As we begin a new year for the PRA, I have carefully reviewed  our organization, its assets and its strengths. Unquestionably. we are in a great position to fulfill our mission of promoting and supporting running (and walking) and racing in the Gulf Coast area. 

THE REASON

by Kirwan Price 

I know people who've each done over a dozen Ironman races. I know someone who regularly does 50K trail runs. My second cousin rode his bike from the Dead Sea to the foot of Everest and then climbed it. Someone in our tri club swam a 25K and a couple of West Florida Wheelmen rode over from New Orleans in a day - 260 miles. I even know a guy who did a double Ironman!!! That's right, the Ironman distance DOUBLED in each discipline.   

2012 Ironman Texas

I think of these people every time someone asks "So how far was that marathon you ran?" They don't get why we run or swim or ride for any reason other than as a last resort to escape danger. But when it comes to the aforementioned mind-boggling feats and the people who did them, I'm not so sure I get it either.

Why? Why race your bike across the US or swim from Cuba to Florida? What makes these folks feel compelled to do this craziness? I don't know, but I imagine the person in the checkout line who just inquired about my race t-shirt is thinking the same thing - what would you do that for?

What does knowing that I can run X miles do for me? Does it mean that when the Apocalypse comes I know I can cross over the frozen 3-mile bridge to see if Gulf Breeze has been invaded by zombies? Or is it that we will be required to swim across the water, and then jump on our bikes before abandoning them to run to safety after a major disaster? What practical purpose does all this exercise serve?  

I don't know anyone who makes a living doing it - that would make sense. A lot of times, during these Herculean tests, we don't look like we're having fun. So, why set out to do them? If the extra-long runs, rides, swim sessions, the track work and the diet mean the difference between a new long-term contract and getting traded, then by all means. But none of us is in that situation. Yet, we do all these things to some degree. And let's be honest, sometimes they really suck.

It was a long, long time ago that I first pondered this towards the end of a mere 5K as I tried in vain to catch my college roommate. He was always getting me to sign up for races I thought I had no business in. Why, why was I doing this? At that moment, it was about beating him (and it took a lot of training for that to ever happen) or whomever I felt I was in competition with.

Sadly, it took decades to realize that was not the reason to run. By this time, I had graduated to longer races and triathlons, and I had just been handily beaten in a half Ironman I thought I had in the bag. My much wiser and faster friend advised me that I should not have been racing him, but rather myself, and I would have had a much more rewarding race. "What?" I thought. Does this have something to do with everyone getting a medal these days?

I thought about it a lot after that - usually on long runs. I thought about the others I had met within the last few years who were accomplishing these mindboggling physical challenges as well, and what could possibly be motivating them to do such things. They weren't racing other people, they were racing themselves! I was starting to understand. I could certainly use the prospect of besting a buddy's time as a motivator, but the real reason I was doing it all had to be about racing within myself. Pushing to see how I could improve rather than whether or not I could beat my rivals.

Since that realization, I've finished race distances I never considered possible - the kinds of races that I would have been asking "How long was that?" back when a 5K was all I thought to attempt. I've improved a little, too, but most importantly the occasion has so much more meaning now. I owe a lot to that friend for helping me see it that way.

With a more honest and concrete objective, I better understand why I enjoy this hobby and why I endure the inevitable bouts of unpleasantness that accompany it. Don't we all want to know what we're capable of? Perhaps doing this obscenely long race (or a 5K if you're just getting started) will help me realize to what limits I can push myself, and if some friends do it with me, then we can give each other a little extra nudge.

Maybe, too, it's that races and the preparation that accompany them translate into tackling the challenges of everyday life. When you think you can't possibly do something like address a problem at work or undertake a home repair, you reflect back to thoughts of attempting your first 10K: how you planned it out and took your time training and accepted that things could go wrong, but that you would at least try. Lo and behold, you were able to do that, so this little daily matter should be easy.

Don't be afraid to try a more challenging event, something you think you cannot do. Take your time and prepare for it and you just might find out you can. During that time, you'll find out to what lengths you can push yourself. You might be surprised, but you'll undoubtedly discover the friends who motivate you to give it your all. Regardless of who you beat in the end, everyone gets a medal.

Maybe I'll sucker my old roommate to swim the Dead Sea first, then ride our bikes to Everest and climb it. What would my cousin say to that?