Boston Marathon: You Can’t Stop Us!
After being forced to train through and endure (for the rest of us) a record-breaking 110.6 inches of snow this winter, you would have thought that come Marathon Monday, we would have gotten some sort of well-deserved break from the weather. Who didn’t hope for a day that would be 55 degrees and partly cloudy?
Nope. It was just not meant to be.
I have to say that after all we endured this past winter just to get to starting line, Monday’s weather was almost fitting. You could almost say that it was our karma. One more final weather-related challenge to overcome, in season filled with them, to finally get to the finish.
But did that stop us – NO WAY!
To the runners, YOU DID IT! As much as the rain, head-winds and 40 degree temperatures made for a tough day, whether we realized it or not, we were ready. Just to get to this point many of us had trained through sub-zero temperatures and unimaginable depths of snow. So was some rain and wind going to be stopping us from getting to the finish…apparently not.
Sure, it was not easy, but you have to admit, it was certainly memorable. These are the experiences you take with you for the rest of your life, and when the going gets tough, just think back to what you endured and accomplished on April 20, 2015 and my guess is that things won’t start to seem so bad.
To the spectators, THANK YOU! You didn’t have to be there, but you were. While it was cold and raining, your presence was a true ray of sunshine. From Hopkinton to Boston, you lined the course, stood there in the rain and cheered us all on. Seeing everyone along the way, just once again showcases how the marathon is so much more than a great sporting event, it’s an amazing community event.
I can’t begin to tell you how much energy I got from each high-five I was able to give along the way. It may have been cold out there in on the course, but your presence truly warmed my soul.
To all of us, WE ROCK. On Monday, we once again showed the world what a great place Boston is to live, the strength of our spirit and the power of our community. No matter what the forecast brings we are going be there for each other. We’ve demonstrated this in years past and clearly showed it again.
While Lelisa Desisa and Caroline Rotich may have won the race, we all collectively showed what means to be a champion. Yes, we truly demonstrated on Monday that the spirit of the marathon is not something that just resides in those who run, but something that resides within us all.
Yes, the 119th Boston Marathon was a race we will remember.
While I’m sure future years will bring the kind of weather that we all dream of, it’s on those days that someone will ask, “were you there back in 2015’’ and you’ll have the honor of being able to answer “yes.’’ In that moment, you’ll be reminded of the fact that as challenging as Monday was, we were all actually part of something very special. We’ll know that we met a challenge head-on and made it. Most importantly, we know that when life comes at us and throws us a curve – that we can’t, and won’t, be stopped.
See you all next year!
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