My companion and competitor on this journey, Neil Z, had the good idea of telling his running "origin" story. I'll follow his lead for this mile and tell mine, though it is not as interesting or dramatic as his.
Biography of AC, Elite Athlete
| 1970 | Born |
| 1978 | Is 7th in the batting lineup of T-Ball team. Bats in front of the Eli twins who weigh 60 pounds combined. Career highlight: In one mighty swing, misses the ball but sends the tee into the outfield. Then throws the bat and hits the first baseman. Ejected from game. |
| 1983 | Nearly completes 1 consecutive pull-up in gym class. Is one of the top ranked targets in dodge ball. |
| 1987 | Successfully avoids taking the required semester of swimming with forged Doctor's note. |
| 1988 | Encouraged/bullied by older brother into taking 1 mile run around block. Throws up. |
| 1992 | Briefly discovers joy of trail running while skipping college classes |
| 1995 | At age 25, acquires "runner's knee" while hitting peek mileage of 3 road miles, 3 times a week. |
| 2002 | Rediscovers trail running at Falls Lake and Umstead Park. Can run up to 6 miles for an hour on the trails. |
| 9/2003 | In preparation for Detroit Marathon Relay, completes longest run to date. A single training run of 10 miles on a treadmill |
| 10/2003 | At age 33, enters first race ever, The Detroit Marathon Relay. Accidentally runs the entire marathon. (race report to come) |
| 2/2004 | Emboldened by marathon success in Detroit, properly trains for Bayshore Marathon. |
| 5/2004 | Properly bonks at Bayshore Marathon. |
to be continued...
I like the "Accidentally runs the entire marathon" piece. That could be a "mile" by itself. More info on the bonking too. Everyone likes to enjoy someone elses struggle.
ReplyDeleteI love the Eli twins. I imagine them looking like Oliver "Whitey" Whitman.
ReplyDeleteShannon: I first read that as "Walt Whitman." He (and his twin?) would rock the shorty-short running shorts.
ReplyDeleteGreat post - hilarious!
ReplyDelete