I recently was working on an application to be a regional representative for a particular shoe company. Its a huge long shot and I don't expect to get it, but you miss 100% of the shots you don't take, right? One of the questions, though, was what does running mean to you? Huge, loaded question. Below is how I answered that question. I have been wanting to write some but was struggling. This came easy.
I am a teacher
I teach at a middle school and
coach at the high school next door… cross country and track. I love talking to
the middle school kids about running and joining track or cross country at both
levels, but I know that running can be more than just a sport. Last year I had
an 8th grade girl in my class, we’ll call her Morgan. Morgan had
serious home issues that lead to serious anger issues. She was in trouble a lot
and was having a rough year. I teach art, and tried to help her get our some of
her frustrations and anger through art, allowing her to work in my back work
area, listen to music, and shut off the distractions for a little bit. I helped
some, but the day she came back from the bathroom with bloody knuckles from
punching the wall. I sat her down and had a conversation with her. I encouraged
her to get into boxing and start running. I let her know I was serious and that
I wanted her to come out and run for me at the high school and train with me
that summer. I wanted to help her and find a way for her to find some mental
peace as well as work off that angry energy. I asked her about it every day in
class, telling her how I would train her and get her ready for the season. I
wanted to let he know I still wanted to help her. I also called her mom and
helped her figure out a place for Morgan to start taking boxing classes.
I didn’t
see Morgan that summer, or at practice, but one day she found me in the parking
lot before practice. She told me she was sorry she wasn’t running, but she was
too busy with classes and with boxing. She had starting winning bouts and
moving up in rankings, but she promised me to come out next season and that she
wanted to run for me. I know that running didn’t save her and that there’s a
long road ahead, but the idea behind it helped. I think the running gods would
smile down at her anyways. I look forward to next season.
I am a new father
My wife and I recently had a little
baby boy… one month ago to be exact. He is beautiful and awesome. At my annual
cross country annual dessert potluck banquet this past year, before he was born,
the parents caught me as I thanked everyone and said goodnight. They had a
surprise for me. Usually I get a couple small gift cards to Applebee’s or
something. I don’t care. That’s not why I coach. Anything I get is gravy. When
I opened the card they gave me, though, I cried. They pooled together enough
money to allow me to go buy a jogging stroller so I could run with my son. I
never expected anything. I am just thankful they let their kids run and buy
them the shoes to do so with what little money they have.
I wanted to buy a jogger and run
with my son, but had decided it wasn’t in the budget and I would just keep running
on my own. My wife likes her boot camp classes and my poor dog has dysplasia,
so I run on my own. But now I can take my son out to see the beautiful world
while running. I can share with him my love for running as my dad did with me.
I can’t wait to take him on my favorite trails, stopping to explore and play
(or catch my breath from pushing him!). I can’t wait to share this beautiful community
of runners that encourage each other, help each other, and take care of each
other. My son may not decide to become a runner, and that’s OK. But I want to
at least share what I love about it with him as he now shares the same space in
my heart.
I am a husband
I am so thankful to have a wife
that loves me enough to understand my need to run. She understands why I need
an hour or so each day to run let my legs fly. She understands why I use my
spending money to sign up for races or buy new running shoes. She understands
why I asked for a water bottle belt for Christmas. She understands why I coach,
even though it takes up so much time and energy. She was even my assistant one
year! She understands why, when on vacation, I can’t wait to go run.
The first time I had to host a cross
country meet was for the League Championships. It was only my second year
coaching. I had no assistant coach and only had 15 kids on the team with very
little parent presence (Now I have over 50 and a whole community!). My wife
took the day off work (she also teaches Art). She and I set up the entire course that day,
setting flags, pushing a chalking machine, and sweating profusely in the heat. We
got it done and pulled it off and had a story to tell. She was there for me when
I needed her and is always there for me when I complain about my hurt knees or a
bad run or about a new crazy training idea I have. Heck… she bought me a Joe
Vigil book for my birthday! She gets me and allows me to be “one of those crazy
people” out running all the time. She, too, had her time in cross country and
shows the love and sense of community well. Whether she knows it or not, I
often run hard because I want her to be proud of me. It’s silly and I know it…
but I do anyways.
I am a son
Both of my parents were or are
cross country and track coaches. One of my earliest memories is being on my mom’s
back, piggyback style, cheering for her runners at a meet. My mom gave up
coaching to help raise my little brother and me, which I now know was a major
sacrifice, being a coach myself. My parents never pressured me to run. They
never made me run. They never tried to coach me as parents. They invited me to
run and train. They encouraged me. They helped me. In high school my dad did my
paper route on days I had morning runs after driving me to the high school. They drove me hundreds of miles to tiny
colleges to meet with their coaches when it was time to pick a school. They did
the same for my brother.
Now that I am older, I now realize what
they did for me. Outside of giving me opportunities and making sure I could run
if I wanted, they always showed me the love they had for it, not as a beautiful
but brutal sport, but as a frame of mind. They used running to spend time
together, to release frustration, to enjoy a beautiful day, to explore on
vacations, and to keep healthy and alive. My mom survived cancer and then kept
running. My dad coaches year round, giving of himself constantly, and keeps
running. (They need to build him a statue when he retires). They ran to prepare
to hike the Grand Canyon, and made it down and up in the same day. The best
runs I ever had were on family road trips after they would wake me up early to
go run to see the sunrise in the mountains or on Lake Michigan.
I am now 32. I still love running.
I run to enjoy the day, to let out emotions, and to explore. My brother now
coaches with my dad. My mom helps him with his track team, making meals and
washing clothes and buying shoes for kids who need help. I coach now and try to
follow in my parents’ footsteps, teaching my athletes not only to compete and
get better, but to love running and to use it as a lifelong labor of love. I am
so excited to share this love and journey with my son, passing on to him the
legacy of happiness and joy that can come from running. I truly am my parent’s
son in all the best ways… or, at least, that’s what I’m striving for.
 |
| On a run with my dad in Estes Park |
I am a coach
Above anything I do or have ever
done, which includes my own athletic accomplishments, my artistic accomplishments
and joys, and my beautiful and budding family, I feel I have done the most good
for the world as a coach. I have been coaching Cross Country and Track now for
8 years… since I started teaching. I could write a book on all the amazing
memories and athletes I have had. Chapters upon chapters could be written about the inspiring
individuals I have had the privilege to work with… athletes and kids that have
gone on to do amazing and incredible things. I make no claim that it was my
influence or coaching that did this. It was them and I feel lucky to have been
there to help in any small way I could. I have no major and amazing
accomplishments to put on my resume as a coach. I built a team of 10 kids to 50
in 8 years. We went from near last to winning a recent league title. I have
taken one kid to the State meet. It’s a small list. What I am most proud of
will never been seen on a plaque or banner.
It is my goal, as a coach, to
foster an environment of something more than success. I am most proud of my
team when I see them together, without me, laughing and playing. I am proud
when I see them all gather at the finish, without me, to cheer on our last
runner as they strive for a PR. I am proud when I see my team cheering on other
individuals from other teams as they gut out they race because they know how
hard they are working. I am proud when my team sends me a text message of a
picture of them all eating dinner together at Applebee’s for unlimited
appetizers. I’ve seen kids come to the team as one person and leave on the
other side as the best version of themselves time and time again. I’ve seen
running teach kids the meaning of hard work and being humble. I’ve seen it
break and rebuild. I’ve seen running change lives, form relationships, and
create opportunities. My team has become a family. If they need a job
reference, they can always call me. If I need help moving drywall into my
basement, I call them. I get Christmas cards with pictures of their new
families now, invites to going away parties as they enter the marines and air
force, and invites to honorary dinners at their churches. There is something
about running with another group of people for a season, going through each
long, hot run, each grueling interval session, each giggle/stretching session,
and each race in the mud and rain that creates a bond that exists across time
and space. You feel you have been through the trenches with these people. You
have run for them as well as with them. It’s beautiful. As a coach, I get to
step back and see the forest for the trees sometimes, and it’s amazing.
 |
| One of many great pictures of my team |
I am a runner
I started running in 6th
grade. I trained a little with my dad after he asked if I wanted to try it. I
agreed and ran a couple miles with him, soon going out on my own. I won that
first race. I didn’t win many others after that, but I wasn’t bad, either. I
was on varsity after my freshman year of high school in cross country. I ran
every race as if it were my last, exhausting every muscle I had available to me.
I ran in college as a walk-on for a bit, but
quite because they coach was rotten (a story for another time). I decided to
keep running, though. I ran on my own. For the first time, I ran just to run.
Before there was always a goal. Now…. I just ran. I ran through rolling hills
and stumbled upon herds of deer that took my breath away. I ran in a relay race
from the Mississippi to the Ohio. I ran to train for an epic hiking road trip
to the Badlands and Yellowstone. I learned to love the run. I ran when happy. I
ran when mad. I ran when stressed. I ran when I ate too much pizza and
sometimes after too much beer. I ran because I was free do so. I ran without a
watch, or headphones, or even a shirt. I
didn’t know how good I had it.
I run now to stay in shape, setting
pacing goals, wearing a watch, and using apps to track my performance. I run
each day for a specific reason and usually have a goal in mind. I run to stay
sane and stay in shape. I run to keep away from bad habits and negative thoughts.
I run to avoid cleaning the garage. I run with a certain amount of time
available. I run to prepare to be able to keep up with my athletes and try out training
ideas. I sign up for races to make sure I have a goal in mind for my runs. I
keep up on the latest news in shoes, training, eating, lifting, etc.
But once in a while, there’s a day….
There’s a beautiful day where I have nothing to do. There’s a day where I have
time and energy. There’s a day where it’s just me and my running shoes. It’s
really those days that I run for. I stay in shape and healthy and fine-tuned so
when those days come… I’m gone. I’m off without a goal, without a time
constraint, and without a worry. I pick a direction, and I run. I feel the
world around me again and rediscover how beautiful it can all be. That’s really
what I run for.
