Sublime Seven

When a 'nothing' run becomes so much more

Of all the runs I’ve completed during training for JFK 50, the one that had the least impact on my fitness was the outing that left the largest impression on my soul. Funny how that works. In between long tempo runs, monster treadmill climbs, and blazing track workouts, there was a nice little 7-miler on the schedule. The only instructions I had from my coach were: “have fun” and, “get on a trail.”

Over 75 carefree minutes on a gray autumn morning, I not only had fun, I had the time of my life. Cruising over hills and meandering through meadows, I felt completely connected to the environment. Grounded as I was by the unforgiving presence of roots and rocks covering the trail’s twists and turns, this was no time to zone out. This was a chance to zoom all the way in, well past the blood and the marrow of sinewy muscle and into the nebulous realm of distance runner metaphysics.

Propelled by unseen forces and aided by the almighty breath, I came across deer, coyotes, and a long-winged bird of prey with breakfast in its talons. I’d like to think my woodland friends appreciated my presence in the woods as much as I appreciated theirs, but we’ll never know. What I do know is that I wouldn’t have experienced any of these moments without running.