Running From Point To Point

Grateful - Thank You God For This Opportunity

“Fear has to be respected. But fear should never be something that holds any of us back.  Once I sort of opened the door to this, and stepped out of the fear and into belief, then it became a ‘when’ question, not an ‘if’.”

Spear, S. (2018). 2018 Team World Vision Marathon.

            When I look back over the last year or so, I’ve run a lot of miles, in a lot of places, with a lot of people.  I wanted to mark some of those experiences through pictures and captions within this blog entry.  From the fall of 2017 until now, I have occasionally run alone, but probably more often than not a group has been formed that enjoys this common interest.  When I run alone I can gauge my effort and speed to what I am feeling, and to whatever level I personally want to push myself towards.  When I run with others, I have been able to be a part of their journey and enjoy seeing their progress.  I documented the early history of my running when I ran a 50 mile ultra marathon for my 50^th birthday in 2016.  Those early years involved running in and around my hometown and state of Gaylord, Michigan.  (If you’re interested, you can check out the first of a three part series I did for that ultra race by clicking on Running - Part#1: The History)

            The pictures in this blog go in chronological order; sometimes following training runs, and sometimes showing actual races.  Not everything is documented because quite frankly I don’t always have something with me to take a picture.  Many do exist, however, and so for that I am grateful as they tell a story.  I look at my running as a physical activity and a chance to burn some energy, but in reality it goes far beyond that; reaching closer to a spiritual journey.  This does not make what I am able to do anything close to perfect, but it does create a purpose for what I do.  It’s a purpose to use the gifts that God has granted to me for “such a time as this” while I am still able.  Running also grants me the opportunity to either gather people together to try things that they wouldn’t otherwise think they could do, or to be a part of the synergy where bonds are woven to create strength in numbers.  Due to the time I have invested in running over the last year or so, it truly has often been my “outdoor adventure” until I had opportunities to fish creeks at safe water levels or hike the snow covered woods and cook over an open fire.

            See you along The Way…

“You can certainly go at it alone, but I really believe that life is best when shared.” Yang, B. (2018). The Why-Running 100 Miles. 

A Run With My Friend Louie As He Prepares For The 2017 Chicago Marathon
He Ran For The "Team World Vision" Organization That I Had Run For In '08 & '09

Justin And I Ran The Same Morning Louie Was Running The Chicago Marathon

Justin And I Trail Running In Preparation For A Half Marathon

I Sometimes Run With My Dog Kora On Shorter Distances

A Night Run With Justin And The Moon-Last Run Before The Half Marathon

A Road Trip To Waukesha, Wisconsin's "Last Call Half Marathon"
December 2017 - Me, Doug, And Justin

It Was Unseasonably Warm For December - It Was Also Justin's First Half Marathon!
Justin And I Ran Together While Doug Put Together A Fast Solo Race

An After-Race "Wisconsin Cheesehead Burger" From Murf's - It Was A Lot...Whew!

I Met Up With Some Of Louie's DTY Group On Christmas Eve - 2017

My Long Time Running Partner, Scott (A Great Beard BTW : ), Joins Justin And I For
A Cold Last Run Of 2017

I Called Out Times For The "Red Shoe Run" In April & Cheered On Louie
It Was Very Windy And Cold!

Some New Brooks Running Shoes - Ready For The Spring And Summer

I Love Trail Runs And Try To Get On Them As Much As Possible
Sugar River Forest Preserve

The 4th Of July 8K Run In Rockford (2018) - I've Been Running It For Decades Now

My Cousins, My Son Todd, And I Ran Gaylord's 10K Alpenfest Run (July 2018)
Breakfast Afterwards With High School Friend Chris At The Sugar Bowl Restaurant

Together with Cousins Brad And Brian, We Ran Michigan's Northwoods Trails
(July 2018)

Clark Lake, Michigan's Classic 12K Race - With Cousins Shannon, Brad, And The Boys
(August 2018)

When Zach's Half Marathon Was Canceled Due To A Storm, Scott, Justin, And I Met Up With Him To Run A Few Rain Soaked Miles As He Did His Own Half Anyways
(September 2018)

Yup...Zach Did It!  His First Unofficial Half Marathon (In Lightning & Heavy Rain)
I Ran With This Former Student & Colleague To The End & Then Ran Back To My Jeep

With Louie And Zach I Ran The "Tiger Ten Miler" In Byron, Illinois (September 2018)

This Race Was Beautiful And VERY Hilly - I Loved The Open Prairie Trails

This "Tiger Ten Miler" Race Was Easily One Of My Favorite Races Of All Time
It Was Hot, But After Running Lots Of Hills To Train, I placed 9th Over-All

“When it’s your time, is the goal to leave a well preserved body?  Or do you really want to use it...a body with stories that says you’ve pushed it, and at times suffered, and you sought its potential.”

Yang, B. (2018). The Why-Running 100 Miles.

Apparently I'm Still Fast - I Rocked It Out And Got 2nd Place In My Age Group

Time For Some New Brooks (Ghost 11) Running Shoes - Thanks Again Runner's Image!
Broke Them In On The Sinnissippi Bike Path Along The Rock River (Oct 2018)

Doug, Scott, Justin, Amy, Zach And I Running Hilly Trails In A Local Forest Preserve
(October 2018)

The Tough Guy Look : ) Justin, Zach And I Running Hills At Rock Cut In A Downpour
(October 2018)

My Cousin Brad And I Ran Around Clark Lake In Michigan And Then Stood In It
He's Crazy And Swims Until It Ices Over (I Don't : ) - November 2018

Justin, Me, & Scott Running A Long Run - The End Of November On Stone Bridge Trail

My 4th Year In A Row Running Waukesha, Wisconsin's "Last Call" Half Marathon
(December 2018)

In The Rain And Cold I Cranked Out A Good Half Marathon Time Of 1:44:33

The Teaching Crew That Ran That Day - Doug, Scott, Justin, Zach, Me, Kim, & Traci

An After Race Burger With The Crew At "Mainstream Bar & Grill" In Waukesha

With Louie & His DTY Group And Some Of Our Gang On Christmas Eve Morning 2018

Justin, Me, Amy, And Scott On A Final Trail Run For 2018 In Rock Cut State Park
Waving To Zach Who Was In Florida At The Time

From 2017 And 2018

Preparing For The Frozen Gnome 10K Trail Run In Crystal Lake, Illinois
Justin, Me, The Gnome, Scott, And Amy - January 2019

We Stuck Together As A Group For Most Of The Race - It Had Great Trails And Hills

Finishing With Amy

Amy Placed First In Her Age Group And I placed Third

Amy's Mom & Sister Were The Support Crew & Captured Our
Smiling Faces After The Race

An After Race Greek Skillet From The "Cafe Olympic" In Crystal Lake
We Ate As The Snow Started To Fall - It Hasn't Stopped Since!  : )

We Look Forward To Doing That Race Again!

“We’re all linked together and unified by this one thing, this one journey.  That’s a special bond.”

Yang, B. (2018). The Why-Running 100 Miles. 

Whether you are into running short distances, or long distances, or running at all, this video is worth the watch and is pretty motivational.  Enjoy!

One Last Pic For The Road
It Was Gaylord, Michigan's Alpenfest Race T-shirt This Year, But
It Goes Beyond That Race...
When You Follow Your Heart Home, You'll Find That Home Is Where Your Heart Is
It's Deep, But Your Motivation, The People, And Your Purpose Help Make It!