The Prequel To The 50 In 50 By 50

In the spring of 2008, my wife decided to challenge me.  She saw that I was going through the motions of running the Chicago Marathon each year for the past seven years but did little else in the way of running and my times seemed to have plateaued.  For my birthday, she signed me up for a training group known as CARA (Chicago Area Runners Association).  Gasp!  Running is for introverts!  We do this to be alone with our thoughts, to hash out the day's frustrations, to...well, I guess I never knew running to be a social event.  Needless to say, I was a bit apprehensive about running with this group that was going to show me how to train for a faster marathon.  After all, the goal here was to qualify for the Boston Marathon.  I needed a 3:10 marathon and at the time, my best was a 3:22.  I needed some work and was willing to give this group thing a try.

There are certainly two sides to me with respect to socialization.  I could be as extroverted as one might anticipate considering I was the mascot in high school and college as well and an orientation leader in college.  However, I found solace in running and mowing the lawn, two of the most introverted activities I looked forward to often.  I should note that even though I've transformed my running into a soiree, mowing the lawn still remains the bee's knees of solitary activities as far as my summers are concerned.

I spent that summer driving 15 minutes (until now, I never dreamed of driving somewhere to go for a run - why don't you just run there?!) to a forest preserve on Saturday mornings to run with a group of about 5-6 people at my pace.  That being said, there were probably close to 150 people at all paces that would meet to train together.  It was an awesome community of like-minded people that actually socialized while running!  Though you may find yourself short of breathe while chatting on these long runs, it is a welcomed diversion to the miles spent on your feet. 

Four months of running with this group and that brings me to race day.  The 2008 Chicago Marathon was what turned me on to traveling outside of my comfort zone.  Not only did I qualify for the 2009 Boston Marathon with a 3:02 time, I made running friends that I ran the race with.  I never felt so good after finishing a marathon in spite of the fact that the temperatures climbed into the 80's.  I was ready to do it again in April when I was heading to Boston.