Grandma’s marathon is one that I’ve been wanting to run for years but because scheduling it never worked out. I was really looking forward to it until about 7pm Friday, the night before the run…that’s when the stomach bug hit. When I woke up on Saturday morning I thought to myself, I probably shouldn’t be running this. I Guess it was meant to be a learning experience. I didn’t really have a goal for this race other than to enjoy it and use it as a training run for the next weekend’s longer run… more on that in the future. Tiny goal in the back of my head..don’t run faster than 3:20:00. It required three pit stops but finished 3:28:19. It’s a huge bonus running locally and meeting up with family and friends around the race. My buddy Trevor ran his first half marathon along with his mom, sister and niece. My wife, JoAnna, and her best friend Rhiannon (Trevor’s wife) also completed the marathon. I also saw several familiar faces and as usual made some new friends along the way.

As much as I like to race an event, sometimes it’s better just to run in the event. Racing is physically exhausting and usually takes at least a couple weeks to recover. I don’t see a point in racing unless I’m competing against myself (for example qualifying for Boston) or others in the race. I already have a Boston Qualifier (earned at Boston this year) and because I have a few shorter races this summer I want to compete in, I don’t want to remove myself from those competitions.

Most of the marathon experience for me is a celebration of fitness and achievement, but not necessarily the event. Somewhere in the last few years with a lifestyle change that is geared more towards wellness and vitality I’m actually in pretty good shape. My wife and I have even built our business around that lifestyle. The Marathon is a celebration in the journey. Its not about the event, its about being able to do the event. Its a celebration in the greater process of living with vitality and purpose.