In the Long Run

Sunday morning brought stark contrast to the muddy soggy gray Saturday that preceded. I woke up, hit snooze a few times then rolled out to find Rebecca ready to go. She normally runs long on Saturday but the 2" of rain squelched that routine and her normal running group does not run on Sunday, so we decided to go together. I agreed to run the a loop around White Rock Lake (9.2 miles) with the guys (the single best collection of wing men on the planet) then do what we call a boat house run with Becca to finish off. We both had 16 on the docket. I hate that we don't run at the same speed because I really do enjoy running with her. But with the plan in place I thought it would be a good compromise.

Saturday Night we watched NBC's coverage (on the DVR) of the Ford Ironman World Championship. I have to say that the presentation was really phenomenal. There were about four moments where I welled up in emotion. It was really good for me to see. Two things came out of the viewing for me. One: motivation, which is always needed and two: a little bit of fear. After watching the mas start swim in slow motion, it made my gut churn thinking about how I am going to feel and experience when I am in the mix come race day morning.

Back to Sunday morning: I rolled out of bed and began digging in my running stuff trying to figure out how to dress for the cold morning that would turn into a nice warm day. It would be a beautiful spring-like day and I always try to plan the clothing choice for optimal efficiency. I don't know why, but I always seem to stress about this and always seem to nail it. With a cup of coffee, some Gatorade and a granola bar and a hand full of energy gels, we hit the road.

The first loop was great. I felt good and had no issues. Last week's long run was a good learning experience for me. I made a huge mistake and had failed to take any fuel. At about mile 11 I found myself struggling and cramping. Today, I planned to fuel and hopefully dodge the immense pain that resulted. It may sound sick, but I kinda like pushing the limits in training. I mean, when you get to those miles that are above the comfortable miles and you have to grit your teeth. When it happens, I spend time memorizing how I feel and pushing the pain envelope knowing that the pain will be the same if not worse come race day. I like to know what I can do under the pain and conditions knowing it will be useful in August. This day I would be testing energy gels to see what I like and what works. On the menu was Accel Gel.

I always like running with the guys. The conversations are always fun. Today, we discussed theological topics and the Ironman. Toward the end of the run, David and I talked about extreme training and I shared some goals and dreams of 4 mile swims across Lake Ray Hubbard and finishing sub 12 hours in the Ironman. David lives for these conversations... that is he lives to smash dreams and thinks he is the voice of reality. In this instance his comments were along the lines of, "yeah, right, you are out of you mind." This always fires me up and in some way issues a challenge that makes me want to step it up a notch. So I did, the last two miles of the loop I pushed it. He matched me stride for stride. Once back at the car, he stopped (had to get ready for church), I sucked down a gu and kept rolling, running back in the direction that Rebecca would be finishing. I ran fast until I met her then we ran together back to the car where she fueled, shed her jacket and prepared for the boathouse portion of our run. She had been sick with the flu for the past week and I could see it was taking its toll. She was in pain. Nevertheless, we pushed on for the remaining 7 miles. We ran together for about two miles then the pain forced her to walk a bit. I kept going and told her I would meet her at the boathouse. I ran strong and felt the miles start to creep up on me. It was here that I started to feel the elation that the pain brings me knowing this, in the long run and pain, is where Ironmen are made. I ran past the boathouse and turned around. We met as planned and began the trek back to the car. The elation of pain was not shared by my spouse and it was evident in her grimacing face. She urged me to go on and I did, running hard. I am sure I looked funny as I shuffled down the tarmac. It is times like this that I study the faces of the passing runners and cyclists wondering if they know. I wonder if they think I am struggling on mile two or if they know that I am about to finish an epic long run. I day dreamed of somehow having a display saying "mile 16" so they could share this proud moment of my self accomplishment. In reality, I think they probably just felt sorry for the poor fat kid trying to run. Oh well, I do this for me, so what does it matter. Secretly I tell myself they know and their silent judgment brings me motivation. It's the knowing nod from the passing runner wearing the I-dot logo that keeps me going. Once back to the car, I turned around and ran back to my bride wondering how she was making it. I ran as hard as I could and when I saw her, I was proud to see that she was running. We finished together and hugged in celebration of the accomplishment of another long run. For me, it was 17+ miles today.

I love the long run. I love to push the limits. Somewhere in there, for both of us, is learning and experience that is a metaphor of life in someway. It reminds me of a sermon that Jesus gave. This is why I run. You have to experience the pain and training to one day know the prize and enjoy the result of the training and trial. James 1:2 says: " Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance." What a great illustration found in the long run.