An Ode to Why I Run

Happy 5th of July!!

I am entering a contest at www.strands.com with hopes of winning an all-expense paid trip to Oregon to participate in The Hood To Coast Relay on one of two Strands Sponsored Relay Teams. A dream come true for me. Being a newer runner, I've never done a relay. I've also never been to Oregon. Word has it that the Hood To Coast Relay is the best relay in the nation. Thanks to the happyrunner for introducing me to this contest! Following is my entry. A poem about why I run. I am no poet, but this little rhyme sequence is from the heart.

An Ode to Why I Run

It’s an interesting question: why I run
Besides the fact it keeps me from weighing a ton
I haven’t always been a runner, no not at all
This madness started for me some time last fall

A card came in the mail from those Team in Training guys
I usually ignore these things, but this one caught my eyes
“Run a marathon!,” it screamed at me
“Do it for charity. Stop being so lazy!”

I went to the meeting: “Maybe I’ll do thirteen point one”
After all, a 10K was the furthest I’d ever run
Four months later, there I stood in the freezing cold
In a corral in Phoenix with a bib, a chip, and Vaseline in every fold

I won’t say it was easy, running all that way
Twenty six point two miles by the end of the day
Black toenails, blisters, an upset G.I. tract
But I had run every step and I was still intact

And surprise of surprises, I didn’t come in last
My time? Well, I wasn’t very fast
I ran it in four oh three, not too bad, I suppose
A good enough pace despite all those farmer’s blows

I raised some good money to pass onto those in need
But my success went beyond this good deed
Let’s face it, this running thing was turning me on
I wanted to keep going and going strong

So why do I run?, you ask like you care
I guess I have just a few things to share

I love how I feel after ten miles
When I have dried salt on my brow and bad hair styles
How the veins on my legs pop out and strain
How I am proud of myself for pushing through pain
How the farm smells, how the wind feels on my face
How I can solve the world’s problems in my head at my own pace
How I feel fit, how I feel strong
How I go further than I ever thought I could have gone
But the main reason I run, without a doubt
Is that running makes me a better person, inside and out

So I keep running, doing lots of races
Trying for new goals and meeting new faces
I’ve got my fingers crossed to visit Boston next spring
But until then I’ll just keep doing my thing.