I hope I can find the right words to describe what I am thinking about. If there is any question on my intent then I got the wording wrong and have failed. I am just open and honest and like to share what I am thinking and appreciate your comments. I hope I am not just rambling!
Recently someone said that I was an elite runner and that it was an honor to talk with me about running. I have thought long and hard about what this means. Just like I look up to faster runners as elite, this person probably does the same to me. While none of us are going to the Olympics any time soon, I appreciated the kind words, but I also realize that it takes nothing more than going to a big time race to be humbled as to where we fit with our abilities. I appreciate the fact that they look up to me and I will admit that selfishly it does feel good to be recognized for something, but should it be an honor to have me dispense some running advice? No.
Please don't be afraid to talk to me at a race or any other time about running or life. I put my shoes on just like you do. I paid the same race entry fee as you do. Regardless of finishing time, we both put forth the same effort during the race. If you ran as hard as you could and you are proud of that effort, then I would love to hear about it. I am always looking to talk to people before and after races; I love to hear the stories of where people are from, the adversity of their training and other stories that help bring as closer together as athletes. Its no more of a privilege to talk with a faster runner than it would be to talk with someone who has a higher rank at work; we are all people at heart and when you take running away, we are the same.
I have been taught by some of the best guys in town and I would love nothing more than to be able to pass this on to the up and coming runners. If I kept it all to myself then it was a waste for those who taught me. I want to teach you so that you can teach others and pay it forward. I'd love to have a beer with you sometime and talk about running or anything but running. I love it when people ask me for help on training or something running related where I can leverage what I have learned to help them out.
Just because I may run fast doesn't mean that I am any different than you. I respect the fact that you are out there doing it and trying your best. I am not above running with or talking to anyone. If anything; the opposite. People think that because you are fast that all you do is run fast. I love to run with friends of all paces and really I just enjoy the company of running with other people. If I am training for a goal race I will find a time for my quality running. Not many people enjoy running alone day after day and I am no different; sometimes I'd rather sacrifice a key workout just to not run alone. After all, we are just human first and runners much further down the list.
Now I will be honest to say that after I warm up before a race, and lower the sunglasses, that is how I go to that mental state that I need to be in order to race my best. Some athletes use heavy rock music on their ipod to take them there; for me lowering the sunglasses puts me into the zone. So please don't take this as being elitest; its just what I need to be at the top of my game. The second the race is over, I get more enjoyment from seeing people finish and with a joyful tone talk about how exciting it was to race. I was able to help you in your training, with coaching or to even just encourage you with my words or cheering during the race, then that is greater than any medal or reward I could receive for my own efforts.
If I have ever made you feel unimportant at a race, then I apologize. I used to be a jerk. I used to be a jerk with an ego thinking that I was hot stuff, when in the grand scheme of things, I was just a jerk. If that is who you still think that I am, then you are welcome to your opinion, but I invite you to strike up a conversation with me now and let's start over. I think you will be surprised. I pray that someday I will be known for who I am, my beliefs and maybe how I impacted your life in a positive way, not because I ran a fast race once upon a time.
So if you are a 5 minute miler or a 9 minute miler; a 40 mile a week person or an 80 mile a week person; a 10 mile runner or a 100 mile runner; we are all the same, you and I. We are runners. We are athletes. We all suffer the same during races, hurt after hard workouts, have occasional injuries and smile from ear to ear when we cross the finish line, knowing that we have given our best effort. We all look up to people who are faster than us. None of us are elite.
After all, we are the same, you and I.