The Joy of Going the Distance

My first year in graduate school at the University of Minnesota, I took an introductory course about people with disabilities. Dr. Weiss was a brilliant instructor who, despite her passing way too young, continues to inspire me today. One of the assignments she gave was to write a paper called “On Being Different.” It could be about anything related to diversity. In 1977, female marathon runners were “different” as they hardly existed. The first female to run the Boston Marathon was in 1967. I researched the idea and interviewed two local Minneapolis female marathoners to learn of their stories. In the end, I got an A on the paper and became intrigued with the idea of running a marathon.

In 1978 I ran my first marathon in the Twin Cities. It was a horrible experience as my running buddy and I had NOT trained enough. The racecourse was almost dismantled by the time we crossed the finish line. I could hardly move for a couple of days. I swore I would never run again, let alone run a marathon. I started to think about what had gone wrong and I knew from my encounters with others that running these long distances could be fun. In 1980 we ran our second marathon in Wisconsin. It was fun. We were well trained and ran the 26.2 mile course over an hour faster than that first attempt.

Since those early days, I have run a dozen marathons and mostly enjoyed them with proper training: Marine Corps, Raleigh Marathon, Big Sur, Drake Relays, Honolulu Marathon, Estes Park Marathon, Grandma’s (Duluth), to mention only a few. I loved running through Washington DC with all the iconic memorials. Big Sur had astounding beauty, and I did it with my cousin, Mary. (see photo)

Fifteen years ago, I did my last marathon and opted for doing 2-3 half marathons each year. I wanted to preserve my body for hiking and other physical activities. Proper training takes energy. I gave up running and opted for fast walking and longer distance hiking three years ago. I miss training for marathons and challenging myself to prepare adequately. I like the discipline of the training schedule and the joy of going back to running just for fun after the marathon is over. I miss the excitement of marathon day and the aftermath of reveling in accomplishing the goal.

Nevertheless, I know my limitations today and am grateful for all those years of going the distance and the joys of movement. Today I move in slower ways!