A Bad Run That Became a Glorious Win
Have you ever had a run that started badly, but changed drastically at some point? This happened to me several years ago and it’s one of my favorite memories.
A series of ultra-marathons called Miles for Maria were dedicated to Maria who had epilepsy and several other medical issues. As well as longer ultras, there was a race in the series in the summer that was just an ultra at a distance of 26.6 miles.
I loved this race series, especially because I liked knowing that I was supporting Maria. I also love to run ultras, so it was unusual for me not to be excited on the morning of just an ultra. I woke up with a migraine but didn’t want to miss the race, so I headed to the race.
The race was a one-mile loop around a lake on a trail through the woods. It was beautiful, but on that morning I forgot about the beauty and showed up with a rotten attitude. During most of the race, I was engaging in a lot of negative self-talk. I passed a woman who looked super fit. She had a tattoo on her arm that said 26.2, so I thought, “Well, I probably don’t stand a chance against a marathon enthusiast.”
My head was aching, and my negativity was not helping my motivation, so I started walking around mile 21. I knew I had about five laps left, so I thought I would check at the table, go use the bathroom, and then finish. When…
