Inspiration

Sometimes in life we need to step back and reflect on an accomplishment to fully absorb the magnitude of it and what its significance means to us.  Last year, a friend of mine ran and completed a 100 mile trail race in the mountains of Colorado.  That is the equivalent to just under four consecutive marathons.  If the amount of miles doesn’t blow your mind, the fact that this guy was not a runner should.  He had not run more than a 10K event in his life before he decided to train for and attempt the Leadville 100 Trail Race.

My friend’s exposure to his brother’s attempt of this feat in 2010 prompted his own attempt at competing in the race.  His brother “inspired” him with his effort. 

The following excerpts and observations are from my friend’s blog before the race last year:

“He plopped down on the side of the trail and announced, through gasped breaths, that he was "done." He said he simply could not continue up the mountain. It was too much. He just couldn’t get his legs to work. Everything hurt intensely…

…he must have felt like he had reached the utter bottom of his well.

 …rather than quit there as he had planned, he continued on into the dark night.  And he kept going for about 24 more miles and nine more hours.

Unfortunately, he eventually missed the cutoff time and was dropped from the race. But to me, despite this disappointment, the real message was loud and clear:

 His well was A LOT deeper than he realized.

 In my head, all I could see was the image of him moaning on the side of the trail announcing that he was “done,” but somehow finding it within himself to continue on for almost an entire marathon’s worth of mountain running through the middle of the night.

 That level of mental toughness seemed inconceivable to me; an entirely new concept.

I saw many runners who had the same experience my brother had – the necessarily painful but rewarding experience of finding out that their respective wells were much deeper than they knew.

 At some point during that race, almost every runner doubted whether they could go on, whether they would finish. But they pressed on anyway.

The word I thought of that night, the word that still continues to resonate in my head today is “inspiring.”

 No, I’m not really a runner, but I am curious to find out how deep my own well is.

That night I was inspired to find out how far I can go after I think I can’t go any farther.”

– JP Martin, June 2011

JP Martin trained for an entire year, ran in, and completed his race in less than 28 hours in August of 2011.  His brother completed the race last year as well in less than the allotted time of 30 hours.  This is inspiring to me.

In a world of negativity and sometimes great despair, we all need to be inspired every once in awhile.  We need stories like Lance Armstrong beating cancer and winning seven consecutive Tour de France bike races.  We need stories like Brooke and Gavin walking from Mexico to Canada on the Pacific Crest Trail.  We need stories like JP Martin’s to inspire us to embark on our own epic journeys to see what is possible and maybe just how limitless those possibilities really are.

10 Weeks On the Trail

Brooke Osborne and Gavin Morris began their journey on the Pacific Crest Trail on April 27, 2012.  In 10 weeks on the trail, they have covered over 1,100 miles, averaging nearly 16 miles a day.  They are currently in Lake Tahoe, California.

Their media coverage is increasing with the help of Colorado State University, where Brooke recently received her MBA.  You can follow along and find out more about them on their website "Wild Ones".  Until next time, hike your own hike and enjoy the day.