February 2012

[marathondan]

My mental meanderings of mere micturation in the mistral made many members muse and mull. My, my.

I'm not sure I agree with the "running allows one of the few opportunties to achieve measurable success in life" sentiment. Well OK, at one level it's patently true. But as a person of no particular athletic ability, achieving "success" in a sport is a fairly trivial goal for me. Whether I crack a particular time for the marathon will have no relevance when I finally shuffle into the finish chute of life. What is relevant for me is that I set myself a difficult challenge and see if I can achieve it, and hopefully learn something along the way. This of course may not be the way others see it, perhaps those with more of a competitive streak than me.

I completely agree about the time and space to think though. Not that I very often think about much other than running when I'm running.

And another hugely valuable aspect of running is the friends I've met along the way. Many of whom are reading this.

@BB - strangely, I find running in the light harder work than running at night. But I think it's harder because I run faster (notwithstanding any temperature effects). And I think I run faster because I'm somehow more self-aware - less cloaked in darkness. It's a strange one.

@GM - jealous of your Marillion viewing(s). I came to them too late to see them in their classic lineup. Both halves of that lineup have gone on to do much more apart than together, but for me the later incarnations don't come close.