THE BIGGER THE DREAM, THE BIGGER THE RISK

RUNNING CARTOON OF THE WEEK

 

 



K2, also known as Mount Godwin-Austen, is the second highest mountain on earth. It is located in northern Pakistan. For every four people who have reached the summit, one has died trying. During an expedition in 2008, eleven out of fifteen people who tried to reach the summit died on the mountain. When asked why so many people want to climb such a dangerous peak, one of the climbers responded, "The bigger the dream, the bigger the risk."

Running a marathon is not nearly as dangerous as climbing K2, but the same frame of reference applies. The dream of running a marathon places a runner at higher risk. When the dream is acted upon, a person antes time, energy, resources and effort into the marathon pot. It would be interesting to discover how many people who commit to run the race actually finish it. Training takes it toll on those who dream big, and the race itself eliminates many more who never make it to the finish line.

In December I committed to running the Toledo Marathon. The day after an 18-miler last Saturday I could feel a slight strain in my left Achilles tendon. I backed off on workouts this week. Today I tried a 20-miler at an easy pace--8:20 per mile. I felt a slight pinch where the Achilles attaches to the heel during the second half of the run. It feels fine right now, but tomorrow will be the true test. If my Achilles won't cooperate, I'll take time off. With six weeks to go, this could be very frustrating. But I knew going in to marathon training, the bigger the dream the bigger the risk. No doubt about it . . . marathoners are risk takers.