I saw something awesome this morning. About 15 miles into our trail run one of the guys in our group was struggling badly and was close to packing it in for morning, even though he needed 18 miles for the day. Wayne dropped back as we climbed a nasty hill in South Chagrin Reservation and stayed with him the whole way up, motivating him to keep going, and he did keep going. He achieved his 18 miles for the day and took a big step in his training for the Buckeye Trail 50K. He told me later that Wayne's motivation made a huge difference in his ability to keep running.
Motivating and helping others is what running is all about, at least to me it is. Wayne was there for this guy this morning and he helped him get to the top of the hill and keep going.
Sometimes I think we could all use a little help and motivation. Sometimes it's hard putting one foot in front of the other, and you need someone there to give you a nudge, a word of encouragement, some help. Many say running is an individual sport. For many, it is. But in my own world I think of running as a team sport. It's an opportunity to help others and to draw strength from those around me when I'm struggling.
If all we did was run for ourselves, and only ourselves, what kind of life would that be? I guess this is why the Southeast Running Club means so much to our members.
No comments:
Post a Comment