When I set decided seven years ago to try to qualify for Boston, I didn’t imagine what it would feel like to be here: 21 days from now I’ll actually be running the Boston Marathon. It’s been a long road and right now I’m just about dying with anticipation! I can’t wait.
Seven years ago, I ran the St. George Marathon in Utah. In that race, I ran a 3:59. I decided about two seconds after crossing the finish-line that somehow, some way, I would get myself to the Boston Marathon.
Fast forward seven years and I’m finally going. In that time, I’ve lost fifty pounds, worked with the amazing Coach Dean from RxRunning in Phoenix, and finally qualified for Boston. I ran 3:10 at St. George this past year and that’s what I needed to get to the big show.
Boston represents for me the culmination of a lot of hard work and a lot of my dreams. When I toe the line, alongside the greatest field of runners in America, I feel like I’ll be making it to the Olympics. In fact, that’s the cool thing about Boston. A regular guy like me — a financial consultant by day — can make his way to a huge international sporting event. I can’t think of any of sport where I’d be able to get to the championship game, whether that be the SuperBowl, the World Series, or the Masters. But with enough work, sweat, tears, and pain, a mere mortal like me can wind up running 26.2 miles alongside the best that America has to offer.
It leaves me. . . speechless.
But I didn’t start a blog to be speechless. I’m going to write more about my experiences getting to Boston and what I experience there. I’ll be running some of the race with Coach Joe who is hopefully going to capture some of it on video to share as well. In short, there should be a lot more to share about this experience in the coming weeks.
For now, I just hope that I stay healthy and that any of you Boston runners out there do as well!
Duane Slade, Mesa Arizona
[...] “…that’s the cool thing about Boston. A regular guy like me — a financial consultant by day — can make his way to a huge international sporting event. I can’t think of any of sport where I’d be able to get to the championship game, whether that be the SuperBowl, the World Series, or the Masters. But with enough work, sweat, tears, and pain, a mere mortal like me can wind up running 26.2 miles alongside the best that America has to offer.” (You can read the whole post by clicking here.) [...]
D-
I will be with you in spirit! You deserve to enjoy this experience.. you worked for it.. you earned it. I can’t think of a better well deserved reward than the priviledge of torturing yourself with 25,000 others @ Boston. But, the experience is next to NONE. Period. You are indeed part of an elite group who get to experience something so special.
Upward and onward!
Coach Dean
Congrats on your running! You look better these days! I hope that things are going well for you. GOOD LUCK in BOSTON!