So here is the truth...
My very favorite sport is running.... just slightly more favorite than swimming. My favorite swim buddy is Barbie. My favorite running buddy is my i-pod. And My favorite race is the Ragnar Wasatch Back. HANDS DOWN! Before running was cool I still loved it! The fact is that when I was in the 5th grade I had to run the "wellsville MIle" for school. When I was finished I heaved in the bathroom for 3 minutes straight. But I felt really cool when I got a certificate stating that I finished in the top half of the school. I was hooked! TOTALLY HOOKED!
I am the middle child of 6. My brother older than me kept my mother hoppen'! My brother 1 1/2 years younger than me was my side kick... we kinda kicked it through life flying under the radar! It is the best place to be in my humble opinion. We had twin baby sisters that pretty much took up the rest of the time. So... when mum decided to take up running for a stress relief I hooked up as her pacer! That really did seal the deal for me. I have the most fond memories from long runs with my mother. Everywhere I went I ran. Never, not ever, walking!
In junior high and high school I ran and ran. When I went to College I ran even more. Sometimes I even still dream of some of those long runs that I went on every day. When I do, I actually smell the mountains in my dream... and see the colors of leaves. And when I wake up I have that endorphin feeling that I just ran. Its kinda trippy!
After Cole was born I took a little running sabbatical. More like a long sabbatical! I didn't run for a looooooong time. Life got "too busy". I didn't exercise at all! YIKES! But somewhere in there a friend of mine knew that I once loved running so she invited me to be on her Ragnar team. That race story is not so beautiful! I was over weight, out of shape and sick with a parasite on race day. I ran 13 miles and thought I would die. But the experience woke me up. So I vowed to do it again under better circumstances.
This summer I ran my second Ragnar. I have never had so much fun at any race in my life... and I've run my share! My team. The cause. The entire lead up to that event... It was incredible! And so I challenge anyone who loved something so much but put it on the shelf to pull that something down and dust it off... and rekindle that love that you have. I know I have.
