Athlete

Last night was the end of the season potluck dinner for the running group. After a quick workout (2 mi on the treadmill, some stretching and weights), I headed over to the shop. It was great to see everyone in regular clothes, hair done, rested and wide awake. Everyone was also wearing their medals, except for those of us who did Buck Mountain. It was neat to see all the hardware - the Marine Corps medal were enormous this year; Richmond, though they had promised a "commemorative" 30th running medal looked pretty much the same as last year's.

We ate, took a picture of the group, answered Mark's series of questions (who had negative splits? what was the worst mile? favorite training run?), and talked about plans for next year.

I felt pangs of jealousy hearing about Richmond, and the cool weather. But like IronMo said, it'll still be there when I'm ready again. Maybe next year?

Our group spans the range of those just hoping to finish to those who effortlessly breeze through BQ times. And Mark, bless his soul, treats each and every one of us like the athletes that we are. It's taken me a year and a half to get to the point that I don't feel like a fraud when I say I'm an athlete. My only hope for an age group win is to still be running when I'm 100. I can't do 60 miles a week, my diet isn't systematically tuned to be the best fuel for my runs. But I'm out there. I'm setting goals, and sometimes I meet them, and sometimes I don't. I'm always pushing to be better than I was, to learn something new about my sports (running and swimming). I'm out to have fun, but I take them very seriously. Running and racing are not the most important parts of my life or identity, but they are woven in to the fabric of my life, and can't be disentangled from all the other threads that make me who I am. I'm a mom, a wife, I used to be an airline pilot, I'm still a current flight instructor, I'm a woman and a feminist, I've got brown hair, two masters degrees, and a sense of humor. And I'm an athlete.

So thanks, Mark, all the other runners, and the staff at the shop, for welcoming me into this community. Many times you all treated my athletic aspirations with much more seriousness and respect than I could muster. Thankfully, that attitude has finally rubbed off on me.

I'm an athlete.