Spring 2007
The
Marathon that didn't happen
Words cannot describe what
I'm feeling right now. I was planning to run the Atlanta Marathon today
(March 25th). However, I never made it out of Chicago. A mishap at
the airport prevented me from catching my fight and there was no room on any
other plane leaving Chicago to Atlanta. Although I arrived in time to make
my flight, my suitcase was deemed to large to be considered carry on and an
overzealous security guard made me check it. Because I was under the 40 minute
window for the suitcase to make it through x-ray and out to the plane, the
ticket agent bumped me to standby on the next flight. All I can say is I don't
want to hear the words Atlanta, Marathon or American Airlines for a long, long
time.
Surprisingly, I'm handling this better than I would expect, which tells me two
things: I haven't fully processed yet and I do realize there are much more
important things to fret about. The only thing I know how do when something like
this happens is to make the best of it, to try and get back some control. If the
sword breaks, take it's fragments to a forge. So i signed up for the St Louis
marathon on April 15th. I ran it last year and PR'd so hopefully history repeats
and the running gods let me run this one. Until then, this is gonna weigh heavy
on me so I'd like to apologize in advance for any grumpiness.
If you looked up my time, it wasn't me. One of the guys in our group ran his
wife in the last 3 miles and was carrying my chip in his pocket. It never
occurred to me, but I could have had him run in at 3:15, though I truly would
not want to get into Boston that way.
Best Response I got from my friends
the best response to the email I sent out about what happened with the Atlanta Trip:
Hi Michael -
I just finished reading your email and wanted to say things like, "everything happens for a reason", or "I heard Atlanta sucked anyway", but I'm sure you're thinking - hey crazy lady, I've only heard that from about a billion people and it just doesn't help!! So let me say this....
Bravo to you Michael!! Choosing to wait for the perfect marathon! You know, it would be easy to succumb to peer pressure, "Dude, everyone's doing it - run !". But it takes a strong, secure runner to Just Say No (to American Airlines) and wait for the marathon that feels right. You've made a great choice. You and got along pretty well last year (maybe a little rough - but that happens a lot the first time) and the second time is sooo much better. Take it from me, I've run some marathons like 4 or 5 times before I finally enjoyed them (hey, no judgments, I'm a lot older than you!!). So, I'm proud of you Michael, following your heart. I'm sure April 15th will be a very special day for you - one you will remember for a long, long time. And I know you've been told this before, it's not the size of your marathon time, but how good you look when you finish. Here's to a great looking finish in !!
-Jolena