SimpleSoleProject

Well specifically they are in June.  So I guess, Spring and Summer 2016 Events.

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Just in case you needed a reminder as to why being outside is so flippin’ awesome. (No idea who the gal is or how she fits in, but whatever)

I don’t write to brag.  I don’t write to motivate myself.  I don’t write because I think people will find what I say particularly interesting.  I maintain this site to try and express myself.  To have a way to record memories.  To show my kids that dad might have been kind of cool.  To look back over the years and see that I had many moments in a well lived life.  There is so much that running has to offer.  Trying to distill it down is a task that seems futile.  Trying to describe the pursuit of a goal.  Expressing the relationships you develop over the miles.  The shared experience of running is challenging enough, let alone the attempt at explaining a solo endeavor.

Which makes writing this particular piece difficult.  I want to motivate people.  I seek a way to show people what I have done.  I crave the ability to have these memories recorded.  For this particular day I am incredibly proud of what I did and want to share it.  On the other end, it is incredibly personal.  I have wanted to do this run for almost seven and a half years.  I didn’t really know what I was doing.  My style in running the Grand Canyon was nothing special.  My time somewhere around average.  But do you know what?  It was mine.  An experience to attempt to express by me alone.  There were others along for this ride and I hope they see this and agree with what I have to say and how I say it.  If you want a true trip report with logistics and a step by step account of the Grand Canyon, there are far better sources for you to seek out.  Putting our Rim to Rim to Rim attempt into accurate, and appropriate, words without sounding cliché will be a task.  Enjoy the attempt.

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I recently had a survey done of my health and habits.  They estimated my “health” age equivalent to be 29.5.  You know what, I feel like it too.  I am enjoying this life and the opportunities it presents. In my running life I race as hard as I can and when I can.  Recently competed in my 10th Platte River Park trail race, in a row.  Fastest time yet, by a long shot.  Good livin’ some people might call it.  I eat healthy, but not too healthy.  I am committed to physical fitness in a variety of forms, though running is easily my singular passion.  My family commitment goes without saying.  Same for working with young people in high school classroom and distance squad.

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I had started these thoughts almost a month ago.  Got sidetracked by other some projects, and life.  Funny how that works.  I had committed initially to at least weekly updates of this site.  I wanted to get better at writing. I wanted to let my creative flag (as weak as that might be).  I wanted to emulate the people who write about running that seem to capture running.  I wanted to share some observations about the world.  I wanted to keep a record of my progress and state of running at this point in my life.  I wanted something to show my kids that dad might be goofy, but he was also a pseudo-badass.

It is hard to stay motivated.  Here we are, the first week of February.  The cynic in me thinks that the gyms are empty, the diets have been abandoned, the gear is already collecting dust in the corner of a closet. The optimist in me sees the number of people out training on Rock Island at 7am for the Lincoln Marathon.  I see the kids I coach out running a 400 in 6 inches of snow, just wearing shorts and sport tops.  For fun or the challenge of it.  I see my good friends running 100 milers.  I see people dedicated to all sorts of improvements.

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Today’s writing motivated by http://stories.strava.com/run-2015

Running is at the same time incredibly simple and incredibly hard to do.  The motion itself is not that complicated.  Left foot, right foot.  Repeat.  It is one of the most fundamental, earliest forms of rapid transport that humans learn.  Even my 2 year old has it figured out now.  The necessary equipment, so much a barrier to other activities, is minimal.  Virtually anyone, who truly WANTS to do it, can.

So why don’t more people choose to run?  Despite being so “simple”, a large percent of the population does not even get it, let alone partake.  The fact of the matter is that running can be really hard.  Ignoring the initial tying your shoes, getting through a few minutes of likely going too fast, and trying to get in shape (that takes no less than 10 days to get through by the way and is usually cause for why people abandon hope). Running utilizes traits that are not that common.  Patience, willingness to delay gratification, goal-setting, curiosity, time, a mental desire to run in the first place, ability to deal with discomfort.  Not exclusive to running, not by any means.  This does not even begin to scrape the scratch card of progressing into chasing a time or performance.  In there you encounter obstacles of equipment, the diet, the ancillary work, and of course putting together a training plan of workouts.

Running is beautiful.  It is basic.  It is accessible.  It is fairly democratic.  Yes, it hard.

So what motivates or inspires you to run?

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