seems more hollow, when the people who lost had fought obesity their whole lives, or were well past 60, or 8 months pregnant. And, when I realized that I would never be an elite runner, and that with the pressures of job and family I may never return to the shape I was once in, but that I was still going to train as much as I could until I was hobbled, I realized it had to be about someting more.
I know now that what makes a race good or bad, whether you are winning, or just finishing, is that at some point you are faced with a decision. To have a good race, you must be willing to sacrifice yourself, to knowingly increase the level of discomfort you are already in, and come face to face with your own limitations. In a world where the emphasis is so much on comfort, and the biggest industry for Americans is paying to be amused, it is gratifying to know that I am different, and not because I am skinny, or wear short shorts, or know the names of more Kenyans and Ethiopians than the people in my city combined. I am different because, in the most basic of all human activity, I actively seek out my weaknesses, stare my own inadequacies in the face, and submit myself to testing. And wherever I fall along the scale of character, I know at the least that, as Teddy Roosevelt said, my "place will never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat."
Running has taught me that life is to be lived.
Great post.
Teach:
Your post is one of the best I have ever read. Thank you.
Always be gracious in defeat, even if you really hate the guy
Never gloat in victory, unless you really hate the guy.
Lots of great stuff here! Hard to think of
anything original to add. Any guesses why this
thread remains hot, while tinman's question about
the meaning of success quickly went colder than
Rosie O'Donnell's underwear?
I was wondering that too. It would be interesting to see what people think defines success, as a runner or otherwise.
Thanks for that address in New York. That story was so touching that I imagine the $4600 has already been raised, but it certainly put my little problems in perspective.