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Previous issues: 2004 Soapboxes
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Aimee's Soapbox!
April 2005: Why Sports are Groovy
Ah, the weekend long run. Most of us are familiar with the joys and the heartbreaks, the triumphs and the
pains, the ups and the downs of the long run. For me, this past weekend I got to run again with my
fellow Groovy Sunday Runners for a few laps around Valley Forge Park. And I had a great time.
Now, I don't mean I had a great TIME. In fact, I actually ran pretty slowly and even had to walk a bit, as I am
still getting over a cold. What I mean is that I had such fun with my runnin' buds that I wanted to write about it.
(WARNING: overused sports-as-a-metaphor-for-life analogy coming up.)
This weekend's long run reminded me once again how cool sports are and how they teach you neat things about life. So here are
my thoughts on Why Sports are Groovy, and no, I have not changed the names to protect my not-so-innocent friends.
1. TEAMWORK. As I mentioned earlier, my long run this weekend was less than stellar. A coughing fit about an hour into it
rendered me more useless than comb for Kojak. I had to stop and walk for a while. Now, my companions could have kept on running
and left me to walk back to the car alone. But they did not. My friend Elden kept me company the whole way, even
though he is training for a very important marathon. He walked and ran back with me, and very politely did not
react in horror and point even when I coughed up stuff. What a bud. This is a prime example of why sports are so cool.
You learn about teamwork, about watching each other's back, and about how to work together toward the common goal. Could
you do this in other areas of life? Sure. But in sports, when you are at your stinkiest, sweatiest, saltiest, and muddiest,
and someone has your back THEN, you know you have a friend.
2. CAMARADERIE. I don't know about you, but people always ask me why I run. As if running (and sports in general) is so hard
and requires such great effort, that surely no one in his right mind would do it. But what the sedentary folks are missing
is the incredible feeling when you are done your workout or race and you and your mates get to go out for the Big Chow Down.
After our run this weekend, we all trooped out to Starbucks and had coffee and tea and bagels and just lounged away an
hour, talking and socializing. Keith, Bill and I traded war stories about past races, dished about our exes, and shared our
non-running stories. Isn't it a great feeling when you hang out with your friends and tell stories and find you have much in
common and have much to offer each other?
3. INTELLECTUAL STIMULATION. Maybe this is unique to our sport, but I find that runners are smarter than the average
bear and not the stereotypical dumb jock. Or maybe it's that you've got to find SOMETHING to talk about on those two-hour
training runs, so you brush up on a little physics and philosophy before you head out to meet your chums. But I am telling you
that I learn a ton on our Sunday long runs. We talk about the meaning of life, we solve the world's problems, we debate great
political issues. (By the way John, Elden said he would like to hear more about those amoebas.) So it's like a physcial AND a
mental workout all in one!
Anyway, my point is that the long group run really is a microcosm of life. You have to learn to get along with
others, you have to dig down deep in yourself and suck it up sometimes, and you get a lot in return. Everybody can
argue and debate the best training methods, the best shoe, the best race, the best whatever, but what it comes down to in the
end is that all sports, all people, all of life is really groovy because you get to learn new stuff.
Oh, and you are all invited to run with us on Sundays at 8:00 am at the park!
Coming up...
Your spring marathon's over. . . now what?
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