One Man's Defeat is Another Man's Motivation
You know in races when you are well trained and you come to a hill notorious for the demise of P.R.'s, and you see people walking, puking, or simply sitting on the curb? And then you just stay steady and git 'er done? It's awesome. It's the difference between ready and not ready. - Kristen Armstrong
Although, the Spirit of St. Louis Half Marathon isn't the hilliest road race out there, it was the most challenging I've run as it relates to elevation change. In reading Kristen's post today, the line "It's the difference between ready and not ready." really resonated.
There were many times during my training where I just wanted to pack it in for the day. Take a day off and resume running at a later time but the little voice in my head kept saying that training time missed was training time lost, reminding me that the suffering is worse for those who come to the starting line unprepared.
While ascending Market Street, and the subsequent hills after, that voice in my head returned pointing out those runners whom were falling by the wayside on the climbs and noting that I would not be joining them because I had paid my dues months before.
It was a good feeling, and although I don't want to come across as callous, the sight of those folks packing it in on the climbs was a great motivator to keep me rolling. ~namaste~