mediocre runner (post from Beth)

I am a mediocre runner at best. A middle of the pack jogger who only places in my age group in the extremely small races. A 7 minute mile makes me see stars and is an all out effort only sustainable for a mile, followed by a long recovery. So the question, "Why do you run?" is a difficult one to answer. I have found the answer changes depending on the stage of my life. I got a wild hair in my sophmore year of high school and decided to try out for the track team. There weren't enough female runners to actually cut anyone, so I started to work out with the Ballard track team. I promptly got injured and sent to the "field" activities. I enjoyed learning discus and shot put until the first real track meet. There I stood, all 90 shapeless pounds of me in my little bitty maroon track shorts and the 3 rather husky girls took one look at me and said, "Look at the little white girl! We could roll her up and use her as the shot put!" That thought had already occured to me but I was pretty sure that injured or not, I could outrun them. It was a short lived track career. I ran in college to combat the sudden discovery of cafeteria food and the weight gain that came with it. I found a roommate who also loved to run and we had some great runs together. We would chat and dream and solve all our problems. I ran after I got married because I was already hooked and was rapidly discovering that working a full time job as a new grad was difficult. Todd and I used to get up and run in the morning. He was nice enough to slow down to my pace until the sun came up and not demand any conversation as we ran through the quiet streets of Lexington. We joined a run club and found new friends to run with and new races to try. I ran after I had Katie because it was the only time I could get outside. Todd would come home during his lunch hour while I was on maternity leave and I would run 3 miles around the neighborhood. The cold weather was exilherating as was the silence. It gets exponentially harder to fit running into your schedule as you have a career, more children and the pressures of being a productive adult. I am lucky to have a spouse who runs. I honestly do not mind the training hours Todd has put in for this race. I get it--the need to do something, the need to run. Some of my reasons for running now are more vain than they used to be. My metabolism really has slowed down and I am not exactly 90 pounds anymore. But truthfully, my runs are my time to be by myself and my thoughts. I have prayed, cried, pondered and dreamed over many miles. I will never be a strong runner. But if I last long enough, I just might win my age group one day. - Beth