The Spirit Resonates

A few days ago, a bunch of TRIgirls attended the limited release of Spirit of the Marathon, a documentary following a diverse group of runners, ranging from first timers to pros, as they train for and participate in the Chicago marathon.

Even though a stand alone marathon is one distance I haven't done - and probably won't, the movie resonated with me, and I think, many of my training buddies.

Lori - the first timer who irons her name on her race shirt so the crowd will cheer her on.

Leah - another first timer who observes that when her friends are together socially, they talk constantly about running, but when they are running, they talk about everything else.

Jerry - the 70 year old who does marathons for the t-shirt and whose runner's high occurs after he stops running.

They run. They eat. They face obstacles. They run some more.

And, finally, race morning, they wake-up in the dark, eat their oatmeal and kiss their loved ones goodbye. They stand among the thousands of other racers, the static charged energy flowing through the crowd - a mixture of apprehension, nerves and excitement on the first timers' faces.

Reminding me of the way I've felt before my first ironman, half ironman, olympic tri, half marathon, 10K - even my first sprint distance.

Then the elation, triumph and sense of accomplishment after conquering the challenge that was months in the making.

Reminding me of how I've felt after completing those virgin distances.

Which kind of gave me goosebumps. Maybe I'll have to rethink the marathon resolution...