I'm still basking in the glory of this weekend, and am glowing in the many warm memories which seemingly melted the Southeast's first chilly frost. Yesterday, Harriet and I experienced our latest chapter of running as a part of a team. For so many years, I have run strictly as an individual. In fact, it is an element of running I still need, and hold dear. But this year, I have learned that social, interdependent running is another wonderful way to train, compete, and bond with fellow and fellowette runners.
Earlier this year, Harriet and I had our first taste of team running at the Myrtle Beach Marathon. Along with three other team members, we were fortunate enough to win the inaugural running of the Penguin Cup Championship Team Relay Prediction Run. Each member of the team played the most important role of all, as we came within a cumulative 2 seconds of our predicted time of 3:48:50. The only way we could accomplish this feat was as a team. Individual performances made no difference. Although we had only met one of the other team members before that weekend, we all supported each other before, during, and after the race, and all left the beach different people than when we came.
At the beginning of this month, we participated in another marathon relay, as part of a mixed masters team. We were members of one of the nine mixed master's teams, each consisting of 6 team members, all 40 years or older. The mixed master's teams each had to have at least two women. This time, we were running against the clock, as well as the other teams. Again, each spoke of the wheel was the most important of all. If any member of the team was unable to complete their leg, or not cleanly pass the torch to the next member of the team, the entire team would be disqualified. We were each running not just for ourselves, but also for each other. It was a nice feeling. We ended up taking third place in our category, and none of us felt like we were the individual cornerstone. We were all bricks of equal strength, creating a good strong foundation. Our accomplishment was not one of individuals, but that of a team.
Yesterday, we were invited to meet with runners of a neighboring (some might even say rivaling) club to take part in a relay. This was not competition It was just a group of runners sharing a passion, and this day, a responsibility of running from Cherokee County, NC to Cherokee County, GA. There was no clock, no course map, no registration, and no course monitors except each other. Six of us met at the Post Office in Culberson, Cherokee County, NC at 6:30 in the morning, under a bright and nearly full moon. The plan was for each person to run however far they felt like running, however quickly or slowly they felt like running. The finish line was Canton, Cherokee County, GA, 68 miles away. Two others, from another local running club, would join us as the day progressed. Some, including Harriet and myself, would leave before the finish line, but each person was an intricate part of the finished product.
When we weren't running, we were watching each other's backs. Snapshots from my mind's eye, of a solitary runner heading towards the Blue Ridge Mountains with a bright moon lingering just over the horizon still give me butterflies as I think about them today. The image of finishing my 9.5 miles, and then running the next mile with Harriet before watching her continue on for the next hour, in which she covered almost 8 miles, was another Kodak moment. Our contributions were no more, and no less important than anyone else's on the team, regardless of speed or duration. Every step, by every person was required to accomplish a team goal. There were no rewards at the finish line, but the reward was in the entire act of team running, and in knowing that we owned the road and its surroundings, because in unity, there is strength. We got our true reward before the start.
Team running. I never did it before this year, and had no idea what I was missing. It comes in many forms, and its payback is way greater than the sum of its parts. If you've never done it before, I recommend jumping at the opportunity if ever you see it. It will add a new dimension to how you view running. Sometimes, we need that jump start.
[../../../../top/bottom.htm] Tuesday, May 20, 2008 04:33 PM