There is a natural tendency when we undertake anything to want things to go perfectly. No problems or hitches. Smooth as glass. But looking back at my own life and the experiences of others, the real stories are not in moments of perfection but when things go sideways. I came to this conclusion last January. … Continue reading Where the Stories Are
Endurance Running with Transverse Myelitis
Yes, You Can!
Have you ever had a situation where someone told you that you weren’t capable of doing something? Comments like this can make someone doubt their abilities to the point they don’t even try, especially if the comments come from people who are influential in your life - a family member, close friend, or even a … Continue reading Yes, You Can!
New Adventures
This has been a challenging year for me. In August I wrote how regular exercise and movement can help people dealing with loss. My post was prompted by my own struggles. Since I was in the middle of a training cycle for both a half and a full marathon, I was able to keep moving. … Continue reading New Adventures
My Inspiration
I frequently hear people pointing out someone who they feels is inspirational. It is a term that is used for people in all walks of life - political figures, social activists, scientists, business leaders. I googled inspirational people. Some are people I would admire but I am not comfortable using the label “inspirational” to describe … Continue reading My Inspiration
What is Your Why?
Wow! We are at the end of another year - 2022. I can’t say that it has been one for the record books. After three years on the bench and recovery from surgery for torn meniscus in my knee, I decided to run a marathon. I trained for over 8 months for the Athens (Greece) … Continue reading What is Your Why?
What Makes a Runner
"I often hear someone say I'm not a real runner. We are all runners, some just run faster than others. I have never met a fake runner." Bart Yasso Standing in a corral at a race start When you picture a runner in your mind, what does that person look like? I had an experience … Continue reading What Makes a Runner
2020 The Year of the Virtual Race
Wow. It has been over a year since my last blog post. And boy, oh boy, has this last year been challenging for us all. It has taken me some time to get beyond all the bad things that happened to see this year wasn’t a total downer. There were some good things to come … Continue reading 2020 The Year of the Virtual Race
Just Like Meb
Back in the 90s Gatorade had a commercial featuring Michael Jordan slam dunking basketballs to the song “Be Like Mike”. The commercial captured the dream of every kid playing basketball at the time - they wanted to be like Mike. I just finished reading Meb Keflezighi’s book “26 Marathons” in which he describes each … Continue reading Just Like Meb
Where to Now?
My 2018 goal was to finish my 50 State Endurance Challenge (a full or half marathon in each of the 50 states). At the start of the year I only had four states remaining on my to-run list - Iowa, South Dakota, Nebraska, and New Mexico. I completed my challenge last September. In true funatical … Continue reading Where to Now?
Got No Time
When is a race trip not fun? When you get to the airport and check your race results online and they don’t show you finishing the race. This happened to me in May when I went to Iowa to run the Des Moines Women’s Half Marathon. I had a few nerve-racking hours before I was … Continue reading Got No Time
Adventures of a Funatical Runner 