Other than getting to tell people "I am running a marathon"... 🙃
Come Sunday at noon I hope to have a personal best time of 3:41:02. This is my fifth marathon and experience tells me that there are no guarantees - I've been chasing this time ever since my first marathon.
Ten years ago, my friend Jay asked me to train for and run a marathon with him. To this day, it is still one of the better decisions I've made. Not only did it introduce me to long-distance running and the commitment that it requires, but it has allowed me to form what I believe to be a lifelong bond with Jay (and many others that have joined in over the years). Jay and I have been friends since high school but nothing brings two people closer than running a marathon. The training is grueling, the time commitment is real, but it's the long hours spent together embracing the suck that creates a friendship like no other.
I'd imagine that some people run marathons for the competition and some for the health benefits...and probably most do it just to say they did it.
I run marathons for the depth of friendship it fosters. Thanks, Jay - see you at the finish line.
