Marathoning and beyond

  You can say whatever you want about those crazy people that run further in a morning than most people drive in a week--don't worry, I can take it.  I love to run.  I enjoy getting outside, with just me, my running shoes, and the sound of my own heartbeat in my ears as I pound out the miles.  Wait...scratch that.  I have not crossed over to that scary, weirdo place where zealot athletes go to stroke their own egos.

  No, I like to run because it is easy, you can do it anywhere with just a pair of shoes, and it is cheap (hence, just a pair of shoes).  Now, occasionally, I will add an excited dog who obsessively hunts squirrels, a regularly malfunctioning old iPod that has horrifically inappropriate running tunes ('If I die young', really?), and most recently, your favorite little sidekick, sweet Luke, complete with his toys, Wubba, and decked out running buggy thanks to Great-grandpa.  All this adds up to a little less simple and a bit more effort to get out of the house, but it is still worth it in the end, even when we only make it 3 miles on a 10-mile day or take a short-cut home for a major diaper malfunction.

  I ran the Steamboat Marathon this past weekend.  It was beautiful, warm, and long.  26.2 miles long to be exact, but who is counting.  I had the support of my awesome husband, kid, parents, in-laws, and niece and nephew.  This crazy idea sprouted a few years back when my friend Maria signed me up for my first marathon--some would use the word 'friend' lightly here, but I really think she had my best interests in mind.

 A few years and a few races later, I found myself running alone on Sunday for the first time due to numerous extenuating circumstances.  Let me tell you, marathoning is meant to be done in a herd, group, pack, gaggle, entourage--whatever you want to call it, anything but solo.  Suffice to say, I made it, with the greatest prize ever waiting for me at the finish line.