Well folks, we’re a little less than two weeks out from the Boston Marathon. Our friends who are competitive runners tell us that this is a really interesting time. The majority of the training is done and many people are in that twilight zone known as the taper. By this point, you have likely logged hundreds and hundreds of miles, worn out several pairs of shoes, and gulped down enough fluid to fill a swimming pool. 

Hopkinton start line

We’re going to stay a million miles away from providing training advice, but we would like to let everyone know how much you have inspired us. You have also reminded us how much we love running.

At Coeur, we believe that there are few things in life as pure as running. In fact, we’ve got a friend who says she goes to the Church of the Long Run. By that, we think she means that she uses running to connect with the world, to appreciate what she’s been given in life, and to sort through issues and challenges. She says that, particularly after a long run, the problems that seemed daunting and complex at the start were frequently put in their place by the rhythmic pounding of her feet on the pavement. At the five mile mark, those oversized fears, that must have crept out of the anxiety closet when she grabbed her shoes, had been reduced from enormous proportions to a manageable size. By 10 miles, they had been shrunk from problems to mere challenges. By mile 15, they were just annoyances, and if she went longer than that, they generally ceased to exist at all.

Then there’s the community aspect of running. We just think the brain operates differently when the feet are moving. It seems like conversation comes more naturally during a long run (unless you’re in zone five or doing hill repeats) and the longer you go, the more “real” the conversation seems to get. The comments about the “crazy weather we’re having” at the beginning seem to give way to much more meaningful topics as the miles pass by. Relationships with boyfriends, girlfriends, husbands, wives, and family pop up after about 30 minutes, and by the one hour mark, we’re working on the meaning of life.

On that topic, we can’t help but wonder what goes on with a group training for an Ultra. I mean seriously, after mile 30, do you have all of life’s mysteries figured out? We honestly wouldn’t be surprised if at some point, say mile 40 and beyond, that there’s the high likelihood that the runners just turn into beings of pure consciousness and disappear into a higher dimension! Now, this is just a theory, but if any of you Ultra-Runners are still spending time in this plane of existence, please let us know if there is validity to our hypothesis.

Seriously though, we can't tell you how much you all inspire us.  We've been scouring Facebook and Twitter over the past couple of months to follow your training, and now we're beside ourselves as you begin to talk about your travel preparations.  On April 20th when you all begin your run, just know that we (along with the rest of the country and much of the world) will be cheering for you all the way. 

Runner at finish line

Have a great run!

Your friends at Coeur

Reginald Holden